My parents adopted me when i was 18. Will I be able to inherit my father’s estate who passed away without a will?

Full question:

I was adopted by my parents at the age of 18, though I have been living along with my adoptive father and mother ever since the age of 10. We live in Urbana, Illinois My adoptive father recently passed away, without a will. Will I be able to inherit my father’s estate?

• Category: Wills and Estates
• Date: 04/07/2025
• State: Illinois

Answer:

An adopted child is considered as the descendant of the adopting father under Illinois intestate laws. However, to have eligibility as the descendant of the adoptive parent, the adopted child must have been adopted before the age of 18, or was residing with the adopting parent before attaining 18years.
 
Therefore, if you were living with the adoptive parent before being adopted at the age of 18, you may be entitled to adoptive father’s estate.
 
Sec. 2-4. Adopted child.
(a) An adopted child is a descendant of the adopting parent for purposes of inheritance from the adopting parent and from the lineal and collateral kindred of the adopting parent and for the purpose of determining the property rights of any person under any instrument, unless the adopted child is adopted after attaining the age of 18 years and the child never resided with the adopting parent before attaining the age of 18 years, in which case the adopted child is a child of the adopting parent but is not a descendant of the adopting parent for the purposes of inheriting from the lineal or collateral kindred of the adopting parent. An adopted child and the descendants of the child who is related to a decedent through more than one line of relationship shall be entitled only to the share based on the relationship which entitles the child or descendant to the largest share. The share to which the child or descendant is not entitled shall be distributed in the same manner as if the child or descendant never existed. For purposes of inheritance, the changes made by this amendatory Act of 1997 apply to all decedents who die on or after January 1, 1998. For the purpose of determining the property rights of any person under any instrument, the changes made by this amendatory Act of 1997 apply to all instruments executed on or after January 1, 1998.