Dying Intestate
First of all, I'm sorry for your loss. Losing a sibling can be terribly emotional and taxing. That said, when a person who resides in Minnesota dies with a will (dying "testate") their assets are distributed in accordance with the terms of the will. Without a will in Minnesota - dying "intestate" - the State provides that the property be distributed in accordance with the intestacy statute, Minn. Stat. 524.2-102 & -103.
Spousal Share (Minn. Stat. 524.2-102):
Per the statute, if the decedent had a surviving spouse, they get the entire estate if
(i) no decedent of the decedent survives the decedent, or
(ii) all of the decedent's surviving descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse and there is no other descendant of the surviving spouse who survives the decedent.
If, however, if all of the surviving descendants of decedent are also descendants of the surviving spouse and
(i) the survivng spouse has one or more surviving descendants who are not descendants of the deceent, or
(ii) if one or more of the decedent's surviving descendants are not descendants of the surviving spouse,
then the surviving spouse gets the first $225,000 plus one half of any balance of the estate.
Non-Spousal Share (Minn. Stat. 524.2-103):
Any part of the estate not passing to the decedent's surviving spouse, or if there is no surviving spouse, passes in the following order to the individuals designated below who survive the decedent:
1. Decedent's descendants
2. Decedent's surviving parents equally
3. Descendants of decedent's parents (decedent's siblings)
4. Decedent's grandparents equally; if one or more is deceased, then to their descendants (grandparents and aunts/uncles)
5. To the next of kin in equal degree
In Sum:
Basically, the property goes to spouse, kids, parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts/uncles, and then next of kin. If there are no takers, then the property passes to the State. This all, of course, relies on your brother having been a Minnesota resident when he died. If he was a resident of another state, then that state's intestacy statute will control. There are a few nuances to the above distribution. For example, an heir must survive the decedent for 120 hours in order to inherit. Also, for example, individuals in gestation at the time of death can inherit provided they live 120 hours or more after birth. But in general, the above distribution is what is required by the State.
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