What Happens If You Die Without an Estate Plan in California?

Passing away without a will or trust in California is known as “dying intestate.” When this happens, your assets will be distributed in a predetermined manner that applies to all Californians who die intestate. This process distributes your assets to legal spouses, biological/legally adopted children, and relatives. Your personal wishes and desires are not considered whatsoever.

For example, if you have an estranged spouse that you have not spoken to in years, but you never formally divorced, they stand to inherit the lion’s share of your assets. This is true even if it was readily apparent to everyone you knew that you did not want them to inherit much, if anything. Additionally, close friends and unmarried romantic partners do not inherit anything under intestate succession. This is why having a thorough estate plan is so important to protect your loved ones.

Who Inherits Your Property If You Die Without a Will?

If you pass away without a will, your property goes to your closest legal and biological relatives. The order is as follows:

• Your spouse and children
• Your parents (if you have no children and no spouse)
• Your siblings (if your parents have passed away)
• Your grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins
• The State of California, if you have no living relatives

The intestate succession laws are strictly enforced, even though they leave out plenty of people you probably care about. These laws do not give anything from your estate to stepchildren (unless legally adopted), close friends, unmarried partners, or your chosen family. This is true even if it results in unfair or illogical outcomes. For example, if you owned a home solely in your name and lived there with an unmarried partner for decades, intestate succession laws would give your biological family the right to kick your partner out and take your home for themselves.

Who Will Raise Your Minor Children If You Die Intestate?

An estate plan allows you to nominate potential guardians for your children. Judges tend to give great deference to these nominations. However, if you die intestate, the judge is forced to give custody to whomever they believe matches the child’s “best interest.” Anyone can step in and petition for custody of your kids.

Losing control over who raises your children is a parent’s worst nightmare. The judge does not know you, your children, your values, or your family dynamics. Instead, the judge will rely heavily on family testimony and police background checks. As a result, they often select relatives who happen to look like a good fit on paper or just so happen to be a close biological relative, even if the new guardian is someone you would never have trusted. By creating an estate plan, you have the power to nominate the exact person or people you trust to look after your children.

Do All of Your Assets Go Through Probate?

No. Not all of your assets will go through probate or be distributed under intestate succession laws. Assets with designated beneficiaries, or those held in joint tenancy, pass directly to the named beneficiaries, regardless of whether you have a will.

Certain types of accounts and property bypass the probate court entirely because they have a built-in mechanism for transfer. If you have these types of assets, they will go directly to the people you named, overriding the default California intestate laws.

Examples of assets that avoid probate include:

• Life insurance payouts with a named beneficiary.
• Retirement accounts (like 401ks and IRAs) with designated beneficiaries.
• Bank accounts set up as payable-on-death (POD).
• Real estate held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship.
• Property transferred via a California transfer-on-death deed.
• Any assets properly titled and held within a living trust.

While beneficiary designations are extremely helpful, they are not a substitute for a comprehensive estate plan. If your named beneficiary dies before you do, or if you name a minor child as a beneficiary without setting up a trust, those assets could still end up tangled in the slow and expensive probate system.

Frequently Asked Questions about California Intestacy Laws

What happens if I die without a will, but I have a trust?

If you have previously worked with West Hollywood or Beverly Hills estate planning attorneys, your assets will bypass probate and be distributed according to the instructions in your trust. If your trust includes all of your assets, then you can avoid intestate succession laws. However, it is advisable to have a “pour-over will” that acts as a failsafe by transferring any assets you may have forgotten about to your trust.

Can my unmarried partner inherit my house if I die intestate?

Generally, no. California’s intestate succession laws do not recognize unmarried partners. Unless they are joint owners or named on a transfer-on-death (TOD) deed, they will not inherit your home (or anything at all) if you die intestate.

Do stepchildren or close friends inherit anything under intestate succession?

No. Intestate succession is strictly limited to legal and biological relatives. It does not matter who you truly wanted to inherit. Even if you die without any identifiable living relatives, they still are not legally entitled to any of your assets. In that case, your assets would pass to the State of California.

Contact Kushner Legal to Help Take Care of the Ones You Value Most

California’s intestate succession laws are designed to be generally applicable to all of the state’s approximately 40 million people. This means your individual wishes and relationships are not taken into account whatsoever. If you do not have a properly executed estate plan, the courts will be forced to apply strict intestacy laws, and you will have absolutely no say in how your assets are distributed.

At Kushner Legal, our Beverly Hills and  West Hollywood estate planning attorneys understand just how much you value your friends and chosen family. We help people design wills and trusts that reflect their wishes and protect the people they love.

Contact our legal team today to help ensure your loved ones are cared for.