Written by attorneys — see sources 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.
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.
Karen Capato married Robert Capato in May 1999. Shortly thereafter, Robert was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and was told that the chemotherapy he required might render him sterile. Because the couple wanted children, Robert deposited his semen in a sperm bank before undergoing chemotherapy. Despite Robert's treatment, Karen conceived naturally and gave birth to a son in August 2001. Robert's health deteriorated in late 2001, and he died in Florida in March 2002. His will, executed in Florida, named as beneficiaries the son born of his marriage to Karen and two children from a previous marriage, but made no provision for children conceived after his death. Shortly after Robert's death, Karen began in vitro fertilization using her husband's frozen sperm. She conceived in January 2003 and gave birth to twins in September 2003, eighteen months after Robert's death. Karen Capato claimed survivors insurance benefits on behalf of the twins. The Social Security Administration denied her application. The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey affirmed the agency's decision. The court determined that the twins would qualify for benefits only if they could inherit from the deceased wage earner under Florida intestacy law. Under Florida law, a child born posthumously may inherit only if conceived during the decedent's lifetime. The Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reversed. It concluded that the undisputed biological children of a deceased wage earner and his widow qualify for survivors benefits without regard to state intestacy law. Courts of Appeals had divided on the question, with some circuits reaching conflicting results. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve the conflict.
View caseA 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…