Dying without a Will
When a person dies without a Will, it is referred to as dying ‘intestate’.
If this happens, an application needs to be made to the Supreme Court for ‘Letters of Administration’ – a document providing the court’s formal approval for someone to administer the estate of the deceased.
Who can apply to administer a deceased estate with no Will?
The Court generally grants administration of an intestate estate to the person or people with the greatest entitlement in the estate (this may be a spouse or children) or to NSW Trustee & Guardian.
What is the role of the appointed administrator where there is no Will?
The appointed administrator is responsible for confirming relatives that are entitled to a share of a person’s estate, according to entitlements under intestacy rules in the Succession Act 2006.
Learn more about our process for finding relatives when we are the administrator of an intestate estate.
Who is entitled to an intestate estate?
Relatives are grouped into categories and must follow a set order.
| Who will inherit (relative category) | What will they inherit and other rules |
| Current spouse and children from the relationship. | The current spouse is entitled to the whole estate unless the deceased has children from previous relationships. |
| Current spouse, children from the relationship, and children of the deceased from a previous relationship. |
If the deceased person also has children from previous relationships, the current spouse is entitled to:
The remaining half of the estate is shared equally between all surviving children. ^If the estate does not cover the statutory legacy, then the spouse will be entitled to everything in the estate. *This figure is adjusted regularly to the current Consumer Price Index |
Who is entitled when there is no spouse?
If there is no spouse, the following is the relative category who can inherit entitlements under intestacy.
Each ‘relative category’ must be exhausted before moving on to the next and once an eligible relative category is found, the process stops.
| If there is none of the following living relatives of the deceased | Who will inherit (relative category) |
What will they inherit and other rules |
|
children of the deceased |
Will receive equal shares of the estate.
|
|
parents of the deceased | Will receive equal shares of the estate. |
|
brothers and sisters of the deceased |
Will receive equal shares of the estate.
|
|
grandparents | Will receive equal shares of the estate. |
|
aunts and uncles | Will receive equal shares of the estate. |
|
first cousins only | Will receive equal shares of the estate. |
|
NSW Government | NSW Government will receive the whole estate. |
Definitions
- intestate
When a person dies without a valid Will, they are said to have died ‘intestate’. In this situation, the law sets out how the estate is shared among relatives.
- administrator
A person appointed by the court to manage or administer a deceased estate which has no executor.