Otero v. City of Albuquerque, 125 N.M. 770, 965 P.2d 354, 1998 -NMCA- 137

Norman Otero was killed in an automobile accident on December 19, 1992. At the time of his death he was married to Jeannette Otero, the biological mother of John Christian Otero. Norman was neither the biological nor adoptive father of John. In her capacity as personal representative of Norman's estate, Jeannette brought a wrongful death claim against the City of Albuquerque and a number of other defendants. In addition, various relatives of Norman—including Jeannette—brought individual claims in the same complaint. In Count VI of the complaint, John sought damages for loss of guidance and counseling resulting from Norman's death. The City, which is the sole appellee on this appeal, moved for summary judgment on the claim, contending that John was not a son or relative of Norman. John responded that he had been “equitably adopted” by Norman prior to his death. The district court granted the City summary judgment with respect to the claim. John appeals. We affirm because the evidence would not support a determination that Norman equitably adopted John.