The Birth Father and Adoption in Indiana: What You Need to Know

By: Grant Kirsh

One of the most common and most stressful questions we hear from expectant mothers thinking about how to give up a baby for adoption is about the father. Do I have to involve him? What if he will not talk to me? What if he blocked my number? What if I do not want him involved at all?

These are important questions, and the answers depend on Indiana law and the specific facts of your situation. At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., we have handled these situations for nearly 50 years. We are a family-run Indiana adoption law firm, not a national adoption agency, and we know exactly how Indiana handles birth father rights.

Do I Have to Involve the Father?

This depends on whether the father has legally established his rights. Here is what many women do not know: a man does not automatically have full legal parental rights just because he is the biological father, unless you are married to him or were married or engaged to him within 300 days from the birth of the baby.

A DNA test, even one showing 99% or higher probability of paternity, does not legally establish paternity in Indiana. Paternity is legally established only in one of two ways: through a court proceeding, or through a signed paternity affidavit. Without one of those, a biological father has not legally established his parental rights.

What Is the Putative Father Registry?

Indiana has a putative father registry. A man who believes he may be the father of a child can register to receive notice of an adoption. Under Indiana Code 31-19-5-12, he must register by the later of 30 days from the child’s birth, or the date an adoption petition or a petition to terminate parental rights is filed.

If he does not register in time, his ability to contest the adoption becomes impossible. He must register to receive notice of the adoption.

If he is served with notice of the adoption and does not take action within 15 days, then under Indiana Code 31-19-5-18, his consent to the adoption is irrevocably implied. And under Indiana Code 31-19-9-14, if his consent is implied this way, he is also barred from establishing paternity later and barred from contesting the adoption.

What If the Father Will Not Talk to Me or Has Blocked Me?

This happens more often than you might think. A father who wants nothing to do with the pregnancy, who has disappeared, or who has cut off contact, has often taken no legal steps to establish or protect his parental rights. In most of these situations, the adoption can proceed.

The key is that the legal steps are handled correctly. This is one of the most important reasons to work with an experienced Indiana adoption attorney rather than a well-intentioned social worker at an adoption agency. The technical requirements around notice, the registry, and timing all matter, and getting them right protects your adoption from future challenges.

What If I Am Afraid of the Father?

Your safety matters, and we take it seriously. If there are safety concerns, please tell us. There are legal tools available to protect you, and we will handle your situation with care and discretion. You are not alone in this.

What If I Am Married But He Is Not the Father?

If you are married, Indiana law presumes your husband is the legal father, even if he is not biologically related to the baby. His rights must be addressed. But under Indiana Code 31-19-9-1(a)(7), if your husband is not the biological father, he would have to prove that it is in the best interest of the child for his consent to be required. There are clear legal paths forward here.

Every Situation Is Different

We cannot say it strongly enough: father situations are fact-specific and legally technical. What is true in one case may not be true in another. This is not an area to rely on general information from the internet. You need an attorney who knows Indiana adoption law and has handled these situations many times.

That is exactly what we do at Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C. Our services are 100% free to you. Whether you are in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Evansville, South Bend, Carmel, Fishers, Bloomington, Hammond, Gary, Muncie, Lafayette, Terre Haute, Kokomo, Anderson, or Greenwood, we are here.

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