{"id":3728,"date":"2018-10-18T12:52:24","date_gmt":"2018-10-18T19:52:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/?page_id=3728"},"modified":"2023-10-25T20:18:07","modified_gmt":"2023-10-26T03:18:07","slug":"sign-over-parental-rights-to-family-member","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/blog\/sign-over-parental-rights-to-family-member\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Sign Over Parental Rights to Family Member in Arizona"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/h2>\n

In Arizona, parental rights may be terminated by consent or by court order. In either case, the court will only approve the action when doing so is in the best interests of the child. Furthermore, it’s important to note that terminating parental rights may not eliminate a parent\u2019s child support<\/a> obligation, as parental rights primarily relate to parenting time and legal decision-making.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are looking for legal representation to terminate your parental rights and move them to another family member, please contact our family law team. You can give us a call at (480) 467-4348<\/a> or fill out a form online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Voluntary Termination of Parental Rights<\/h2>\n

Arizona law clearly states that parents have a natural right to parenting time, legal decision-making, visitation, and communication with their child. Parents also have an obligation to pay child support, which is entirely separate from parental rights.<\/p>\n

A parent has the right to request that his or her parental rights be terminated, but it takes a court order to approve the termination of parental rights in Arizona. There\u2019s no hard-and-fast rule for approvals, but there are three situations that may result in a judge\u2019s stamp of approval:<\/p>\n

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  1. When there is a family member who is willing to adopt the child \u2013 this is often referred to as \u201csigning over\u201d your parental rights. In most cases, the family member is the custodial parent\u2019s new spouse or partner. In other cases, it may be a parent, grandparent, sibling, or extended family member. The family relationship isn\u2019t actually that important\u2014what’s important is that he or she must be willing to legally adopt the child, not just take the child temporarily. Also, the family member must be better equipped to care for the needs of the child, so that the adoption is in the child\u2019s best interests.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. When a third party wishes to adopt the child \u2013 this scenario often occurs when a child is placed in foster care due to both parents\u2019 inability to care for the child. Whether the adoptive parents are family members or an unrelated third party, the rules are the same\u2014he or she must legally adopt the child and assume all of the associated rights and obligations. In this case it\u2019s assumed that the adoption would be in the child\u2019s best interests, as an adoption is always better than remaining in foster care.<\/li>\n
  3. When the custodial parent signs an agreement of consent \u2013 while it’s safe to say that judges are extremely reluctant to grant voluntary termination of parental rights when there isn\u2019t another party willing to adopt the child, there may be an exception if the custodial parent is willing and able to support and care for the child on their own. These cases are relatively rare, but they\u2019re certainly possible.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    If you believe it\u2019s in your child\u2019s best interests to sign over your parental rights to a family member, the first step is to consult with a family law attorney. With your attorney\u2019s assistance, you can file a motion for termination of parental rights in conjunction with the family member\u2019s adoption request.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Keep in mind, however, that you cannot regain your parental rights once they have been terminated. Should you change your mind down the road and decide that you want to regain custody of your child, you would need to legally adopt the child, and the family member with custody of the child would need to sign their parental rights over to you. This can be extremely difficult to do when you previously convinced a judge that you\u2019re unfit to care for the child.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    If you are unable to care for your child right now but do not want to permanently lose custody of your child, speak with an attorney about appointing a family member to serve as the child\u2019s guardian. A legal guardian can take custody of the child, and will have all of the necessary rights, privileges, and obligations to care for them until you are fit to resume caring for the child down the road.<\/p>\n

    Involuntary Termination of Parental Rights<\/h2>\n

    Most of the time, termination of parental rights is done involuntarily by court order (meaning the parent objects or cannot be found). In these cases, the court is forced to take immediate action to protect the child and ensure they are properly cared and provided for.<\/p>\n

    In Arizona, there are 11 circumstances that can lead to involuntary termination of parental rights:<\/p>\n