If my husband raised my daughter who I had by another an, is there any reason to go through the adoption process now that she is an adult?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
If my husband raised my daughter who I had by another an, is there any reason to go through the adoption process now that she is an adult?
I had a daughter now 22 years of age while unmarried. Only my name is on the birth certificate by legal advice at that time. Soon after, I married and my husband has raised her as his own but we never took action to legally adopt most due to the expense. Now that she is an adult, are there any significant reasons to consider going through with an adoption? We are looking into changing her name, but wanted to make sure there would not be a need for a legal adoption.
Asked on September 19, 2012 under Family Law, Texas
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
Adoption, at this point, would be more of a "just in case," type situation. If something happened to you and she wanted to help him, she would have a harder time doing so since she is not his biological child or adopted child. If he died without a will, she would have no inheritance rights. If she otherwise qualified (for some reason) for SS survivor rights, she would be excluded because she is not legally his daughter. Considering her age, she would have to file a petition to change her name and pay a filing fee anyway. You could prevent a lot of possible, future issues by just filing for an adult adoption combinded with a name change (it will cost about the same anyhow). Because it's an adult adoption, it will also be much quicker than the adoption of a minor child.
If you choose not to go the adoption route, then make sure that you both have done some good estate planning and filled out the appropriate powers of attorney so that she does have some legal authority to help you both as you get older.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.