Intestacy

IF NO SPOUSE SURVIVES

• Any part of a decedent's estate not effectively disposed of by will passes by intestate succession to the decedent's heirs as prescribed in this chapter, except as modified by the decedent's will.
•  A decedent by will may expressly exclude or limit the right of an individual or class to succeed to property of the decedent passing by intestate succession. If that individual or a member of that class survives the decedent, the share of the decedent's intestate estate to which that individual or class would have succeeded passes as if that individual or each member of that class had disclaimed the intestate share.

§560:2-102 Share of spouse. The intestate share of a decedent's surviving spouse is:

1. The entire intestate estate if:

• No descendant or parent of the decedent survives the decedent; or
• All of the decedent's surviving descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse and there is no other descendant of the surviving spouse who survives the decedent; 

1. The first $200,000, plus three-fourths of any balance of the intestate estate, if no descendant of the decedent survives the decedent, but a parent of the decedent survives the decedent; 
2. The first $150,000 plus one-half of any balance of the intestate estate, if all of the decedent's surviving descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse and the surviving spouse has one or more surviving descendants who are not descendants of the decedent; or
3. The first $100,000 plus one-half of any balance of the intestate estate, if one or more of the decedent's surviving descendants are not descendants of the surviving spouse.

§560:2-103 Share of heirs other than surviving spouse. Any part of the intestate estate not passing to the decedent's surviving spouse under section 560:2-102, or the entire intestate estate if there is no surviving spouse, passes in the following order to the individuals designated below who survive the decedent:

1. To the decedent's descendants by representation;
2. If there is no surviving descendant, to the decedent's parents equally if both survive, or to the surviving parent;
3. If there is no surviving descendant or parent, to the descendants of the decedent's parents or either of them by representation; and
4. If there is no surviving descendant, parent, or descendant of a parent, but the decedent is survived by one or more grandparents or descendants of grandparents, half of the estate passes to the decedent's paternal grandparents equally if both survive, or to the surviving paternal grandparent, or to the descendants of the decedent's paternal grandparents or either of them if both are deceased, the descendants taking by representation; and the other half passes to the decedent's maternal relatives in the same manner; but if there is no surviving grandparent or descendant of a grandparent on either the paternal or the maternal side, the entire estate passes to the decedent's relatives on the other side in the same manner as the half.

§560:2-104 Requirement that heir survive for one hundred twenty hours. An individual who fails to survive the decedent by one hundred twenty hours is deemed to have predeceased the decedent for purposes of homestead allowance, exempt property, and intestate succession, and the decedent's heirs are determined accordingly. If it is not established by clear and convincing evidence that an individual who would otherwise be an heir survived the decedent by one hundred twenty hours, it is deemed that the individual failed to survive for the required period. This section is not to be applied if its application would result in a taking of intestate estate by the State under section 560:2-105.

§560:2-105 No taker. If there is no taker under the provisions of this article, the intestate estate passes to the State.