Under NY intestate law, if there is no surviving spouse or issue, who inherits the estate?

• A. Surviving parents
• B. Siblings of the decedent
• C. Grandparents
• D. The state

Answer: (A)

In New York, when someone dies intestate and there is no surviving spouse or issue, the next heirs are the decedent’s surviving parents. If both parents are alive, they take in equal shares; if only one parent survives, that parent takes the entire estate. If there are no surviving parents, the estate goes to the decedent’s siblings and their issue, then to the grandparents and their issue, and finally to the state if no heirs remain. (“Issue” means descendants such as children or grandchildren.)