Inheritance, a consequence of adoption, is a special relationship. In Turkish law, one-way inheritance is recognized in adoption. According to Article 500 of the Turkish Civil Code, the adopted child and their descendants are the legal heirs of the adopter.

Court of Cassation, 14th Civil Chamber, Date: 11.01.2016, Case No: 2015/5616, Decision No: 2016/52;

“(…) The plaintiff is the child of …, the adopted child of the deceased …. The deceased … died on March 18, 1986, and the adopted child … died on August 16, 1974, before the deceased. According to Article 500 of the Civil Code (TCC), since the adopted child and his descendants inherit as if they were blood relatives to the adopter, the fact that the adopted child died earlier does not prevent his descendants from inheriting the adopter. Therefore, considering that …, who is the legal heir of the deceased …, is the plaintiff, the merits of the case should be examined and a decision should be rendered based on the outcome. However, it was not deemed appropriate to issue a written judgment without considering the aforementioned points. (…)”[2]

On the other hand, in order to speak of the inheritance of the adopted child and his descendants, there must have been an adoptive relationship between the adopter and the adopted child established before the death of the deceased. In this context, after the adopter submits the adoption application; However, if the child dies before the court issues an adoption decision, the question of whether the adopted child can inherit arises. Article 315, paragraph 2 of the Turkish Civil Code clearly stipulates that the death of the adoptive parent after the adoption application is submitted does not prevent the adoption, provided that other circumstances are not affected by this. Court of Cassation decisions state that if one party dies during the ongoing case, the legal capacity of the party terminates, and the heirs may only continue the case if the matter affects their own assets.

Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: January 26, 2012, Case No: 2010/16038, Decision No: 2012/1473;

“The plaintiffs are married and requested to jointly adopt an adult. Both plaintiffs were heard at the hearing on May 20, 2010. One of the plaintiffs, S., died after this date, on May 24, 2010. The death or loss of discretion of the adopter after the application for adoption does not prevent the adoption, unless other circumstances are affected (TCC, Article 315/2). Therefore, the death of the applicant during the case does not render the case subject to appeal. In such a case, since the person’s capacity to sue and the person’s legal standing expire upon death, the case must be heard by including their heirs in the case (HCC, Article 55, No. 6100). … It was deemed inappropriate to render a written judgment without considering this matter.”[3]

Court of Cassation, 4th Civil Chamber, Date: 09.01.2017, Case No: 2015/615598, Decision No: 2017/58;

(…) If one of the parties dies while the case is ongoing, the deceased’s capacity to act as a party terminates. Therefore, it is not possible for the deceased to continue the case. As in the present case, cases that concern not only the deceased but also the heirs and affect the heirs’ property rights do not become irrelevant with the death of the party. (…)”[4]

Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 15.04.2004, Case No: 2004/3755, Decision No: 2004/4800;

“In the present case, the deceased, Mustafa G., died on 19.06.1993, and the adopted son, İbrahim, died before the deceased, on 22.11.1971.” It was not appropriate to award a share of the inheritance of Mustafa, the deceased, to Ibrahim’s adopted children without taking this into consideration.”[5]

Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 25.12.1985, Case No: 1985/10530, Decision No: 1985/10717;

“According to Article 447 of the Civil Code, an adopted child inherits the person who adopted him as a legitimate lineal descendant. Since the plaintiff, Ahmet, is Fatma’s adopted child, and Fatma’s husband, Mehmet, died before him, the adopted child, Ahmet, also becomes Mehmet’s heir. In other words, the inheritance passed from Mehmet to his wife passes to his adopted children upon the woman’s death. In this case, while the plaintiff’s inheritance should be accepted and a decision made in accordance with the outcome should be made, dismissing the case on contrary grounds is contrary to the Procedure and Law.”[6]

On the other hand, in Turkish law, the inheritance of an adopted child is considered “double inheritance.” More clearly, in addition to being a reserved heir to the adopters, the adopted child also continues to inherit from their biological family. This is stipulated in Article 500 of the Law: “The adopted child and their descendants inherit from the adopter as if they were blood relatives.” The adopted person’s inheritance continues within their own family.” However, in practice, the dual inheritance of adopted children presents several problems. For example, if a lineage is established between the adoptive parent and their adopted child after the adoption relationship is established, either through a recognition or paternity suit, or if a grandfather adopts the child of a child who died before him, the question of how to calculate the adopted child’s inheritance shares arises. In the first case, inheritance occurs through the same lineage but with different titles (adoption and lineage established through a recognition/paternity suit). In this case, the adopted child will inherit in a single title. In the second case, multiple ties exist (grandfatherly ties, deceased biological parents). The prevailing view in the doctrine on this matter is that the adopted child will inherit the total of these two separate lines of inheritance.

According to Article 314, Paragraph 2 of the Turkish Civil Code, the adopted child inherits only the adopter. In other words, the adopted child’s legal inheritance is limited. In other words, an adopted child cannot inherit from the adopter’s relatives through inheritance. For example, if a person is adopted by a married person, or if the adopter later marries, then the adopted child’s inheritance only applies to the adopter.

Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 24.09.1992, Case No: 1992/7853, Decision No: 1992/8458;

“An adopted child and his/her descendants inherit from the person who adopted them as if they were their lineally valid descendants” (M.K. 447/1). As can be seen, adopted children and his/her descendants inherit only from the person who adopted them. As clearly stated in Article 439/3 of the Civil Code, since they are not the child of the adopter, but rather their adopted child, they cannot benefit from the succession provided here. The Court of Cassation’s increasingly consistent view is in this direction (Decisions of the 2nd Civil Chamber of the High Court of Appeals, dated 8.5.1951, numbered 1935/3560, and dated 2.6.1971, numbered 3539-3588). It is not appropriate to make a written decision without considering that the deceased’s brother Mustafa is adopted and that Fatma cannot inherit.”[7]

As previously stated, in our law, one-way inheritance is accepted in adopted relationships. Indeed, this is established by Article 500 of the Law, which states, “The adopter and his relatives cannot inherit the adopted child.” It should be noted that, as this is a mandatory rule, it is impossible to rule otherwise. In this case, the only way for the adopter to benefit from the adopted child’s inheritance is to make a testamentary disposition (appointing an heir or leaving a specific property in a will) in favor of the adopter over the remaining portion of the estate, excluding the reserved share.

[1] This study utilized the following academic article: Şıpka, Ş., & Ergün, E. (2020). TÜRK VE İSVİÇRE

HUKUKUNDA EVLAT EDİNME KURUMUNUN MİRAS HUKUKU İLE İLİŞKİSİ. Aurum Sosyal Bilimler

Dergisi, 5(1), 23-44.

[2] Court of Cassation, 14th Civil Chamber, Date: 11.01.2016, Case No: 2015/5616, Decision No: 2016/52.

[3] Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: January 26, 2012, Case No: 2010/16038, Decision No: 2012/1473.

[4] Court of Cassation, 4th Civil Chamber, Date: 09.01.2017, Case No: 2015/615598, Decision No: 2017/58.

[5] Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 15.04.2004, Case No: 2004/3755, Decision No: 2004/4800.

[6] Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 25.12.1985, Case No: 1985/10530, Decision No: 1985/10717.

[7] Court of Cassation, 2nd Civil Chamber, Date: 24.09.1992, Case No: 1992/7853, Decision No: 1992/8458.