In re Adoption of K.C.K.

Summary

The Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals affirmed the Fayette County Probate Court's determination that a biological mother's consent was required for her child's stepparent adoption under Ohio Revised Code section 3107.07(A). The court held that the mother had justifiable cause for insufficient contact during the relevant period and that post-petition evidence could be considered when it provided context for conduct during the statutory period.

Holdings

1. The probate court did not err in finding that Mother had justifiable cause for her lack of contact during the year preceding the filing of the adoption petition. Mother's attempts to contact the child and to reinstate visitation through the juvenile court supported the finding, and the decision was not against the manifest weight of the evidence.
2. The probate court was not limited to evidence from the one-year statutory period and properly considered post-petition evidence because it provided relevant context for conduct occurring before the petition was filed.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the probate court's finding that Mother had justifiable cause for failing to maintain more than de minimis contact with K.C.K. during the year preceding the adoption petition was against the manifest weight of the evidence.
2. Whether the probate court improperly considered evidence and juvenile-court proceedings occurring after the adoption petition was filed when determining whether Mother's consent was required under R.C. 3107.07(A).

Disposition

affirmed