Oklahoma Child Custody Legal Questions

If this is about her safety and not your desire to be with her, involve professionals, e.g. police and/or DHS. At 16, she is legally under the authority of her parents. You don't have a legal basis on your own to make decisions for her or help her circumvent the legal authority of the parents because she or you disagree with their decisions.... Read More

The short answer is yes. While the guardianship order remains in place and valid, the Guardian is the person legally in charge of the minor. Get yourself counsel, as has surely been presented to you as your best move, and seek relief through the court within the existing guardianship proceeding.... Read More

If your spouse desires to adopt your child, hire counsel and begin a step-parent adoption. If the bio father hasn't seen the child in over 14 months, and hasn't paid support is 12 of the the most recent 14 months, you can seek to proceed without his consent. He is still entitled to notice, and can contest the adoption. He may or may not. It does not sound like he has a lot of room to make a case. If you have been married over a year, you may be able to waive the home study, saving some of the expense involved. Other than that, the only other way to remove his parental rights is via state action, and they are not likely to get involved in your situation.... Read More

You appear to be a pregnant unwed mother. As you are not married, the putative father has neither custody nor visitation rights until either he, you or the state, if you are receiving state assistance, takes the putative father to court and establish him as the legal father. He can seek custody or visitation if he elects, as part of a paternity proceeding, but if he does not, he will simply have a financial obligation to support his child. Not every person, male or female, who helps create a child, stands up to be counted. So, at this time, unless the state or you or he already has an active action, you can move, or not, as you elect. If there is an action in place, and if you do not have counsel, reconsider that choice. If you do have counsel, ignore everything I just wrote and go see your counsel. He or she is in the best position to advise you.... Read More

Yes, it will make a difference. If you or your child test positive at birth for illegal substances, your child WILL go to state custody. If you haven't been clean living, it's too late to get that way if you are due in days. Time to find counsel in advance unless you will be relying on appointed counsel.... Read More

No. Love, faded or otherwise, is not proof of paternity. He could initiate a paternity action, although doing so before birth isn't likely to go very far. Do understand that even though love may fade, even dissolve, if you and he have created a life to come into the world, you both have legal and moral responsibilities to do right by the child, from now to adulthood, and beyond.... Read More

When you rely on an overworked, understaffed law firm to handle your affairs for free, you get what you have gotten. OCSS does what it can, as it can, but is also limited to support issues. Hire counsel. Expect to pay counsel. But also, expect results you can not get otherwise, like the judgments being pursued.... Read More

A child born during a marriage is presumed to be the husband's. After two years, if unchallenged, that presumption holds, unless the bio father appears, and the named father, bio father and mother are of one accord, and the court accepts, that the bio father should become the legal father. There may also be room for the two year clock to be on hold if the husband is active military. You do not indicate how old the child is, and it is not in son's favor that he has apparently not challenged the paternity before a divorce went through, but seeing counsel is necessary if there is any opportunity to undo the lack of action to date.... Read More

She could also revoke such an arrangement while in jail or when released even if she is not in a position to properly care for the child. Better to take the time to do right by the child and set a temporary guardianship in place. Another aspect you have not referenced. Where is the father of the child? And where are his relatives? Even if he has shown little interest to date, the mother being in jail might change that.... Read More