When a Mississippi resident dies without a valid will, the state’s intestate succession statutes decide who inherits. The order starts close and moves outward: a surviving spouse and children share equally, with the spouse counted as one more child; if there are no descendants, parents and siblings inherit together in equal shares; from there the law reaches to grandparents, aunts and uncles, and then to more distant kin, with the estate escheating to the state only if no relatives can be found. Mississippi intestate succession is set out in Title 91, Chapter 1 of the Mississippi Code.1Justia. Mississippi Code Title 91 Chapter 1 – Descent and Distribution
What the Rules Actually Cover
Intestate succession applies only to assets that pass through probate. A lot of what people think of as “the estate” doesn’t. Life insurance with a named beneficiary, 401(k) and IRA accounts with designated beneficiaries, payable-on-death bank accounts, transfer-on-death investment accounts, and property held in joint tenancy all pass directly to the named beneficiary or surviving co-owner. Those transfers happen outside probate and override the statutes below.
This is the single biggest source of surprise for families. If the decedent’s largest asset is a retirement account still listing an ex-spouse as beneficiary, that ex-spouse inherits the account no matter what the intestacy rules say. Only assets titled solely in the decedent’s name, with no beneficiary or survivorship arrangement, enter the probate estate and follow the hierarchy that comes next.
Spouse and Children: The “Child’s Part”
If the decedent leaves a surviving spouse and no descendants, the spouse takes the entire estate.2Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-7 – Descent of Property as Between Husband and Wife
When there is both a spouse and children, the arithmetic is not what most people expect. The spouse receives a “child’s part,” meaning the spouse counts as one additional child, and the probate estate is divided equally among all of them.2Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-7 – Descent of Property as Between Husband and Wife With two children, the estate splits in thirds. With four children, everyone (spouse included) takes a fifth. The more children, the smaller the spouse’s share, which surprises families who assume the spouse automatically gets half.
The rule runs the same direction regardless of which spouse dies first, and it doesn’t distinguish between children of the current marriage and children from a prior relationship. Every child of the decedent counts, and each takes an equal share alongside the surviving spouse.2Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-7 – Descent of Property as Between Husband and Wife
Children and Grandchildren When There Is No Spouse
If there is no surviving spouse, the decedent’s children take the entire estate in equal shares.3Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-3 – Descent of Land Three children, three equal thirds.
When a child died before the decedent, that child’s share drops down to their own children, splitting equally among them. Lawyers call this per stirpes distribution. Say the decedent had two children, one of whom died first leaving three children of their own: the surviving child takes half the estate, and the three grandchildren divide the other half, one-sixth each.3Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-3 – Descent of Land
Parents and Siblings Share Equally
With no spouse and no descendants, the estate moves to parents and siblings, and Mississippi does something that differs from many other states. Parents and siblings inherit together in the same tier, sharing equally.3Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-3 – Descent of Land If both parents and two siblings survive, each of the four takes a quarter. Parents do not outrank siblings.
If a sibling died before the decedent, that sibling’s descendants (the decedent’s nieces and nephews) step into their parent’s share and split it. This right of representation stops with brothers’ and sisters’ descendants; it does not extend to descendants of aunts, uncles, or cousins.3Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-3 – Descent of Land
Extended Family, Then the State
If no parents, siblings, or descendants of siblings survive, the estate goes to grandparents, aunts, and uncles, sharing equally.3Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-3 – Descent of Land If none of them survive either, the property goes to the next of kin in equal degree, calculated under civil law rules. That can reach first cousins and beyond.
Only when no living relative can be identified does the estate escheat to the State of Mississippi. It is rare, but it does happen when a court determines that no heir exists within any recognized degree of kinship.
Rules That Change Who Counts as an Heir
Half-Siblings
Half-blood and whole-blood relatives are not treated the same. The statute prefers whole-blood relatives over half-blood relatives of the same degree.4Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-5 – Half-Bloods If full siblings and half-siblings both survive, the full siblings inherit first. Half-siblings can still inherit when there is no whole-blood relative of the same degree, but they don’t stand on equal footing when competing directly with full siblings.
Adopted Children
Legally adopted children inherit from their adoptive parents on the same terms as biological children. Adoption severs the legal parent-child relationship with the biological parents and creates a new one with the adoptive parents for all purposes, including intestate succession. An adopted child inherits from the adoptive family the same way a biological child would.
Posthumous Children and Assisted Reproduction
A child conceived before but born after the decedent’s death can inherit as an heir. Mississippi’s “Chris McDill Law” also addresses children conceived through assisted reproductive technology after death. A child born from the decedent’s genetic material qualifies for a child’s share of the personal estate if several conditions are met: the decedent signed a record consenting to use of the genetic material, the estate’s personal representative received notice of the intent to use it within six months of death, and the embryo was implanted within 36 months of death or the child was born within 45 months. The child must also survive at least 120 hours after birth.5Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-33 – Chris McDill Law
The Slayer Rule
Anyone who willfully causes or arranges another person’s death cannot inherit from that person. Mississippi treats the killer as having died before the victim, and the estate passes as though the killer never existed. This applies to both real and personal property.6Justia. Mississippi Code 91-1-25 – Person Who Has Killed Another
Small Estates Under $75,000
Not every estate has to go through full probate. Mississippi allows a simplified small estate affidavit under Section 91-7-322 when the total value of probate assets falls below $75,000. The affidavit skips the formal administrator appointment and court oversight of full probate, letting heirs collect assets by presenting the affidavit directly to banks, title companies, or other institutions holding the property. The threshold counts only probate assets, so life insurance proceeds, retirement accounts with named beneficiaries, and jointly held property don’t push an estate over the line.
Mississippi Inheritance and Estate Tax
Mississippi does not impose a state estate tax or an inheritance tax. The state’s estate tax was eliminated for decedents dying after 2004, and no inheritance or gift tax exists.7Mississippi Department of Revenue. Estate Heirs owe nothing to the state simply for receiving an inheritance. Federal estate tax is a separate question and only affects estates above the federal exemption.