If you have lost a family member or friend without a will, they are said to have passed away intestate. Each state has specific laws as to how the remainder of the estate is passed down, due to priority of pecuniary loss.

Read the following to understand priority of California intestacy laws:

• If the spouse but no children, parents, brothers, sisters, or descendants of deceased brother or sister are living, the spouse takes all.
• If the spouse and one child are living, the spouse takes 1/2 and the remainder goes to the child or the issue of the deceased child.
• If the spouse and two or more children are living, the spouse takes 1/3 of the intestate, the remaining portion goes to the children divided equally of the same generation.
• If the spouse is living and parents or brothers and sisters, but no children, the spouse takes half and the remaining portion goes to the victim’s parents. If there are no parents, the shares are divided to the children of the parents (brothers and sisters of the victim) equally, as long as they are in the same generation.
• If the children and parents are living but no spouse, all shares go to the children of the victim equally, as long as they are in the same generation.
• If parents are living but no children or spouse, the victim’s parents take all. If there are no parents, the children of the parents take equal shares, as long as they are in the same generation.

When family members of different generations are involved:

• The estate is divided into as many shares as there are living members of the nearest generation children, including deceased children in the same generation who left behind children of their own. The share of the deceased is divided equally among his or her descendants.

To learn more about California wrongful death laws, visit justice.gov.

If you or someone you love has a wrongful death case in California, please contact the attorneys at Meyerson and O’Neill law firm today at 877-373-8059.