This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

Earl Vallandingham died in 1956, survived by his wife Elizabeth and their four children, Elizabeth married Jim Kilgore, and he adopted the children. Earl's brother, William, died childless, unmarried, and intestate in 1983. His sole heirs were his surviving brothers and the children of brothers and sisters who predeceased him. Joe Vallandingham was appointed personal representative of the estate, and the natural children of Earl alleged that they were entitled to a share of their natural uncle's estate that their natural father would have inherited had he survived. The court held that those natural children were not entitled to inherit from Earl's brother because of their adoption by their adoptive father. They appealed.

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