N.Y. Domestic Relations Law § 117: Effect of adoption

§ 117. Effect of adoption. 1. (a) After the making of an order of

adoption the birth parents of the adoptive child shall be relieved of

all parental duties toward and of all responsibilities for and shall

have no rights over such adoptive child or to his property by descent or

succession, except as hereinafter stated.

(b) The rights of an adoptive child to inheritance and succession from

and through his birth parents shall terminate upon the making of the

order of adoption except as hereinafter provided.

(c) The adoptive parents or parent and the adoptive child shall

sustain toward each other the legal relation of parent and child and

shall have all the rights and be subject to all the duties of that

relation including the rights of inheritance from and through each other

and the birth and adopted kindred of the adoptive parents or parent.

(d) When a birth or adoptive parent, having lawful custody of a child,

marries or remarries and consents that the stepparent may adopt such

child, such consent shall not relieve the parent so consenting of any

parental duty toward such child nor shall such consent or the order of

adoption affect the rights of such consenting spouse and such adoptive

child to inherit from and through each other and the birth and adopted

kindred of such consenting spouse.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (a), (b) and (d) of

this subdivision, as to estates of persons dying after the thirty-first

day of August, nineteen hundred eighty-seven, if:

(1) the decedent is the adoptive child's birth grandparent or is a

descendant of such grandparent, and

(2) an adoptive parent (i) is married to the child's birth parent,

(ii) is the child's birth grandparent, or (iii) is descended from such

grandparent,

the rights of an adoptive child to inheritance and succession from and

through either birth parent shall not terminate upon the making of the

order of adoption.

However, an adoptive child who is related to the decedent both by

birth relationship and by adoption shall be entitled to inherit only

under the birth relationship unless the decedent is also the adoptive

parent, in which case the adoptive child shall then be entitled to

inherit pursuant to the adoptive relationship only.

(f) The right of inheritance of an adoptive child extends to the

distributees of such child and such distributees shall be the same as if

he were the birth child of the adoptive parent.

(g) Adoptive children and birth children shall have all the rights of

fraternal relationship including the right of inheritance from each

other. Such right of inheritance extends to the distributees of such

adoptive children and birth children and such distributees shall be the

same as if each such child were the birth child of the adoptive parents.

(h) The consent of the parent of a child to the adoption of such child

by his or her spouse shall operate to vest in the adopting spouse only

the rights as distributee of a birth parent and shall leave otherwise

unaffected the rights as distributee of the consenting spouse.

(i) This subdivision shall apply only to the intestate descent and

distribution of real and personal property.

2. (a) Except as hereinafter stated, after the making of an order of

adoption, adopted children and their issue thereafter are strangers to

any birth relatives for the purpose of the interpretation or

construction of a disposition in any instrument, whether executed before

or after the order of adoption, which does not express a contrary

intention or does not expressly include the individual by name or by

some classification not based on a parent-child or family relationship.

(b) As to the wills of persons executed after the thirty-first day of

August, nineteen hundred eighty-six, or to lifetime instruments executed

after such date whether executed before or after the order of adoption,

a designation of a class of persons described in section 2-1.3 of the

estates, powers and trusts law shall, unless the will or instrument

expresses a contrary intention, be deemed to include an adoptive child

who was a member of such class in his or her birth relationship prior to

adoption, and the issue of such child, only if:

(1) an adoptive parent (i) is married to the child's birth parent,

(ii) is the child's birth grandparent, or (iii) is a descendant of such

grandparent, and

(2) the testator or creator is the child's birth grandparent or a

descendant of such grandparent.

(c) A person who, by reason of this subdivision, would be a member of

the designated class, or a member of two or more designated classes

pursuant to a single instrument, both by birth relationship and by

adoption shall be entitled to benefit only under the birth relationship,

unless the testator or creator is the adoptive parent, in which case the

person shall then be entitled to benefit only under the adoptive

relationship.

(d) The provisions of this subdivision shall not impair or defeat any

rights which have vested on or before the thirty-first day of August,

nineteen hundred eighty-six, or which have vested prior to the adoption

regardless of when the adoption occurred.

3. The provisions of law affected by the provisions of this section in

force prior to March first, nineteen hundred sixty-four shall apply to

the estates or wills of persons dying prior thereto and to lifetime

instruments theretofore executed which on said date were not subject to

grantor's power to revoke or amend.