Welcome back. In our previous blog post, we talked about intestacy and how it can occur. To recap, if you die and do not have a will, your assets are distributed under your state’s intestate succession law. The law was created so that assets are distributed in a manner that is closely aligned with what most people would want had they created a will for themselves. It generally means that assets are given to family members in order of succession, such as the surviving spouse, children, parents, siblings and so on. If a person has no relatives that can be found, the assets go to the state. That is a rare occurrence because someone, even a distant cousin, can often be found.
Understanding Intestacy | Estate Lawyers in Cary NC
Below, you'll find more reasons why this might be the case.
- If you have a spouse and more than one child, the spouse gets one third of real estate and the children get the rest divided among them, plus each gets a portion of personal property.
- If you have no spouse, parents or children, then your siblings inherit everything.
- Children’s shares are for biological or adopted children only. If you have stepchildren, fostered children, are in the process of adopting a child, or have children who have not been legally legitimated, they are not eligible to inherit anything under the intestate succession law.
- If you have a “half” sibling, or someone with whom you share a mother or father but not both, he or she is considered a sibling regardless and would be in line to inherit your assets.
- If you have questions about intestate succession, or want to create a will for yourself in order to avoid having your property distributed this way, contact a lawyer who can help you create an estate plan.
- If you have a spouse and one child, then the spouse gets half of the real estate and a portion of personal property and the child gets the other half of the real estate plus the remainder of personal property after the spouse gets his or her portion.
If you have questions or missed our previous blog with more information, contact our estate lawyers in Cary NC, as well as visit back with the previous article.
Eldreth Law Firm | Estate Lawyers in Cary NC
If you need help planning your estate, call us today. We can answer questions you may have about estate planning, wills, power of attorney, and more. Do not leave your family without a plan outlining your wishes. We also handle elder law, small business law, trademarking, copyrighting, and DWI issues.