INSTRUCTIONS FOR FLORIDA SUPREME COURT APPROVED FAMILY LAW
FORM 12.981(a)(2),
STEPPARENT ADOPTION: CONSENT OF ADOPTEE (03/15)
When should this form be used?
This form must be completed and signed by the person being adopted, the adoptee, if he or she is over 12
years of age, unless the court, in the best interest of the minor excuses the minor’s consent. It must be
signed in the presence of a notary public or deputy clerk and two witnesses other than the notary public or
deputy clerk.
This form should be typed or printed in black ink. After completing this form, you should file the original
with the clerk of the circuit court in the county where the Joint Petition for Adoption by Stepparent, Florida
Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.981(b)(1) is filed and keep a copy for your records.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING E-FILING
The Florida Rules of Judicial Administration now require that all petitions, pleadings, and documents be filed
electronically except in certain circumstances. Self-represented litigants may file petitions or other
pleadings or documents electronically; however, they are not required to do so. If you choose to file your
pleadings or other documents electronically, you must do so in accordance with Florida Rule of Judicial
Administration 2.525, and you must follow the procedures of the judicial circuit in which you file. The rules
and procedures should be carefully read and followed.
Special notes...
Remember, a person who is NOT an attorney is called a nonlawyer. If a nonlawyer helps you fill out these
forms, that person must give you a copy of Disclosure from Nonlawyer, Florida Family Law Rules of
Procedure Form 12.900 (a), before he or she helps you. A nonlawyer helping you fill out these forms also
must put his or her name, address, and telephone number on the bottom of the last page of every form he
or she helps you complete.
Instructions for Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.981(a)(2), Stepparent Adoption:
Consent of Adoptee (03/15)