Probate Chapter Two

Pertaining to a will or testament

Dying with a valid will

Dying without a valid will

Those persons who inherit from the decedent under the statutes of intestate succession

Those relatives who are in a direct line, either ascending or descending from the decedent, such as a decedent's parent or child, respectively

The stream of progeny of a person, that is, children, grandchildren, etc

An ancestor's bloodline. Those relatives that descend as lineal heirs from a person, that is, children, grandchildren, etc

A person's lineal heirs from whom they descend, that is, parent, grandparent, etc

People who are not directly related to the decedent, that is, brother, sister, uncle, aunt

One who benefits, or inherits property from a will (or one who benefits from a trust or insurance)

The place where a person makes his or her permanent home and when absent, plans on returning to it

Also called statutes of intestate succession; the statutes that prescribe the pattern of priority to inherit when a person dies intestate

The state inherits the decedent's estate

A child conceived prior to his or her father's death but born after his or her father's death

Also called right of representation. A method of distributing the decedent's estate when the decedent has left behind surviving issue from different generations. A deceased member of one generation who leaves behind surviving issue is represented by them. A living ancestor prevents his issue from inheriting

All heirs within a class receive equal shares