Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An individual who has been adopted by one or two nonbiological parents. The adoption creates a legal parent-child relationship between the adoptee and the adoptive parent or parents.
Amelia Amari gave birth to an infant and executed a notarized consent form two days later designating adoptive parents. The infant, as adoptee, remained in the hospital during the NICU stay. Amelia petitioned to withdraw consent before any decree was entered, asserting that withdrawal served the adoptee's best interests given her postpartum circumstances.
Aaron Adams formally adopted Mia through a court decree years before his death. His will left corporate shares to his children without further definition. Mia, as adoptee, claimed the shares as Aaron's legal child under the parent-child relationship created by the adoption.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Austin Abbott died while employed, leaving retirement benefits payable to his children. He had legally adopted Anika Anand through a prior decree. Anika, as adoptee, sought the benefits on the basis of the parent-child relationship established by the adoption.
A valid adoption establishes a full legal parent-child relationship. The adoptee is treated as the adoptive parent's child for purposes of intestate succession and class gifts in wills or benefit plans unless the instrument provides otherwise.
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Consent must be given after birth in writing and notarized. Withdrawal before the decree may be permitted if it serves the adoptee's best interests after notice and a hearing.
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The adoptee stands in the same legal position as a biological child for class-gift purposes once a formal adoption decree issues. Informal relationships or de facto arrangements do not create equivalent status without adoption or adjudication.
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Adoption consent statutes prohibit irrevocable pre-birth consent. Any such consent fails to support entry of a decree, and withdrawal is available before the decree upon a best-interests showing.
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…parent is not necessarily a child’s parent under law. Ordinarily, “a parent-child relationship does not exist between an adoptee and the adoptee’s genetic parents.” Uniform Probate Code §2–119(a), 8 U. L. A. 55 (Supp. 2011) (amended 2008). Moreover, laws directly addressing use of today’s assisted reproduction…