Supreme Court of Illinois

In a custody dispute where a stepfather attempted to adopt a child over objections of the natural father, termination of the natural father's parental rights is upheld where he failed to maintain a reasonable degree of interest, concern or responsibility as to the child. As to the status of the natural father as an indigent parent whose rights in their child are sought to be terminated: 1) denial of a free copy of the record and dismissal for failure to file the record violated the father's constitutional rights; and 2) the Juvenile Court Act would have provided for the payment of attorneys' fees of an indigent objecting parent if the adoption had taken place under that statute, thus, it would be a denial of equal protection to refuse to allow attorney fees in an Adoption Act case where there was indigency.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/21/2005
• Published 06/12/2007

Judges

Court

• Supreme Court of Illinois

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