You’ve probably read this story in a book or seen it in a movie…A wealthy man dies, leaving two sons to divide his fortune — but then a third son shows up. Although this third son was adopted by another family and never knew the wealthy man, his arrival means that the two acknowledged sons must divide their inheritance three ways. In the book or movie, this may lead to anger, competition, or even murder, but in real life adoption and inheritance don’t work that way.
Can an adopted child inherit from his adoptive parents?
An adopted child is the same, legally, as a biological child. If the parents die intestate, the adopted child and any biological children will be equal in the sight of the law. All of the deceased person’s biological and legally adopted children are considered equal heirs. This means that after any debts, taxes, and other expenses of the estate are paid, the remaining assets are divided equally among the children.
Grandparents’ estates or other relatives’ estates follow the same rules.
Can an adopted child inherit from his biological parents?
An adoption ends the legal relationship between the child and his biological parents. When a couple adopts a child, both biological parents lose their legal relationship to the child. In the case of a stepparent adoption, the biological father loses his parental rights in favor of the husband of the adoptive mother. The same thing happens when it is a stepmother who adopts her husband’s child. Either way, the parent or parents who relinquish their parental rights are no longer the legal parents of the child.
If the birth mom goes on to amass a fortune and dies intestate, her child who was adopted by someone else has no claim on her estate.
This is also true for the estates of biological grandparents, aunts and uncles, etc. None of the biological relatives keeps any legal relationship with the child.
Estate planning changes everything
Adoptive parents, biological parents, grandparents of either kind, total strangers — people who leave a will can always name their heirs. If the birth mom in our imaginary example decides that she wants to leave her fortune to her biological child, she can say so in her will.
Heimer Law can assist with estate planning for your family. We know the ins and outs of adoption and can make sure that all your children receive the inheritance you choose for them. Call (479) 225.9725 for assistance.