Who Inherits If There Is No Will? Intestate Succession Explained

When someone dies without a will, the state decides who gets everything. Not a judge weighing fairness or family closeness — a statutory formula written decades ago by legislators who never met the deceased. The result often surprises families who assumed verbal promises or years of caregiving would count for something.

How Intestate Succession Works

Every state has an intestate succession statute that creates a rigid hierarchy of heirs. These laws only govern probate assets — property solely in the deceased's name without a beneficiary designation. Joint accounts, life insurance payouts, retirement accounts with named beneficiaries, and trust assets all pass outside this system entirely.

The general priority in most states follows this pattern:

Surviving spouse inherits first. In community property states (Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin), the surviving spouse already owns their half of community property; intestacy law determines who inherits the deceased's half, which can depend on whether descendants are shared. In common law states, the spouse's share varies — often the entire estate if there are no children, or a portion (commonly one-third to one-half) when children survive.

Children inherit next. Most states split the remaining estate equally among all biological and legally adopted children. Stepchildren typically receive nothing under intestate succession unless they were formally adopted.

Parents inherit if there is no surviving spouse or children. After parents, the line extends to siblings, then nieces and nephews, then grandparents, then aunts and uncles, then first cousins.

Escheat to the state happens only when absolutely no identifiable heir exists — a rare outcome, but one that underscores why establishing a will matters.

Heir at Law vs. Beneficiary — Why the Difference Matters

These terms are not interchangeable. An heir at law is someone entitled to inherit under state intestate succession statutes. You become an heir by blood or legal relationship, not by choice.

A beneficiary is someone named in a will, trust, life insurance policy, or retirement account to receive specific assets. Beneficiaries are chosen. An heir inherits by default.

When a will exists, beneficiaries override the intestate hierarchy. Without one, heirs at law step in — and that can produce outcomes nobody intended. A long-estranged child inherits equally with the sibling who provided years of daily care. A long-term partner who is not treated as a spouse or registered domestic partner under state law may receive nothing while a distant cousin inherits everything.

State-by-State Variations That Catch Families Off Guard

Intestate laws differ meaningfully across jurisdictions. A few patterns worth knowing:

Spousal share when children exist. In Florida, the surviving spouse receives the entire estate if all of the decedent's surviving descendants are also the spouse's descendants and the spouse has no other descendants. The spouse receives half if any surviving descendant of the decedent is not the spouse's descendant, or if the spouse has descendants who are not the decedent's descendants. New York gives the spouse $50,000 plus half the remaining estate. California community property rules give the spouse all community property but split separate property with children.

Unmarried partners. California treats registered domestic partners as spouses for intestate succession. Cohabitation or relationship length alone does not establish inheritance rights; the relationship must qualify under the state's law.

Half-siblings. Most states treat half-siblings identically to full siblings for inheritance purposes. A few states, like Louisiana, distinguish between the two depending on which parent's estate is involved.

Adopted vs. biological children. Legally adopted children inherit exactly as biological children would. A child given up for adoption generally loses inheritance rights from the biological parents, though this varies by state and whether the adoption was finalized.

What to Do If a Family Member Died Without a Will

The probate court will appoint an administrator (the intestate equivalent of an executor) to manage the estate. That administrator must follow the same process any executor would: inventorying assets, paying debts in statutory priority order, publishing creditor notices, filing tax returns, and distributing what remains according to the intestate formula.

If you have been appointed as administrator, an average nonprofessional executor spends about 570 hours of active work over a 16-month period. The average settlement takes 15 months; formal probate averages 20 months. Having a structured system makes the difference between managing the process and being overwhelmed by it.

The Executor's Complete Handbook walks you through every step — from opening the estate bank account to filing the final accounting — with checklists, communication scripts, and tracking tools designed for people navigating this process for the first time.

The One Thing You Can Control

You cannot change intestate succession laws. But if this situation has shown you how unpredictable the default rules are, you can prevent the same outcome for your own family. A basic will costs far less than the legal fees, family conflict, and administrative burden that intestacy creates.

For the estate you are settling now, focus on what the statute requires and document everything. The court's formula may not match what feels fair, but following it precisely protects you from personal liability as administrator.