Q) I am a Korean adoptee that lives in the U.S. Recently I found my biological parents died in South Korea. He is survived by his wife and 2 sons. He had businesses in Korea. Do I have a right to claim an inheritance to his estate? I have never met or spoken to his wife and sons and so I don’t know if he had a will written. What are my rights?
A) Based on your explanation, I am of the opinion that you are entitled to the inheritance to your deceased Korean father. The law of your deceased father’s home country shall govern your inheritance claim. Under Korean law, assuming he is survived by his wife and 2 sons, your inheritance share will be 2/9. (Please click here for a general overview of the Korean inheritance law)
You will need to file 2 suits with the Korean court. The first one will be a paternity suit and the second one will be a inheritance claim suit.
Actually I have been dealing with a very similar case. She was adopted to American family when she was young from Korea and asked our office to claim her inheritance to her deceased Korean biological father. We won the paternity suit Continue reading