Intestacy: plain-English guide for Irish probate

What it means, in plain English

Intestacy is what happens when a person dies without a valid will. Irish law then decides who inherits using the fixed rules in Part VI of the Succession Act 1965. The rules apply regardless of what the deceased might have wanted; without a will, there is no way to deviate from them.

Intestacy in Irish probate practice

The core intestacy rules in Section 67 of the Succession Act depend on who the deceased left behind. A surviving spouse with no children takes the whole estate. A surviving spouse with children takes two-thirds; the children share the remaining third equally. No surviving spouse, but surviving children: the children share the whole estate equally. No spouse or children: the estate passes to the deceased's parents equally, or if neither parent is alive, to the deceased's siblings. Further down the tree, nieces and nephews can take their deceased parent's share by representation. A registered civil partner is treated the same as a spouse under Section 67A, added by the Civil Partnership Act 2010. Partial intestacy also happens: where a valid will exists but does not dispose of the entire estate, the undisposed portion falls to intestacy. The rules do not recognise unmarried partners, regardless of how long they have been together, which is one of the strongest reasons Irish couples living together without marriage or civil partnership should make wills.

Worked example

Seán dies without a will, leaving his partner of 20 years, Aoife, and his daughter from a previous relationship. Seán and Aoife were never married and not in a civil partnership. Under Section 67, Aoife inherits nothing under intestacy. The entire estate passes to Seán's daughter. Aoife may have claims against the estate as a long-term cohabitant under the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010, but those are separate applications and generally require a solicitor.

The statutory position

Part VI of the Succession Act 1965 (Sections 66 to 75) governs intestacy. Section 67 sets the spouse and children rules; Section 67A extends them to civil partners. Section 73 sets the rule that where no one qualifies under Sections 67 to 72, the estate passes to the State. Sections 69 and 70 cover representation rules (per stirpes distribution).

Related terms in this glossary

• Administrator: The person appointed by the court to administer an estate where the deceased left no will or no willing executor.
• Letters of Administration: The court order appointing an administrator to deal with an estate where the person who died left no valid will.
• Legal right share: The minimum share a surviving spouse or civil partner is entitled to by law, regardless of what the will says.
• Per Stirpes: A distribution rule meaning by the branch: where a beneficiary has died before the deceased, their share passes to their own children rather than being redistributed among surviving beneficiaries.

Related reading

• Dying without a will in Ireland
• The intestacy route
• Free intestacy shares calculator