Can I Give Up My Baby for Adoption If I Am Married? What Indiana Law Says

By: Grant Kirsh

If you are married and pregnant, you may be wondering whether you can still give up your baby for adoption in Indiana. Maybe your husband is not the biological father. Maybe you are separated or your marriage is in trouble. Maybe you and your husband simply are not in a position to parent right now.

Whatever the situation, the answer is: yes, it is possible — but there are legal steps that need to be taken because of your marital status. At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., we have been helping women navigate exactly these situations for nearly 50 years. We are a family-run Indiana adoption law firm, not a national adoption agency, and we know Indiana adoption law inside and out.

Here is what you need to understand.

Indiana Law Presumes Your Husband Is the Father

In Indiana, when a married woman gives birth, her husband is legally presumed to be the father of the child, regardless of biology. This is called the presumption of paternity, and it has important implications for adoption.

Because of this presumption, your husband has legal parental rights that must be addressed before the adoption can move forward. That does not mean adoption is impossible, but it does mean extra legal steps are required.

What Are the Options?

Depending on your specific situation, there are a few ways the adoption can proceed:

Your husband consents to the adoption. If your husband agrees that adoption is the right choice, he can sign his own consent to the adoption. This is the most straightforward path. His consent, like yours, cannot be signed until after the baby is born, and once signed, it is legally effective.

Your husband’s parental rights are terminated. If your husband does not consent, his parental rights may be terminated through a court proceeding, depending on the circumstances. This is more complex and requires experienced legal guidance.

Paternity is legally established for the biological father. If someone other than your husband is the biological father and you want the adoption to reflect that, paternity must be legally established, through a court proceeding or a signed paternity affidavit. A DNA test alone, even one showing 99% probability, does not legally establish paternity in Indiana. IC § 31-14-7-1(3) and IC § 31-14-2-1, read together, establish that paternity can only be legally established by (1) adjudication under IC article 31-14, or (2) a paternity affidavit under IC § 16-37-2-2.1. A DNA test showing 99%+ probability creates only a presumption — not legal establishment — as confirmed by In re Adoption of M.D., 258 N.E.3d 1087 (Ind. App. 2025).

Every Situation Is Different

We want to be honest with you: married birth mother situations are among the more legally complex scenarios in Indiana adoption law. The right path forward depends heavily on your specific circumstances, whether you and your husband are together or separated, whether he is the biological father, what his intentions are, and more.

This is not a situation where general information from the internet is enough. You need guidance from an attorney who knows Indiana law and has handled these situations before.

At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., we have worked with married birth mothers from Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Evansville, South Bend, Carmel, Fishers, Bloomington, Hammond, Gary, Muncie, Lafayette, Terre Haute, Kokomo, Anderson, Greenwood, and communities across Indiana. No two situations are exactly the same — but every woman deserves honest answers and real support.

Our Services Are Free to You

Our services are 100% free to you. You will never pay us anything. And if you want your own independent attorney to represent only your interests, the adoptive family is required to pay for that too — at no cost to you.

Reaching out does not mean you have made a decision. It just means you want information — and you deserve that.

Call or text us at 800-333-5736. Visit us at IndianaAdoption.com. Everything is free and confidential.

About the Author
Grant Kirsh is a second-generation adoption attorney and owner of Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., a family law firm in Indianapolis, Indiana that has been serving Indiana families since 1981. Grant graduated from Indiana University McKinney School of Law in 2013 and has personally handled nearly 3,000 foster care adoptions and his law firm has handled over 5,000 private newborn adoptions. He practices all forms of domestic adoption, with a deep personal commitment to expectant mothers considering adoption in Indiana and Indiana’s foster care system and the families and children it serves.