Q: Texas probate no will.who is next of kin.common law spouse or a blood great niece
A:
Assuming the requirements of common law marriage have been met, the spouse will be the heir of the estate of the deceased. If the common law marriage was not registered with the county clerk, the surviving spouse will have to prove by evidence that the couple:
“agreed to be married”; and
“after the agreement they lived together in this state as husband and wife”; and they
“represented to others that they were married”.
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A: A spouse would be the "next of kin" but may or may not be the sole heir of decedent depending upon whether the decedent has any "issue" i.e. children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren etc.
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