Termination of Parental Rights

If an unmarried father wants to preserve his rights to a child that he may have fathered, it is important for him to register with the Responsible Father Registry as soon as possible. As of the date of this blog post, a father may register at the following address: South Carolina Responsible Fathers Registry

The

Artificial Insemination is mentioned one time in the South Carolina adoption statutes under the Responsible Father Registry statute.  The implication is that a father who consents to artificial insemination continues to have rights to the child and may preserve those rights by filing with the Responsible Father Registry. Section 63-9-820(L) of the South Carolina

“Withdrawal of any consent and relinquishment is not permitted except by order of the court after notice and opportunity to be heard is given to all persons concerned, and except when the court finds that the withdrawal is in the best interest of the child and that the consent or relinquishment was not given voluntarily

A parent’s rights may be terminated if the parent abandons the child. Abandonment of a child is when a parent wilfully deserts a child or wilfully surrenders physical possession of a child without making adequate arrangements for the child’s needs or the continuing care of the child.

Section 63-7-20(1) of the South Carolina Code of

Terminating a parent’s rights or taking his consent and relinquishment without a pending adoption primarily occurs  in DSS cases. The Court approving a Consent and Relinquishment or terminating a parent’s rights without a pending adoption is rare in private actions. The person would have had to have done something  egregious to warrant a Court terminating