There is a fantastic Frank Capra movie entitled You Can’t Take It With You. Lionel Barrymore plays the free spirited Grandfather, who owns a large block in Manhattan, and doesn’t believe in taxes or worrying about money. Hopefully this carefree Grandfather has taken the appropriate steps to ensure that the majority of his assets are well protected by a will, or the government may end up receiving a larger chunk than he intended. By properly protecting one’s assets with a will and other estate planning issues, the Grandfather could be even more carefree because he wouldn’t have to worry about the tribulations of state intestacy laws. In 2007, it was estimated that around 55% of adults do not have a will. Not included in this statistic is the large percentage of people that move and do not update their will to meet the new state laws. Regardless of the reason, one needs to consider the ramifications of dying without a will. One of the main purposes of having a will is ensuring that specific assets are bequeathed to certain people. Without a will, the state disposes property according to the law. In the state of Georgia, if one dies without a will the typical procedure includes:
-The spouse receives the entire estate if there are no children
If there are children the, the estate is divided in half; the mother would get one half, and the children would have to split the second half.
- If there is no spouse, the children will equally split the estate. If a child has already passed away, their children will receive the split interest.
-If there are no children, the parents of the deceased inherit the estate.
- If there are no parents, the grandparents or aunts and uncles receive the estate. However there is even an issue of paternal or maternal grandparents.
- If there are no surviving relatives, the estate goes to the state.
This is not fun to write, nor would it be fun to go to court to have this all figured out. It is important to look over particular state’s rules. In some states, the spouse’s share is divided equally among the children; if there are six children, the spouse would receive 1/7 of the estate. An estate attorney can ensure that the proper measures are taken to protect a family’s assets and guarantee it ends up in the desired hands.