Dying Without A Will
Est. Powers & Trusts Law § 4-1.1 — fifty thousand dollars and half to a spouse with children
| The person is survived by | Distribution |
|---|---|
| The person is survived byA spouse and issue | DistributionFifty thousand dollars and one-half of the rest to the spouse, the balance to the issue |
| The person is survived byA spouse and no issue | DistributionThe whole to the spouse |
| The person is survived byIssue and no spouse | DistributionThe whole to the issue |
| The person is survived byA parent or parents, and no spouse or issue | DistributionThe whole to the parent or parents |
| The person is survived byIssue of parents, and no spouse, issue or parent | DistributionThe whole to the brothers, sisters and their issue |
| The person is survived byGrandparents or their issue, and none of those | DistributionHalf to each parent's side |
Debts, administration expenses and reasonable funeral expenses come off first. Relatives of the half blood are treated as relatives of the whole blood, and a child conceived before the death and born alive afterward takes as if born during the person's lifetime.
Sources for this section (1)
- Est. Powers & Trusts Law § 4-1.1 — Descent and distribution of a decedent's estate
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New York attorney.