If a person passes away without leaving a will, the distribution of his estate is subject to a very specific system outlined by Halacha, which generally differs from the state laws regarding inheritance. We briefly outline here the basic rules of inheritance that apply when a person passes on without leaving a will:

1) A wife does not inherit her husband. According to the terms of the Ketuba, she is given a sum of money from the estate for her basic needs, and this money is given to her before the estate is divided among the inheritors, but she does not inherit her husband's assets.

2) If a person left behind sons, they inherit the entire estate, including both real and moveable property, and even charitable accounts that the father may have had. (We do not discuss here the special rights of the firstborn, which deserves fuller elaboration in a separate context.)

3) If a person had a son who had since passed away, the estate is given to that son's children. If the deceased had one living son and another son that had died, 50% of the estate is given to the live son, and the other 50% is distributed among the sons of the deceased son.

4) Daughters do not receive a share in the estate if the deceased had a son; single daughters, however, are given a certain sum from the estate until they get married. If the deceased never had sons but had a daughter, she receives the estate.

5) If a person died without any children, then he is inherited by his father. If his father is no longer alive, then his (father's) children – the brothers or sisters of the deceased – receive the estate. If the father had no other children, then the estate is awarded to the grandfather; if the grandfather is no longer alive, then the estate is divided among his (grandfather's) children, meaning, the uncles of the deceased. If the grandfather had no other children, then the estate is awarded to the great-grandfather, and if he is no longer alive, then the estate is divided among his children, or the deceased's great-uncles.

As mentioned, these laws apply only in a case where a person passed on without leaving a will; the laws governing wills will, please God, be discussed in a separate Daily Halacha.

See Hoshen Mishpat, siman 276. See the book- "Pure Money" by Dayan Cohen, pages 215-218.

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