Unusual Complications In Leaving Things To Heirs: What You Should Know

You have spent a lifetime building up wealth and an estate. You want to leave it to the designated heirs. Usually, this is a straightforward process with the help of an estate planning attorney. However, there are some unusual complications that can occur. 

Your Heirs Are Adopted

Adopted heirs may find it difficult to claim what is theirs because of certain laws in certain states. It becomes even more complicated if the birth parents of the adopted heir re-enter your adopted child's life. The birth parents could argue that they have some right to what your adopted child inherited, or they could fight their own birth child for a piece of the pie. Lots of strange things have happened when portions of estates have been left to adopted heirs. Discuss this at length with your lawyer, and then plan ahead for any and every possible situation.

You Have Some Alleged (Illegitimate) Children Come Forward

Estates of massive wealth often encounter false claims to the estate. Your own heirs would have to wait for the estate to resolve these claims from all those who claim to be your illegitimate children. You can put these claims to rest in your will by revealing any dalliances that might have resulted in a child, or by rebuking all claims because you never had any sort of affairs beyond that with your spouse or significant other.

If you like, you can leave these details out of the will, in a separate document, only to be brought out in the event that such claims and allegations against you are made after you have passed away. You can also leave behind a DNA sample, against which all false claimants can be tested. Doing so quickly puts aside with proof that the claimant is no child of yours and has no right to the estate.

You Actually Do Have Other Children, But You Leave Them Nothing

This is a surefire recipe for family battles. If you know that you have one or more illegitimate children that you have not made your heirs aware of, and you have not left these children a dime, things could become quite a mess, legally speaking. You will have to decide in advance exactly how you expect this to be handled, and make it very specific, either in your will, or in another document only to be shared with the courts if these children come forward after your death.

Visit a website like http://www.linskylaw.com for more information.