Se muestra en su idioma como traducción automática, pendiente de revisión por un hablante nativo. Los resúmenes de los estatutos y el original en inglés siguen siendo la fuente de referencia.
The three systems, in one sentence each
Strict per stirpes — the division always begins at the children’s generation, one share per child living or deceased with descendants living; a deceased child’s share splits among that child’s own descendants. Maryland’s statutory method for a decedent’s issue — "representation" (Est. & Trusts § 1-210(b), applied by § 3-103).
Per capita with representation — divide at the nearest generation with a surviving member: one share for each survivor there and for each deceased member who left descendants; a deceased member’s share passes down to that member’s own descendants. Maryland uses this nearest-degree division for the issue of a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent (Est. & Trusts § 1-210(c)); for a decedent’s own issue it is not the default.
Per capita at each generation — divide at the nearest generation with survivors; the deceased members’ shares are combined and divided equally among the next generation’s takers, so equally-near relatives take equally. Not Maryland’s statutory default; a trust that wants it says so in its own words.
The same family tree can come out differently under different governing words — which is why the instrument controls. Maryland’s statute defines representation (Est. & Trusts § 1-210), and its rules for construing a will’s gifts by representation or per stirpes apply to an inter vivos trust unless the trust says otherwise (Est. & Trusts §§ 1-210.1, 14.5-112); a trust may define its own scheme or name alternate takers, and reading a particular instrument against the statute is licensed-attorney work. A surviving spouse or registered domestic partner takes the entire intestate estate — one-half where a minor child survives, and the first $100,000 plus one-half of the rest where there is no minor child but there is issue who are not the spouse’s or partner’s (Est. & Trusts § 3-102). Maryland also gives a surviving spouse an elective share of one-third or one-half of the estate subject to election, reduced by the spousal benefits, and a trust revocable at the death is part of that estate (Est. & Trusts § 3-403; Md. Rule 10-803) — questions this page explains and the calculator does not compute.
Try the arithmetic yourself
Model a family shape — who is living, who left children — and see each system’s exact split. Two generations (children and grandchildren); this is the math of each rule, not a suggestion of which to use.
Child 1
Child 2
- Grandchild 2.1
Child 3
- Grandchild 3.1
- Grandchild 3.2
| Person | Strict per stirpes (MD default) | Per capita w/ representation | UPC per capita at each generation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Child 1 | 1/3 (33.3%) | 1/3 (33.3%) | 1/3 (33.3%) |
| Grandchild 2.1 | 1/3 (33.3%) | 1/3 (33.3%) | 2/9 (22.2%) |
| Grandchild 3.1 | 1/6 (16.7%) | 1/6 (16.7%) | 2/9 (22.2%) |
| Grandchild 3.2 | 1/6 (16.7%) | 1/6 (16.7%) | 2/9 (22.2%) |
Arithmetic only — the exact fractions each rule produces for the shape you modeled, with Maryland’s default labeled as the strict per stirpes division Est. & Trusts § 1-210(b) defines for a decedent’s issue. The spouse’s intestate share and the elective share are explained, not computed. Not advice, and never a statement of which rule YOUR trust uses — the instrument’s own words decide that, and reading them is licensed-attorney work.
El Centro de Aprendizaje es información general sobre la ley de Maryland — no es asesoría legal ni sustituye el consejo de un abogado de Maryland con licencia sobre sus hechos específicos. TrusteeClear es software, no un bufete.