Abstract

Intestate succession statutes should reflect the distributive preferences of intestate decendents. This telephone survey of 750 persons living in Alabama, California, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Texas supplements prior will studies and provides new insights concerning public attitudes about property distribution at death. Two other important findings of this study suggest that a modern intestacy statute should provide that (1) the surviving spouse inherit the entire estate in preference to the decendent's issue or family of orientation and (2) issue who are in the same generation share equally in the estate.

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