Can An Adopted Child Inherit?
We have recently dealt with several families who have adopted children. Each one of them was concerned about what might happen to the child and any inheritance they might leave to them, should the adoptive parents die before the child reaches adulthood.
Some of the concerns they expressed involved possible undue influence being exerted on the adopted child to gain access to the inherited assets and thus dissipate the legacy that the adopted parents have left for the child’s benefit.
So for example, if that adopted child inherited an estate of say half a million pounds, once they reach adult hood there is nothing to stop the birth parents from making contact with them and potentially going after some or all of the funds available.
The only way that this situation can be avoided is through the correct use of trusts, either established via the wills of the adoptive parents or set up by them during their lifetime. This provides a protective wrapper around the assets and the appointed trustees can therefore manage the funds on behalf of the adopted child and ensure impartiality and avoid undue influence of birth parents.
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