Frank and Helen are not married. Helen has a child (Mary) from a prior relationship. (The father of Mary is deceased.) Frank and Helen have been living together for several months. After an argument, Frank leaves to live with his mother. He and Helen have phone conversations about getting together again and about Frank adopting Mary. They occasionally date, but do not resume their prior living arrangement. Frank is very fond of Mary and repeats his wish to adopt her. He sends Helen money to help support Mary and promises that he will go through with the adoption once everything settles down. On several occasions, he takes Mary on outings. When Helen was sick, Mary lived with Frank at his mother's home for a month.

1. Can Frank adopt Mary?

2. Would a court treat Mary as the adopted child of Frank if he died without going through the formal procedures of adoption?

3. Helen does not tell Frank that she is pregnant with his child. When the baby is born (whom she names Sam), Helen arranges for her cousin to adopt the baby. Frank does not learn about the adoption until after the adoption petition is filed. When Frank was not told about the birth of Sam, which of Frank's constitutional rights was interfered with?

4. Frank hires an attorney to try to stop the adoption of Sam. He is willing to take a paternity test. He also tells Helen that he would support Sam and raise him with the help of his (Frank's) mother. By these actions, what is Frank demonstrating?

5. Assume that Frank did not learn about the adoption of Sam until after the adoption by Helen's cousin was finalized. Is there anything that Frank could have done to protect his rights before that time?

Case Study 2

Rich is a widower who lives alone with Dave, an eight-year-old foster-care child who has been living with Rich for seven years. Rich is the father of Lena and Bill, adult children he had with his now-deceased wife. Because of disabilities, the child-welfare agency that placed Dave with Rich says that it is unlikely that anyone will adopt Dave. Rich tells the agency that he will soon adopt Dave. Rich has always told everyone that Dave is his son. He helps Dave with his homework and gives him chores around the house. Frequently, he takes Dave to family gatherings such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthdays at the homes of Rich's brothers and sisters. Rich, however, dies before he can formally adopt Dave.

1. Is Dave the adopted son of Rich?

2. Assume that Rich is the adoptive parent of Dave (by formal adoption or by equitable adoption) and that when Rich died, he did not have a will. What is Dave's rights to his estate?

3. Assume that Rich is the adoptive parent of Dave (by formal adoption or by equitable adoption) and that Rich dies with a will that specifies that his entire estate should be divided equally by "my children." In most states what would the children's interest be in his estate?

4. Assume that Rich is the adoptive parent of Dave (by formal adoption or by equitable adoption) and that Rich's sister Ann dies without a will. What is Dave's interest in her estate?

5. Assume that Rich is the adoptive parent of Dave (by formal adoption) and that the adoption was arranged by the Happy Valley Adoption Agency, a licensed private agency. Assume further that Happy Valley never told Rich about Dave's disabilities and that Rich did not find out about them until after the adoption was finalized. Is there anything Rich can do?

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Case Study 1 1 Can Frank adopt Mary Frank can potentially adopt Mary but it would require going through the formal adoption process Living together and having a close relationship with Mary doesnt aut... View the full answer