Montana Code 42-4-110. Duty to promptly petition
42-4-110. Duty to promptly petition. (1) Within 30 days after the filing of a notice of parental placement or the execution of a relinquishment and consent to the adoption of the child, whichever is later, a prospective adoptive parent shall promptly act to resolve the child’s legal status by filing:
Terms Used In Montana Code 42-4-110
- Adoption: means the act of creating the legal relationship between parent and child when it does not exist genetically. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Adoptive parent: means an adult who has become the mother or father of a child through the legal process of adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Agency: means a child placement agency licensed by the state of Montana pursuant to Title 52, chapter 8, that is expressly empowered to place children preliminary to a possible adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Child: means any person under 18 years of age. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Court: means a court of record in a competent jurisdiction and in Montana means a district court or a tribal court. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Department: means the department of public health and human services, provided for in 2-15-2201. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Parent: means the birth or adoptive mother or the birth, adoptive, or legal father whose parental rights have not been terminated. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Placing parent: means a parent who is voluntarily making a child available for adoption. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Preplacement evaluation: means the home study process conducted by the department or a licensed child-placing agency that:
(a)assists a prospective adoptive parent or family to assess its own readiness to adopt; and
(b)assesses whether the prospective adoptive parent or family and home meet applicable standards. See Montana Code 42-1-103
- Relinquishment: means the informed and voluntary release in writing of all parental rights with respect to a child by a parent to an agency or individual. See Montana Code 42-1-103
(a)a petition for termination of parental rights for purposes of adoption, including a request for custody, that includes:
(i)the relinquishment and consent to adopt executed by any legal parent other than the placing parent who has filed the notice of parental placement;
(ii)a certified copy of any court order terminating the rights and duties of any parent or guardian of the child; and
(iii)any other evidence supporting termination of the legal rights a person has with regard to the child;
(b)a petition to adopt the child who is the subject of the proceedings;
(c)a copy of the preplacement evaluation pertaining to the adoptive parent;
(d)a copy of an agreement with the department or a licensed child-placing agency agreeing to accept supervision over the postplacement evaluation period and to prepare the postplacement evaluation;
(e)a disclosure of all disbursements made with regard to the adoptive placement to date; and
(f)an affidavit from the department reporting on whether any individual has registered with the putative father registry and claims an interest in the child.
(2)The prospective adoptive parent shall request that the court promptly notice the matters provided for in subsection (1) for hearing in a timely manner.