Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Ohio
Inheritance Rights of Non-Biological Child
Out-of-wedlock child; father sought custody, received it from the court, and raised child. When child reached 16, he discovered through DNA testing that child was not his. This man currently lives with widowed mother who has deeded her house to him. He is intestate. If he predeceases his mother, who will be first in line to inherit? Will the child have a claim to his estate? The man is divorced, with no other children. He still considers the child his. He has a sibling. Does the sibling have any inheritance rights?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Inheritance Rights of Non-Biological Child
A presumption of paternity exists from his acknowledgment of paternity. This presumption can be rebutted with the DNA evidence, but this is much more expensive than preparing a will.
No matter what, he should grant to his mother a life estate in her own house. He can leave his other assets to the child, and the value of the home will be available when his mother dies.
Re: Inheritance Rights of Non-Biological Child
Wow, this is a good law school exam question! Since this is about Ohio law, I defer to my colleague who has already answered. I would add, that unless the paternity was contested in court, the DNA test alone probably does nothing - again, that would be under Kentucky law though.
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