Adoption will make significant changes to your family. It will add a child to your family for whom you have financial and legal responsibility. You may have adopted a child from another country, a child previously placed in your family for foster care or a stepchild.
Adding a new member to your family will change your schedule and your budget. Adoption may also necessitate an update to your estate plan or be a reason to finally sit down to create one. You can plan for the future needs of your child and the rest of the family.
Adoptive children have inheritance rights in New Jersey
Every state has its own rules regarding the inheritance rights of different family members. In a scenario where an adult dies without a will, the state applies probate laws to the distribution of their property. In New Jersey, adoptive children will have the same inheritance rights that biological children will have in a situation where there isn’t an estate plan.
However, you may already have your will in place — or even a trust. You may need to add your newest family member to those documents as a beneficiary, as their need for an inheritance would not supersede your written estate plan.
Leaving specific assets for your adoptive child or adding them as a beneficiary for a trust that you have set up for your loved ones will help you continue to fulfill your parental responsibilities to your newest family member even after you die. Thinking about the needs of your adoptive child both now and in the future will help you make the right steps when considering a New Jersey adoption.
