A stepparent, including stepfather and stepmother, is a person who marries one’s own parent after the death or divorce of the other parent and therefore has no biological relationship to the child. Stepparents are not legal parents of the child unless they complete a stepparent adoption, which requires the termination of the other legal parent's rights or the consent of that parent.
See: stepparent adoption.
[Last updated in September of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]