Intestate succession

Question 1

Community property

Answer 1

Earnings and acquisitions of both spouses during marriage while domiciled in CA. Surviving spouse inherits the deceased spouse’s one-half of the community property and retains the one-half the surviving spouse already owns.

Question 2

Quasi-community property

Answer 2

Personal property and CA real estate property that would have been community property if the spouse had acquired it while domiciled in CA.

Surviving spouse ends up owning all of the quasi-community property.

Question 3

When does the surviving spouse inherit one-third

Separate property

Answer 3

If decedent is survived by:
1. more than one child
2. one child and the descendants of one or more deceased children
3. the descendants of two or more deceased children

Question 4

When does the surviving spouse inherit one-half

Separate property

Answer 4

If decedent is survived by:
1. only one child
2. the descedants of a deceased child;
3. no descendants, but a parent or the descedant of a parent

Question 5

When does the surviving spouse inherit all

Answer 5

The surviving spouse or domstic partner takes all of the descedant’s separate prop. if the descedant leaves no surviving descedant, parent, sibling, or descedant of a deceased sibling

Question 6

Share of descendant

Answer 6

Descendants receive all of the intestate’s property that does not pass to the surviving spouse

Question 7

What share do descendants of the same degree receive?

Answer 7

If the surviving descendants are of equal degree of kinship to the descendant (i.e., all grandchildren), each receives an equal or per capita share.

Question 8

What share do descendants of the unequal degree receive?

Answer 8

If the surviving descendants are of unequal degree of kinship, the property passes per capita with right of representation

Question 9

What happens if the intestate is not survivied by at least one descendant?

Answer 9

All the property not passing to the surviving spouse passes as follows:
1. each parent receives one-half or, if only one parent survives, the surviving parent receives all
2. if no parent survives, the property is inherited by the parent’s descendants on per capita w representation basis
3. if no parent or descendant of a parent survives, the property is inherited by the grandparents and their descendants in the same manner
4. if no parent, descendant of parent, grandparent, or descendant of a grandparent survives, the property is inherited by the descendants of a predeceased spouse
5. then more distant relatives
6. parents or descendants of a predeceased spouse
7. intestate’s property escheats to the state of CA

Question 10

What property passes to the deceased spouse’s parents rather than the surviving spouse?

Answer 10

1. real property unless the deceased spouse died at least 15 years prior
2. personal property worth over $10,000 unless the deceased spouse died at least 5 years prior

Question 11

Can an heir inherit if they feloniously and intentionall kill the intestate?

Answer 11

No, the heir is deemed to have predeceased the intestate.

Question 12

When is a parent precluded from inhering from or through a child?

Answer 12

A parent is treated as predeceasing the child if:
1. the parent did not acknowledge the child
2. the parental **rights were terminated **and not judicially reestablished; or
3. the parent intentionally abandoned the child during the child’s minroty at least seven consecutive years before the child reached the age of majority, and the parent did not support or communicate with the child

Question 13

How does an heir “survive” the intestate?

Answer 13

The heir must outlive the intestate by 120 hours; otherwise, the intestate is seemed to have predeceased the intestate for the purpose of succession.