Virtual adoption is a legal concept that allows a child who was not legally adopted to still be able to inherit from their virtual adoptive parent’s estate. It’s not about adopting a child through the internet, but rather about recognizing a special relationship between a child and their virtual adoptive parent. Florida didn’t always recognize this concept, but they do now. It’s a useful idea, even though the name can be confusing. Jane Doe is claiming that she should inherit from her late stepfather, John Q. Smith, even though she was not legally adopted by him. She is using the concept of virtual adoption, which means that she and her stepfather had an agreement that she would be his daughter and he treated her like his own child. In order to prove virtual adoption, Jane needs to show that certain specific things happened when she was growing up. The court will have to decide if Jane Doe can inherit from her stepfather based on the evidence she presents. The Smiths wanted to adopt a girl named Jane, and her biological mother agreed to it. Jane was already living with the Smiths when her biological mother gave up her rights to her. Even though the adoption wasn’t finalized because the Smiths got divorced, there’s still evidence that the natural and adoptive parents agreed to the adoption. The child, Jane, lived with the Smiths for seven years before they divorced. Even though Mr. Smith no longer lived in the home, Jane still performed as an adoptive child by living with Mrs. Smith. A court case, Laney v. Roberts, stated that a child’s performance as an adoptive child is satisfied by living with the adoptive parents. Even if the adoptive parents have a distant relationship with the child as an adult, it does not defeat the child’s claim to being virtually adopted. In Jane’s case, even though Mr. Smith left the family home, he maintained a relationship with Jane, which strengthens her claim to virtually adopted status. The Smiths took Jane into their home and treated her as their own child, even before they officially adopted her. They raised her, considered her their daughter, and she even took their last name. When Mr. Smith passed away without a will, there was a question of whether Jane, who was not biologically related to him, could inherit from his estate. This often happens when someone who is not related by blood wants to receive inheritance from someone who has passed away without a will. Virtual adoption is a way for someone who wasn’t formally adopted to still have inheritance rights from their adoptive parent. This means they can inherit from their parent just like a naturally born or normally adopted child. It should also give them the right to be appointed as the person in charge of their parent’s estate and have other rights as a child. Courts have recognized that virtually adopted children have the same rights as natural or legally adopted children when it comes to inheriting property and challenging a will. In Florida and Georgia, virtually adopted children can file a challenge to a will and have the same rights as other heirs when it comes to being appointed as the person in charge of the estate. This means that a virtually adopted child can be treated the same as a natural or legally adopted child in these situations. In simple terms, virtual adoption is a legal concept that is used to make sure that someone who was not officially adopted or born into a family is still treated the same under the law when it comes to inheriting from a deceased person. This means that they would have the same rights as a natural or legally adopted child, including the right to be in charge of handling the deceased person’s estate if they die without a will. This is to make sure that everyone is treated fairly, even if they are not related by blood or formal adoption. In short, there are only a few cases on record about virtual adoption, but it could become more common in the future as older generations pass away. This means it’s important for lawyers to understand this concept. This is an article written by two lawyers about a legal issue involving adoption and inheritance rights in Florida. They discuss the concept of virtual adoption and how it can affect a child’s right to inherit from their foster parents. The article is meant to provide information and guidance for other lawyers who may be dealing with similar cases.
Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/virtual-adoption-not-just-for-netizens/
Leave a Reply