I was working with a nice couple this past Friday on their estate plan. They had accumulated quite a bit of assets. The husband was an only child and his parents and grandparents had passed away. They had two children and no grandchildren. The husband wanted to know, in the absence of a Last Will, who would inherit his estate if he, his wife, and his children all died in a common disaster.
Here's the Louisiana law on the issue: "If the deceased leaves neither descendants, nor brothers, sisters, or descendants from them, nor parents, nor spouse not judicially separated, nor other ascendants, his other collaterals succeed to his separate property. Among the collateral relations, the nearest in degree excludes all others. If there are several in the same degree, they take equally and by heads."
So, in this instance, I'm thinking the husband's aunts and uncles (his parents' siblings) would equally - by heads - divide his estate.
Of course all of this can - and will - change because he will designate in his Last Will who will inherit his estate given that the unlikely scenario occurs.
If you have questions about planning your estate, or if you'd like to inquire about our estate planning legal services, please feel free to send me an email at paul@rabalaislaw.com, or give my office a call at 225-329-2450. Until next time...
Paul Rabalais
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