What Happens If I Die Without a Will in Gwinnett County?

All adults in Gwinnett County and throughout the state of Georgia should consider making a will, even if they do not have substantial assets in terms of monetary value, and even when there are no health issues that suggest it is time to make plans for your estate. A will is just one type of estate planning document that is important to have in Georgia, but it is among the most important if you have assets that will need to be probated.

A will not only allows you to identify the party or parties you want to inherit your assets, and the party you trust to serve as executor so that the terms of your will are properly carried out, but this document also allows you to name a personal guardian to care for your minor children in the event the unexpected happens, and to manage finances for your minor children. It also prevents Georgia law from determining how your assets will be distributed, which is what happens if you die without a will. Our Gwinnett County estate planning lawyers can explain in more detail.

Understanding Intestate Succession 

When a person dies without a will — whether they are a Georgia resident or a resident of another state — their estate will be handled and their assets will be distributed according to their state’s laws of intestate succession. A person who dies “intestate” is a person who dies without a valid will. When this happens to a person who lives in Gwinnett County or elsewhere in Georgia, then Georgia’s intestate succession laws apply.

Each state has its own intestate succession laws, and the state’s applicable law will determine how a deceased person’s assets are distributed. It will not matter if the deceased person voiced their wishes about the distribution of their assets to friends and family members — if there is not a valid will, Georgia’s intestacy laws will be applicable.

Georgia’s Intestacy Laws 

How do Georgia’s intestate succession laws require assets to be distributed when a person died intestate? It will depend on who has survived the deceased. The following is the way that Georgia intestate succession will occur:

• If the deceased has a surviving spouse but no surviving descendants, then the surviving spouse will inherit everything;
• If deceased has a surviving child or children but no surviving spouse, then the child or children will inherit everything;
• If the deceased has a surviving spouse and surviving descendants, then the spouse and the surviving descendants will share the property equally with the spouse receiving at least one-third of the property;
• If the deceased has surviving parents but no surviving spouse or descendants, then the parents will inherit everything; and
• If the deceased has surviving siblings but no surviving spouse, descendants, or parents, then the siblings will inherit everything.

Contact a Gwinnett County Estate Planning Lawyer 

To get started making a will, you should get in touch with a Gwinnett County estate planning attorney at Bowman Law Firm today. Contact us for help with your will and other important estate planning documents in Georgia.

Source:

law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-53/chapter-2/article-1/section-53-2-1/