ME risk area
Intestacy risk in Maine
How assets are distributed when there is no will and state default rules control the outcome.
Maine intestacy uses dollar thresholds and percentages for spouse shares, with the remainder passing to descendants or other relatives by statute.
Who inherits first if there is no will?How do spouse and children shares change by scenario?What are the most common surprises families face?
At a glance
Key takeaways
- If there is no surviving descendant or parent, or all descendants are also the spouse’s and the spouse has no other descendants, the spouse receives the entire estate.
- If a parent survives but no descendants, the spouse receives the first $300,000 plus three-fourths of the balance.
- If all descendants are also the spouse’s but the spouse has other descendants, the spouse receives the first $100,000 plus one-half of the balance.
- If any descendant is not the spouse’s, the spouse receives one-half of the estate.
Questions to consider
Questions this risk area helps you evaluate in Maine
- Who inherits first if there is no will?
- How do spouse and children shares change by scenario?
- What are the most common surprises families face?
State overview
Maine intestacy uses dollar thresholds and percentages for spouse shares, with the remainder passing to descendants or other relatives by statute.
- If there is no surviving descendant or parent, or all descendants are also the spouse’s and the spouse has no other descendants, the spouse receives the entire estate.
- If a parent survives but no descendants, the spouse receives the first $300,000 plus three-fourths of the balance.
- If all descendants are also the spouse’s but the spouse has other descendants, the spouse receives the first $100,000 plus one-half of the balance.
- If any descendant is not the spouse’s, the spouse receives one-half of the estate.
- Any remainder passes to descendants per capita at each generation, then parents, then descendants of parents.
- An heir must survive the decedent by 120 hours to inherit under intestacy.
Sources
- https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/18-C/title18-Csec2-102.html
- https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/18-C/title18-Csec2-103.html
- https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/intestate-succession-maine.html
- https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/18-C/title18-Csec2-104.html
Risk sources
- Uniform Probate Code (2019) - Intestate succession (Article II)
Article II, Part 1 covers intestate succession, spouse/descendant shares, and representation rules.
National sources provide baseline context; state statutes and court rules control in Maine.