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Start the free role checkWhat “intestate” means
Dying “intestate” means dying without a valid will. Utah's intestacy statutes (Utah Code § 75-2-102, Utah Code § 75-2-103) then set a fixed order of who inherits your probate assets — regardless of what you would have wanted — dividing a share among descendants per capita at each generation (Utah Code § 75-2-106), with the homestead allowance, the exempt property and the family allowance coming first (Utah Code § 75-2-402, § 75-2-403, § 75-2-404). Assets that pass outside probate (a funded Trust, beneficiary designations, property held with right of survivorship) follow their own rules, not intestacy.
Who inherits under Utah law
- Spouse, no descendants — the surviving spouse inherits the entire intestate estate (Utah Code § 75-2-102).
- Spouse and shared descendants only — if every surviving descendant of the decedent is also the surviving spouse's, the spouse inherits everything (Utah Code § 75-2-102).
- Blended family — if any surviving descendant of the decedent is not also the surviving spouse's, the spouse takes the first $75,000 plus one-half of the balance, and the decedent's descendants share the rest per capita at each generation (Utah Code § 75-2-102; Utah Code § 75-2-103).
- No surviving spouse — assets pass to descendants, then to parents, then to siblings, and outward along the family tree (Utah Code § 75-2-103).
The spouse's share and minor children
In Utah, when there is no will, a surviving spouse takes the whole intestate estate if no descendant of the decedent survives or every surviving descendant is also the spouse's; otherwise the spouse takes the first $75,000 plus one-half of the balance (Utah Code § 75-2-102), and the spouse's homestead allowance of $22,500 comes before claims (Utah Code § 75-2-402). And intestacy never lets you name a guardian for minor children or set conditions on what they receive. These are exactly the gaps a plan closes.
Does the state take everything?
Almost never. Property only “escheats” to the State of Utah as a last resort when no heirs at all can be found — which is rare. The real cost of dying intestate isn't the state taking your assets; it's losing control over who receives them, who raises your minor children, and how much delay and conflict your family faces.
Take back the decision
Intestacy is the plan the state writes when you don't write your own — and it rarely matches what people actually want. This page is general information, not legal advice. A free role check can show you where you stand, and a Utah attorney can help you put a plan in place.
General information about Utah law, not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
- Who inherits in Utah when there is no will?
- The surviving spouse takes the entire intestate estate where no descendant of the decedent survives or every surviving descendant is also the spouse's; otherwise the first $75,000 plus one-half of the balance (Utah Code § 75-2-102). The rest passes to the decedent's descendants per capita at each generation, then to the parents, then to their descendants, then to the grandparents and their descendants (§ 75-2-103).
- What does "per capita at each generation" mean in Utah?
- The estate is divided into as many equal shares as there are surviving descendants in the nearest generation with a survivor and deceased descendants in that generation who left surviving descendants; each survivor in that generation takes one share, and the remaining shares are combined and divided the same way among the next generation (Utah Code § 75-2-106).
- Does intestacy affect property held in a Utah trust?
- No. Property titled to a trust passes by the trust's own terms; intestacy governs the probate estate the decedent left outside the trust, together with the homestead allowance, the exempt property and the family allowance the statutes give the spouse and children (Utah Code § 75-2-402, § 75-2-403, § 75-2-404).
General information about Utah law, not legal advice.