LD 1851, Page 30 - 121th Legislature, SECOND SPECIAL Session

	If a state chooses to enact subsection (b)(2), one of the major
criticisms of Lehr v. Robertson, supra, will be eliminated. In
Lehr, although the genetic father did not avail himself of the New
York putative fathers registry, he had filed a "visitation and
paternity" petition in another local court. The trial judge in the
adoption proceeding knew the identity of the biological father,
where he could be located, and that he was seeking to establish his
paternity in another court. Nonetheless, the court granted the
adoption and terminated the genetic father's parental rights
without notice to him. Subsection (b)(2) exempts an alleged father
from the requirement of registration if the man "commences a
proceeding to adjudicate his paternity before the court has
terminated his parental rights."

The act of registration submits the man to the personal
jurisdiction of the tribunals of the state of registration, see
UIFSA (1996) § 201(7).

Bracketed subsection (b)(2) may be omitted by those states
that do not decide termination and adoption separately, but
rather combine the termination of parental rights with the
adoption. Under optional subsection (b) [enacted without the
bracketed (2)], the alleged father may establish his father-child
relationship before an adoption can be completed.

§1873.__Notice of proceeding

Notice of a proceeding for the adoption of, or termination of
parental rights regarding, a child must be given to a registrant
who has timely registered. Notice must be given in a manner
prescribed for service of process in a civil action.

Comment

(This is section 403 of the UPA.)

This section is the logical conclusion to the legal rationale
for establishing a paternity registry. In an adoption of a child
or termination of parental rights proceeding, the registry
provides a clear procedure for resolving whether a nonmarital
father intends to assert his rights with regard to the child. If
he registers, termination of his rights and adoption of his child
may not proceed without notice to him; this affords him the
opportunity to assert his paternity and his claims for custody or
visitation.

§1874.__Termination of parental rights: child under one year

of age

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