My father and mother were never married. Can I inherit my father’s estate who passed away intestate?
Full Question:
My father passed away intestate a few months back. He and my mother were never married, but I had always been considered as his daughter. Can I inherit my father’s estate? We live in Mount Carroll, Illinois.
01/16/2017 |
Category: Wills and Estates |
State: Illinois |
#30296
Answer:
The relevant law on inheritance of father’s estate by a child born out of wedlock in Illinois is as set out below:
755 ILCS 5/2-2 (from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 2-2)
(h) *** *** ***
A child born out of wedlock is heir of his mother and of any maternal ancestor and of any person from whom his mother might have inherited, if living; and the descendants of a person who was a child born out of wedlock shall represent such person and take by descent any estate which the parent would have taken, if living. If a decedent has acknowledged paternity of a child born out of wedlock or if during his lifetime or after his death a decedent has been adjudged to be the father of a child born out of wedlock, that person is heir of his father and of any paternal ancestor and of any person from whom his father might have inherited, if living; and the descendants of a person who was a child born out of wedlock shall represent that person and take by descent any estate which the parent would have taken, if living. If during his lifetime the decedent was adjudged to be the father of a child born out of wedlock by a court of competent jurisdiction, an authenticated copy of the judgment is sufficient proof of the paternity; but in all other cases paternity must be proved by clear and convincing evidence. A person who was a child born out of wedlock whose parents intermarry and who is acknowledged by the father as the father's child is a lawful child of the father. After a child born out of wedlock is adopted, that person's relationship to his or her adopting and natural parents shall be governed by Section 2-4 of this Act. 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.
A child born out of wedlock is heir of his mother and of any maternal ancestor and of any person from whom his mother might have inherited, if living; and the descendants of a person who was a child born out of wedlock shall represent such person and take by descent any estate which the parent would have taken, if living. If a decedent has acknowledged paternity of a child born out of wedlock or if during his lifetime or after his death a decedent has been adjudged to be the father of a child born out of wedlock, that person is heir of his father and of any paternal ancestor and of any person from whom his father might have inherited, if living; and the descendants of a person who was a child born out of wedlock shall represent that person and take by descent any estate which the parent would have taken, if living. If during his lifetime the decedent was adjudged to be the father of a child born out of wedlock by a court of competent jurisdiction, an authenticated copy of the judgment is sufficient proof of the paternity; but in all other cases paternity must be proved by clear and convincing evidence. A person who was a child born out of wedlock whose parents intermarry and who is acknowledged by the father as the father's child is a lawful child of the father. After a child born out of wedlock is adopted, that person's relationship to his or her adopting and natural parents shall be governed by Section 2-4 of this Act. 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.
