Urick v. McFarland
Florida District Court of Appeal
625 So. 2d 1253 (1993)
- Written by Tammy Boggs, JD
Facts
In 1939, George Urick (plaintiff) was born to Peter and Melvie Mae Urick. When George was three, his parents divorced. George lived with Peter until he was 15, when Peter died. At that point, George began living with Melvie Mae and her new husband, Gans Litman. Litman never adopted George but treated George as his son. Similarly, George called Litman “dad” and acted as if Litman was his father. Later, George’s children treated Litman as their grandfather. Neither Melvie Mae nor Litman prepared a will. In 1990, Melvie Mae died intestate, resulting in Litman’s receiving most of her property through intestacy or joint ownership. Two months later, Litman died. In probate court, George claimed that he was entitled to an intestate share of Litman’s estate under the equitable doctrine of virtual adoption. The probate court denied George’s claim, finding that there was no proof that Litman had agreed to adopt George. George appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Altenbernd, J.)
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