(1) As used in this section:

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Terms Used In Utah Code 78B-6-120.1

  • Adoptee: means a person who:
         (1)(a) is the subject of an adoption proceeding; or
         (1)(b) has been legally adopted. See Utah Code 78B-6-103
  • Adoption: means the judicial act that:
         (2)(a) creates the relationship of parent and child where it did not previously exist; and
         (2)(b) except as provided in Subsections 78B-6-138(2) and (4), terminates the parental rights of any other person with respect to the child. See Utah Code 78B-6-103
  • Birth mother: means the biological mother of a child. See Utah Code 78B-6-103
  • Father: means a parent who is of the male sex. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Mother: means a parent who is of the female sex. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Person: means :
         (24)(a) an individual;
         (24)(b) an association;
         (24)(c) an institution;
         (24)(d) a corporation;
         (24)(e) a company;
         (24)(f) a trust;
         (24)(g) a limited liability company;
         (24)(h) a partnership;
         (24)(i) a political subdivision;
         (24)(j) a government office, department, division, bureau, or other body of government; and
         (24)(k) any other organization or entity. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Unmarried biological father: means a man who:
         (28)(a) is the biological father of a child; and
         (28)(b) was not married to the biological mother of the child described in Subsection (28)(a) at the time of the child's conception or birth. See Utah Code 78B-6-103
     (1)(a) “Abandonment” means failure of a father, with reasonable knowledge of the pregnancy, to offer and provide financial and emotional support to the birth mother for a period of six months before the day on which the adoptee is born.
     (1)(b) “Emotional support” means a pattern of statements or actions that indicate to a reasonable person that a father intends to provide for the physical and emotional well-being of an unborn child.
(2)

     (2)(a) A court may not determine that a father abandoned the birth mother if the father failed to provide financial or emotional support because the birth mother refused to accept support.
     (2)(b) A court may not find that a father failed to provide emotional support if the father’s failure was due to impossibility of performance.
(3) Consent or relinquishment, as required by Subsection 78B-6-120(1), may be implied by any of the following acts:

     (3)(a) abandonment;
     (3)(b) leaving the adoptee with a third party, without providing the third party with the parent’s identification, for 30 consecutive days;
     (3)(c) knowingly leaving the adoptee with another person, without providing for support, communicating, or otherwise maintaining a substantial relationship with the adoptee, for six consecutive months; or
     (3)(d) receiving notification of a pending adoption proceeding under Subsection 78B-6-110(6) or of a termination proceeding under Section 78B-6-112 and failing to respond as required.
(4) Implied consent under Subsection (3) may not be withdrawn.
(5) Nothing in this section negates the requirements of Section 78B-6-121 or 78B-6-122 for an unmarried biological father.