“What If There Is No Will?”
It is a common misconception that if a person dies in Minnesota without a Will, the government gets his or her property. Instead, the Legislature has decided that the decedent’s assets are to be divided between the spouse, children and relatives if he or she has died without a Will. This process is called intestacy.
However, this presumed distribution may not be what the decedent actually wanted. Furthermore, there are some things a person can do only if he has a Will, so it’s still a good idea to have a Will. For more information on creating a Will, click here.
After the person has passed away, any person who has an interest in the estate (spouse, heir, or creditor) may begin the probate process and ask to be appointed as the “personal representative” (also known as the “executor” or “administrator”). Similar to a case where there is a Will, the Estate may be handled informally or formally or supervised or unsupervised.
If the direct heirs cannot agree who should be the personal representative, the probate court may have to decide.
Following the appointment of the personal representative, the process is much the same as for a Will except that the distribution is made according to the Intestacy Law rather than the terms of a Will. Published notice is given and creditors and claimants have four months to file a claim.
One of the more common issues in Intestacy is what happens to the homestead between the surviving spouse and the children of the decedent.
It is important that the issues involving distribution of assets and the transfer of the decedent’s property occur within a reasonable time of death since they will become more difficult to resolve as more time passes.
