Can an adopter disinherit an adopted child?

Disinheritance is allowed; cancelling the adoption is not

The law draws a sharp line between two very different things. An adopter cannot rescind an adoption — that power belongs only to the adopted person, and only on grave grounds. But an adopter is not left powerless if an adopted child later wrongs them. The same provision says the adopter(s) may disinherit the adoptee for causes provided in Article 919 of the Civil Code. Disinheritance is a decision about who inherits, made through a valid will; rescission is the destruction of the adoptive tie itself. You may do the first, for cause, without ever being able to do the second.

It must rest on a legal cause, not displeasure

Disinheritance is not a free hand. It works only for the specific causes the Civil Code lists in Article 919 — serious, defined acts such as an attempt against the parent's life, a grave accusation later shown to be false, maltreatment, or other conduct the law treats as gravely disqualifying. A vague sense that the child has been ungrateful is not enough.

How it has to be done to hold up

To be effective, disinheritance must be made in a valid will and must state the cause. If the parent leaves no will, or writes one that omits the reason, the child keeps the reserved share the law guarantees. The burden is on those upholding the disinheritance to prove the stated cause is real if the child contests it. In short, an adopter who wants to disinherit cannot simply say it aloud or write an angry note — the act has to be put into a will, tied to a recognised ground, and capable of surviving a challenge in court.

What disinheritance leaves untouched

Even a valid disinheritance is narrow. It removes the adopted child's compulsory share; it does not dissolve the adoption, strip the child of the family surname, or undo the status of legitimacy the adoption conferred. Nor does it reach back to gifts already validly given during the parent's lifetime, which follow their own rules. Because the line between a lawful disinheritance and an invalid one is precise, and because a defective attempt simply fails, an adopter considering this step should have the will drafted with the cause carefully set out, and the child who is disinherited should have the stated ground examined rather than accepted at face value.

Important: this law has been replaced

Republic Act No. 8552, the Domestic Adoption Act discussed above, was repealed in full by Republic Act No. 11642 (2022), the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act. Domestic adoption is no longer a court petition but an administrative process before the National Authority for Child Care. An adopted child is still treated as legitimate, but the procedures — including who may rescind or contest an adoption — now come from Republic Act No. 11642 and its rules, not from the article above. Check the current law before acting.

Related provisions

• RA 8552, Section 19 — Grounds For Rescission
• Civil Code, Article 919 — Grounds to Disinherit Children and Descendants