Adopting a Child in Vermont

Any person may adopt, and a parent's partner may adopt the parent's child without ending the parent's rights if it is in the child's best interests. Adoptions of minors are filed in the Probate Division of the Superior Court where the petitioner or adoptee lives or the placing agency is located, and Vermont generally has jurisdiction if the child or prospective adoptive parent has lived in the state for six months. Consent is required from the birth mother, the identified or presumed father, and others listed in the statute, and from a child 14 or older (unless the court finds otherwise); a parent's rights may be terminated on clear and convincing evidence, for example if a parent of a child over six months old did not exercise parental responsibility for at least six months before the petition. Only a person with a favorable preplacement evaluation (completed or updated within 12 months) may take custody of a minor for adoption, though a court may waive it for good cause and placements with relatives are evaluated during the case instead.

Vermont has a separate stepparent adoption article. A stepparent has standing if, for example, the spouse has sole custody and the child lived with the spouse and stepparent for the six months before filing (12 months if the spouse shares joint legal custody). Consent is required from the child's parents (including the other parent), any court-authorized guardian, any placing agency, and the child if 14 or older, unless consent is not required (such as when the other parent's rights were terminated). A home study is not automatic: the court may order an evaluation of the stepparent to help decide whether the adoption is in the child's best interests.