Under the laws of the State of California, an adult may adopt any other adult who is at least ten years younger for parties who want to solidify a long-standing relationship through adoption. Adult adoptions of spouses and those in a same-sex relationship are not allowed. There are exceptions to the ten year rule in situations where the adult adoptee is a sibling to the adopter.
An adult adoption is a legal process which requires both the adopter and adopted adult (and their spouses, if applicable) to consent to the adoption. Legal documents are filed with the Court and there is a final hearing. Stocks & Colburn can assist you every step of the way to insure that all the paperwork is prepared properly and to obtain a final hearing in a short time period. At the conclusion of an adult adoption, the adopted adult can change his or her last name and, if requested, Stocks & Colburn will assist in having the birth certificate also be amended.
Please also note that California Family Code Section 9306 states that both birth parents of an adult adoptee is relieved of all parental duties towards, and all responsibility for the adoptee and have no right over the adopted person, except in the case where the person adopting the adult is the spouse (at the time of the adoption) of the adoptee’s biological parent.
As a caveat, please be advised that the completion of the adult adoption may cause any social security benefits received as a result of the parent’s death (of the parent whose rights are being relieved) to cease. Further, if you are planning to do an adult adoption for purposes of immigration, you should consult an immigration attorney before completely the adult adoption to determine applicability.
Next steps: Please use the Contact Form on this page to email us and to request information for the next steps involved in retaining our services to assist you in your adult adoption.