Child Abduction Notice

If your parental rights have been terminated by a court of law and/or your children have been legally adopted, in most states there is no provision for reinstating parental rights or reversing an adoption decree except under certain circumstances such as fraud, duress, coercion, etc.

Although the law specifically permits children at least 14-years-old to express an opinion, there is no specific age when a judge will listen to a child's opinion. California statutes also permit a child younger than 14 years old to testify regarding a custodial preference, unless the court decides it's not in the

Residency Requirement. Generally, in order to have your child custody issues decided by a judge in Minnesota, the child must have lived in Minnesota with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least six (6) consecutive months (180 days) before starting the court process.

There's no specific age when a child is old enough to have a custodial preference, but it's somewhat rare for a court to consider the opinion of a child less than seven years old. It's not unusual for an eight-year-old child to have an opinion that impacts the custody decision.

In Minnesota, there is not set age limit on when a child can decide which parent to live with. The court will consider the child's wishes to the extent that the child is sufficiently mature to express reasoned and independent preferences as to the parenting time schedule.

Unfortunately in some circumstances, a father may take your child during agreed contact time and then refuse to bring them home again. If this happens and you are unable to negotiate with the father then you should call the police. However, the police may not be able to do anything.

As of now, the states that allow reinstatement of parental rights include: Alaska, Colorado, California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, and Washington; and while state statutes vary and each has its own terms and conditions when considering restoration of

In a legal sense, signing over your parental rights removes your legal claim to your children. You will not have the right to make any decisions regarding their lives such as medical care and education. You are also not legally entitled to have visitation with or custody of your children.