my niece who just turned 12 has lived with me this time for almost 2 yrs. her dad has custody,only because the state made him,anyway's we live here in wa. and dad lives in calif. he never calls not for xmas ,b-day ect. or sends anything, well I have no Insurance for her and I've gotten by so far with help from free clinic's. so how do I go about getting legal custody of her?(were not blood related ) were suppose to go vist in the summer but were both afraid he'll make her stay!!! what do I do? G. d
Go to a lawyer!
Why would you think he wants her now?
Whatever you do - try to do it nicely and calmly as possible. You don't want him to get mad and say that you can't have his daughter anymore which happens quite often when adults get mad. Good luck.
I can usually get free help through the child services division. Just start making some calls. The girls are old enough that they will take their feelings into some consideration if a legal custody should happen.
Legal aid may be able to help you for free depending on your income. You need to file for custody. You may be able to file a petition to terminate his parental rights. In CA, no contact for 6 months is grounds for terminating his rights. Otherwise, just file for custody, and the fact that she is with you now, has been with you, and wants to stay with you pretty much gaurantees she'll be able to stay. If you win without terminating his rights, you'll be able to get child support and maybe even back support.
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