Doe v. Doe

HORTON, Justice.

This case involves the termination of John Doe I’s (Father) parental rights. Father is the unmarried biological father of a minor child (GP). GP’s biological mother, Jane Doe I (Mother), together with her unmarried partner, John Doe (Step-Father), seek to terminate Father’s parental rights in order to permit Step-Father to adopt GP. They argue that Father abandoned GP and, in the alternative, Father’s consent was not required for Step-Father’s adoption of GP as Father’s parental rights never ripened. The magistrate judge found that Father had abandoned GP and terminated his…