Q: If someone dies without a will and has no spouse who inherits the deceased's property in the state of Maryland.
A: It is determined by statute, by intestate succession. Natural born children of the deceased inherit first, in equal shares, or if none, parents, then siblings of the deceased, etc. The complete order is set forth by the statute. Someone in the family must open an estate and petition to be appointed Personal Representative. You start by either consulting with an estate lawyer, or making an appointment with the Register of Wills in the county where the person resided at the time of death. Only the person appointed as PR can access and manage assets of a person’s estate. The PR accounts for those assets and then distributes them to the heirs entitled to receive them.
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