Walk It Through: The Spouse Left Out
A will that leaves a spouse a small gift, the elective share, six months after publication, and nine months at most.
A husband's will leaves his wife a car and everything else to his children from a first marriage.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
A spouse and a will. Prenuptial waivers, property held jointly or in trust, and a spouse domiciled in another state are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Elective shareThe share a surviving spouse may take instead of the will's gift, equal to the share without a will, claimed within six months of the first publication.
- IntestateDying without a will. A spouse with no children of the decedent takes $50,000 and half of the rest of the personal property.
- Life estateThe right to land for one's natural life. A surviving spouse takes the decedent's real estate this way when there is no will.