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HI All
Long story short my hubby has been searching for his bio family for both reasons of wanting contact and NEEDING medical information. His b father has been found and has supplied the genetic history. At first he was open to some form of contact then he decided to consult his lawyer..., apparently there is a difference in the adoption laws in Michigan then in Florida where my husband was born, raised and still lives.We can only think this must have to do with the all mightly M word Money. Do any of you know if there is something in the law that would allow an adoptee to be entitled to anything from a b father who relinquished in 1958?. As far as my research there is nothing, the law in Florida anyway is clear ,,, adoptees have no rights , no rights period!; much less to financial claims against a birth parent... any help would be greatly appreciate we are trying to understand where this is all coming from...... my hubby has offered to sign a legal waiver stating he will not now or ever file any claims of any kind against the b father or his heirs or estate....he is not after money he is after some emotional closure.............and is very interested in the two half siblings on his b fathers side.............thanks for any help.... good luck to all searching
shade :)
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As far as I am aware, the laws in Michigan are the same, that there is no entitlement to a child from a birthparent who has relinquished in terms of money, inheritance, etc. Once those rights are terminated, they are no longer obligated to provide for said child. On the other hand, the adopted child has equal rights same as a biological child in the adoptive family in terms of support and right to inheritance (dependent on adoptive parents' will, of course).
Hope this helps (this is based of course, upon reading the law as it appears today).
Erin
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my bmom decided she didn't want to meet me...ever!
I have heard that she is afraid i am after her money because I came searching for her!! It never once crossed her mind that I might need medical info, or just want to meet her.!!!
Some people, especially if they have a few bucks, get paranoid. They find money to be the most important thing and can't imagine that everyone doesn't feel that way.
Annelizly,
Boy are you right, the almightly dollar does get some people feeling so self important and parnoid.if money is truly the reason the b father denied contact i am not sure we would want to meet someone so shallow. Funny thing is my husband and I talked prior to beginning this search and talked about what we would do if we found either of his b parents living on a tight budget and not doing well financially, we decided ahead of time we would be generous and assist them What the b father failed to realize or think about is maybe his birth son was finanically successful :) !
Shade :)
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[FONT="Verdana"]Shade,
I relinquished in Michigan, and my son has found me. I am a lawyer (no longer practicing), and while I do not specialize in adoption law, I have read the Michigan statutes. The law has changed through the years, and I have not read the statutes that were in force in 1958. Under Michigan law, your husband is no longer an heir of his father. HOWEVER, there appear to be some exceptions to that (see below), which may include a trust or other legal instrument which was set up by one of your husband's relatives which contains broad language that might include your husband or was effective before your husband was adopted.
Of course, I don't know all of the details, so of course this advice is worth what you are paying for it! Nothing. Do not rely on my advice. I advise you to seek counsel. However, I would caution you to find out a little more before you and your husband sign off. I know you aren't in it for the money, but your husband might be the legitimate heir to family money. This is an extremely remote possibility, but a possibility nontheless. There has been a case in the news recently about an adopted woman who was held to be an heir to the Jello fortune by the courts (due to language in a trust and the state of law at the time the ancient trust was formed by an ancestor of the adopted woman's first mother). You can find it on Google. So, odds are overwhelmingly good that your husband could not inherit from his father, but it does not appear to be outside the realm of possibility.
The applicable statute is MCL 710.60(2)
After entry of the order of adoption, there is no distinction between the rights and duties of natural progeny and adopted persons, and the adopted person becomes an heir at law of the adopting parent or parents and an heir at law of the lineal and collateral kindred of the adopting parent or parents. After entry of the order of adoption, except as provided in section 2114(2) of the estates and protected individuals code, 1998 PA 386, MCL 700.2114, an adopted child is no longer an heir at law of a parent whose rights have been terminated under this chapter or chapter XIIA or the lineal or collateral kindred of that parent, nor is an adopted adult an heir at law of a person who was his or her parent at the time the order of adoption was entered or the lineal or collateral kindred of that person, except that a right, title, or interest that has vested before entry of the final order of adoption is not divested by that order.
Good luck on your reunion. Has he found his mother?
By the way, my son has no legal right to inherit from me, but I have every intention that he WILL inherit from me. He is my only child. He has given me one granddaughter, and she is beautiful! She will inherit from me too. My son is not in it for the money either, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't get any![/FONT]