Maryland Adoption: Birth Father Rights

If you’re considering putting your baby up for adoption in Maryland, it’s important to know about birth father rights as you make your decision. Maryland has certain laws around informing the birth father about the adoption, and we’ll walk you through everything you need to know. As you make your decision about adoption, we’re here to support you and help you learn about birth mother rights in Maryland as well as birth father rights.

 

Birth father rights in Maryland

Sometimes Maryland adoptions require birth father consent to happen, but there are a few cases where it isn’t necessary. It depends on your relationship with the birth father, and it’s best to get in touch with an adoption professional if you have questions about your situation. Remember, talking to an adoption agency doesn’t commit you to adoption. You can change your mind at any point, and adoption professionals are there to help you make your decision. Many times, adoption agencies can even help you communicate with the birth father, so you don’t have to deal with the back and forth.

Here are a few common situations that involve the birth father, and what to do in these situations.

 

You know the birth father

If you know who the biological father is and can get in touch with him, you’ll need to tell him about the pregnancy and your plans for adoption. In these cases, the birth father will need to agree to adoption and waive his parental rights too. Birth parents can waive their rights once the baby is born. You can learn more about waiving parental rights in our article about birth mother rights in Maryland. 

You don’t know who the birth father is 

If you’re unsure who the biological father is or if it is one of several people, an adoption attorney will need to help you attempt to contact the potential father or fathers. In Maryland, you must try to contact potential fathers to tell them your plans for an adoption. Otherwise, the legal adoption process can’t proceed. If the birth father doesn’t respond to your contact, the court will give the birth father 30 days after the birth to claim paternity. If he does not get in contact in 30 days, the father will automatically have his parental rights waived, and you can move forward with adoption.

 

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Navigating Maryland adoptions and birth father rights can be confusing. At A Baby Step Adoption, our goal is to make adoption easy at every step of the process. Our caring case workers are dedicated to providing everything you and the birth father need to have a successful adoption. Get in touch with us at any time to learn more about adoption, your rights, or how we can communicate with a birth father. Call or text us 24/7 at 610-553-6504.