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Dying Without a Will

La. C.C. art. 888 — children inherit first, and a surviving spouse keeps a usufruct over the community share

Property not left by a valid testament passes by law to the descendants, ascendants and collaterals, by blood or adoption, and to a spouse not judicially separated, in the order the Civil Code sets out.

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  • Descendants inherit first, in equal shares by heads when they are in the same degree.
  • With no descendants, the surviving spouse takes the deceased's half of the community property.
  • With descendants, the surviving spouse has a usufruct over the deceased's community share, ending at the spouse's death or remarriage.
  • With no descendants, separate property goes to the brothers and sisters, subject to a usufruct for surviving parents.

A usufruct is the right to use property and take its fruits while others own it. A particular succession is a question for a licensed Louisiana attorney.

Sources for this section (5)
  1. La. C.C. art. 880 — Intestate succession
  2. La. C.C. art. 888 — Succession rights of descendants
  3. La. C.C. art. 889 — Devolution of community property
  4. La. C.C. art. 890 — Usufruct of surviving spouse
  5. La. C.C. art. 891 — Devolution of separate property; parents and brothers and sisters

Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Louisiana attorney.

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This section is the long version of a step in one walkthrough. Each one takes the same law one decision at a time, with both sides of the moment written out.