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9-9-207. Persons as to whom consent not required.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
9-9-207. Persons as to whom consent not required.
(a) Consent to adoption is not required of:
(1) a parent who has deserted a child without affording means of identification or who has abandoned a child;
(2) a parent of a child in the custody of another, if the parent for a period of at least one (1) year has failed significantly without justifiable cause (i) to communicate with the child or (ii) to provide for the care and support of the child as required by law or judicial decree;
(3) the father of a minor if the father's consent is not required by § 9-9-206(a)(2);
(4) a parent who has relinquished his or her right to consent under § 9-9-220;
(5) a parent whose parental rights have been terminated by order of court under § 9-9-220 or § 9-27-341;
(6) a parent judicially declared incompetent or mentally defective if the court dispenses with the parent's consent;
(7) any parent of the individual to be adopted, if the individual is an adult;
(8) any legal guardian or lawful custodian of the individual to be adopted, other than a parent, who has failed to respond in writing to a request for consent for a period of sixty (60) days or who, after examination of his or her written reasons for withholding consent, is found by the court to be withholding his or her consent unreasonably;
(9) the spouse of the individual to be adopted, if the failure of the spouse to consent to the adoption is excused by the court by reason of prolonged unexplained absence, unavailability, incapacity, or circumstances constituting an unreasonable withholding of consent;
(10) a putative father of a minor who signed an acknowledgement of paternity but who failed to establish a significant custodial, personal, or financial relationship with the juvenile prior to the time the pet
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 9-9-207
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. A text match is a research starting point; applicability is not established.
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Stable record: arkansas_code:legal_authorities:9-9-207
Source file: gov.ar.code.title.09.odt
Pages: Not recorded – Not recorded
Passage SHA-256: b1b098042f5948f73b6d84f914fa70eadacb75c3a5b89ec0d8ff451463c13597
Source location: content.xml paragraph 1416
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9-9-207. Persons as to whom consent not required.
(a) Consent to adoption is not required of:
(1) a parent who has deserted a child without affording means of identification or who has abandoned a child;
(2) a parent of a child in the custody of another, if the parent for a period of at least one (1) year has failed significantly without justifiable cause (i) to communicate with the child or (ii) to provide for the care and support of the child as required by law or judicial decree;
(3) the father of a minor if the father's consent is not required by § 9-9-206(a)(2);
(4) a parent who has relinquished his or her right to consent under § 9-9-220;
(5) a parent whose parental rights have been terminated by order of court under § 9-9-220 or § 9-27-341;
(6) a parent judicially declared incompetent or mentally defective if the court dispenses with the parent's consent;
(7) any parent of the individual to be adopted, if the individual is an adult;
(8) any legal guardian or lawful custodian of the individual to be adopted, other than a parent, who has failed to respond in writing to a request for consent for a period of sixty (60) days or who, after examination of his or her written reasons for withholding consent, is found by the court to be withholding his or her consent unreasonably;
(9) the spouse of the individual to be adopted, if the failure of the spouse to consent to the adoption is excused by the court by reason of prolonged unexplained absence, unavailability, incapacity, or circumstances constituting an unreasonable withholding of consent;
(10) a putative father of a minor who signed an acknowledgement of paternity but who failed to establish a significant custodial, personal, or financial relationship with the juvenile prior to the time the petition for adoption is filed; or
(11) a putative father of a minor who is listed on the Putative Father Registry but who failed to establish a significant custodial, personal, or financial relationship with the juvenile prior to the time the petition for adoption is filed.
(b) Except as provided in §§ 9-9-212 and 9-9-224, notice of a hearing on a petition for adoption need not be given to a person whose consent is not required or to a person whose consent or relinquishment has been filed with the petition.
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Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
9-27-341. Termination of parental rights — Definition.
(a)(1)(A) This section shall be a remedy available only to the Department of Human Services or a court-appointed attorney ad litem.
(B) This section shall not be available for private litigants or other agencies.
(2)(A) This section shall be used only in cases in which the department is attempting to clear a juvenile for permanent placement by terminating the parental rights of a parent and putative parent based on the definition of “parent” and “putative father” under § 9-27-303.
(B) This section shall not be used to terminate the rights of a putative parent if a court of competent jurisdiction has previously determined under § 9-27-325 that the rights of the putative parent have not attached.
(3) The intent of this section is to provide permanency in a juvenile's life in all instances in which the return of a juvenile to the family home is contrary to the juvenile's health, safety, or welfare and it appears from the evidence that a return to the family home cannot be accomplished in a reasonable period of time as viewed from the juvenile's perspective.
(4) The court shall rely upon the record of the parent's compliance in the entire dependency-neglect case and evidence presented at the termination hearing in making its decision on whether it is in the best interest of the juvenile to terminate parental rights.
(b)(1)(A) The circuit court may consider a petition to terminate parental rights if the court finds that there is an appropriate permanency placement plan for the juvenile.
(B) This section does not require that a permanency planning hearing be held as a prerequisite to the filing of a petition to terminate parental rights or as a prerequisite to the court's considering a petition to terminat
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 9-27-341
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 9-27-341. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
9-9-206. Persons required to consent to adoption — Consideration for relinquishing minor for adoption.
(a) Unless consent is not required under § 9-9-207, a petition to adopt a minor may be granted only if written consent to a particular adoption has been executed by:
(1) The mother of the minor;
(2) The father of the minor if:
(A) The father was married to the mother at the time the minor was conceived or at any time thereafter;
(B) The minor is his child by adoption;
(C) He has physical custody of the minor at the time the petition is filed;
(D) He has a written order granting him legal custody of the minor at the time the petition for adoption is filed;
(E) A court has adjudicated him to be the legal father prior to the time the petition for adoption is filed;
(F) He proves a significant custodial, personal, or financial relationship existed with the minor before the petition for adoption is filed; or
(G) He has acknowledged paternity under § 9-10-120(a);
(3) Any person lawfully entitled to custody of the minor or empowered to consent;
(4) The court having jurisdiction to determine custody of the minor, if the legal guardian or custodian of the person of the minor is not empowered to consent to the adoption;
(5) The minor, if more than twelve (12) years of age, unless the court in the best interest of the minor dispenses with the minor's consent; and
(6) The spouse of the minor to be adopted.
(b) A petition to adopt an adult may be granted only if written consent to adoption has been executed by the adult and the adult's spouse.
(c) Under no circumstances may a parent or guardian of a minor receive a fee, compensation, or any other thing of value as a consideration for the relinquishment of a minor for adoption. However, incidental cos
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 9-9-206
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 9-9-206. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
9-9-212. Hearing on petition — Requirements.
(a)(1) Before any hearing on a petition, the period in which the relinquishment may be withdrawn under § 9-9-220 or in which consent may be withdrawn under § 9-9-209, whichever is applicable, must have expired.
(2) No orders of adoption, interlocutory or final, may be entered prior to the period for withdrawal.
(3) After the filing of a petition to adopt a minor, the court shall fix a time and place for hearing the petition.
(4) At least twenty (20) days before the date of hearing, notice of the filing of the petition and of the time and place of hearing shall be given by the petitioner to:
(A) Any agency or person whose consent to the adoption is required by this subchapter but who has not consented;
(B) A person whose consent is dispensed with upon any ground mentioned in § 9-9-207(a)(1), (2), (6), (8), and (9); and
(C) Any putative father who has signed an acknowledgement of paternity or has registered with the state's Putative Father Registry.
(5)(A) When the petitioner alleges that any person entitled to notice cannot be located, the court shall appoint an attorney ad litem who shall make a reasonable effort to locate and serve notice upon the person entitled to notice; and upon failing to so serve actual notice, the attorney ad litem shall publish a notice of the hearing directed to the person entitled to notice in a newspaper having general circulation in the county one (1) time a week for four (4) weeks, the last publication being at least seven (7) days prior to the hearing.
(B) Before the hearing, the attorney ad litem shall file a proof of publication and an affidavit reciting the efforts made to locate and serve actual notice upon the person entitled to notice.
(b)(1)(A) Before placement of the
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 9-9-212
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 9-9-212. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
9-9-220. Relinquishment and termination of parent and child relationship.
(a) With the exception of the duty to pay child support, the rights of a parent with reference to a child, including parental right to control the child or to withhold consent to an adoption, may be relinquished and the relationship of parent and child terminated in or prior to an adoption proceeding as provided in this section. The duty of a parent to pay child support shall continue until an interlocutory decree of adoption is entered.
(b) All rights of a parent with reference to a child, including the right to receive notice of a hearing on a petition for adoption, may be relinquished and the relationship of parent and child terminated by a writing, signed by an adult parent, subject to the court's approval.
If the parent is a minor, the writing shall be signed by a guardian ad litem who is appointed to appear on behalf of the minor parent for the purpose of executing such a writing. The signing shall occur in the presence of a representative of an agency taking custody of the child, or in the presence of a notary public, whether the agency is within or without the state, or in the presence and with the approval of a judge of a court of record of this state or any other state in which the minor was present at the time it was signed. The relinquishment shall be executed in the same manner as for a consent to adopt under § 9-9-208.
(1)(A) The relinquishment may be withdrawn within ten (10) calendar days, or, if a waiver of the ten-day period is elected under subdivision (b)(3) of this section, five (5) calendar days after it is signed or the child is born, whichever is later.
(i) Notice of withdrawal shall be given by filing an affidavit with the probate division clerk of the circuit cou
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 9-9-220
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 9-9-220. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.