Adoption of Adult
The petition to adopt an adult is entitled “In the Interest of __________, an Adult.” If the petitioner is married, both spouses must join in the petition for adoption. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.503.
The first numbered paragraph of the petition must include an allegation of the intended discovery level. Tex. R. Civ. P. 190.1.
Any adult resident of Texas wanting to adopt an adult person may file a petition in the county of the petitioner’s residence. The petition may be filed in the district court or a statutory county court granted jurisdiction in family law cases and proceedings by chapter 25 of the Texas Government Code. Tex. Fam. Code §§ 162.501, 162.502.
A court may not grant an adoption unless the adult consents in writing to be adopted by the petitioner. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.504.
The petitioner and the adult to be adopted must attend the hearing. For good cause shown, the court may waive this requirement, by written order, if the petitioner or the adult to be adopted is unable to attend. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.505.
The court shall grant the adoption if the statutory requirements are met. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.506(a).
Even though both spouses petition for the adoption as required, the court may grant the adoption to only one spouse on request of both spouses. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.506(b).
§ 60.5Effect of Adoption Order
The adopted adult is the son or daughter of the adoptive parents for all purposes. The adopted adult may inherit from and through the adopted adult’s adoptive parents as though the adopted adult were a biological child. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.507(a), (b); Lehman v. Corpus Christi National Bank, 668 S.W.2d 687, 688 (Tex. 1984). The adopted adult may not inherit from or through the adult’s biological parent, and a biological parent may not inherit from or through an adopted adult. Tex. Fam. Code § 162.507(c). The adoption does not affect the citizenship of the adult adopted.
An adult may file a separate petition requesting a change of name following an adult adoption. Tex. Fam. Code §§ 45.101–.104. See section 61.3 in this manual.