Surviving family members often look for a will shortly after someone dies. They check safes, safety deposit boxes and may even inquire with the local courts. Some families are fortunate enough to locate testamentary instruments, including wills. They can then defer to the deceased’s wishes throughout estate administration.
Some families realize that there isn’t a will or simply cannot locate any documents. In such cases, the estate is said to be intestate. The lack of testamentary instruments means that state law determines what happens with the decedent’s property.
Who generally has the right to inherit from an intestate estate in California?
The law favors immediate family members
Those who live with and have close familial relationships with the decedent may have the right of inheritance from their estates after they pass. They are heirs with a right to inherit protected by state law.
Surviving spouses, for example, have protection related to community property. They have a shared interest in any assets acquired during the marriage. Depending on whether or not the decedent also had children, the surviving spouse may need to share the estate with the decedent’s surviving children.
The exact division of the estate depends on whether the surviving spouse is also a parent to the children of the decedent or is a stepparent. If someone dies with children after a divorce or without ever marrying, then their children may inherit all of their property. If they die without children but leave a surviving spouse, then their spouse might inherit all of their property.
Parents may also sometimes have an interest in an intestate estate. If young adults die without spouses or children, their parents may inherit their property. In scenarios where parents passed before the decedent, then their siblings may inherit their property.
State law also allows other family members to inherit when there are no surviving parents, spouses or children. Intestate succession laws require legal or biological connections to the decedent for people to assert themselves as heirs.
People may need help learning about the law and preparing for upcoming probate proceedings. Heirs expecting to inherit from an intestate estate may need help understanding their rights and asserting themselves during probate proceedings.