Q: Aunt died intestate in the state of Maryland.

A: If there is no Will and no surviving spouse, parents or children / grandchildren, the nieces and nephews of the Deceased (children of the deceased sibling) receive under "representation". For example, if there were 4 siblings who either survived or who died with their own issue, then the estate should get split in 4 parts, the nieces/nephews should receive a portion of their parent's 1/4 share. The law is contained in Md. Ann Code, Estates and Trusts § 3-104.

Note, however, that timing is important. Sometimes an estate is not opened promptly and people die in the meantime. If the Deceased's siblings survived her but died before the estate is opened the answer changes - then instead of going to nieces/nephews the Estate(s) of the sibling(s) who died after the Aunt may be the recipients.

While not legal advice, I hope this general information helps. You may wish to reach out to an estate attorney for further information or assistance with administering an estate.

A: No, the estate is split 4 ways "by representation": one-fourth share to the surviving sibling; one-fourth share for each deceased sibling who left surviving issue (children, grandchilden, etc.), which is further divided in equal shares among that deceased sibling's children.

If any of the deceased siblings had no surviving issue (no children, grandchildren, etc.), then the estate is divided in as many shares as there are surviving siblings and deceased siblings who have surviving issue. In your example, if one of the deceased siblings died childless, then the estate would be divided into three equal shares instead of four.

If one of the deceased siblings also had a deceased child who had children of their own (grandchildren of the deceased sibling), then the share of the deceased sibling is divided in the same way described above (one share for each living child; and one share for each deceased child divided equally among the children of the deceased child).