If you die without a will in Tennessee, Tennessee Code Section 31-2-104 decides who inherits your property, guaranteeing your spouse the greater of one-third of the estate or a full child's share. This intestate succession process follows state law, not your wishes. See the Tennessee estate planning guide for your options.
A signed will replaces this formula with your own instructions. Here is exactly how Tennessee divides an estate with no will.
Key Takeaways
- Tennessee Code Section 31-2-104 guarantees your spouse the entire estate if you have no surviving children, or the greater of one-third of the estate or a child's share if you do.
- With one child, a child's share equals one-half, so your spouse would actually receive one-half rather than the one-third floor.
- With three or more children, a child's share drops below one-third, so your spouse's guarantee falls back to the one-third floor instead.
- With no surviving spouse or children, your estate passes to your parents, then siblings and their descendants, then your grandparents' family lines.
Who Inherits Your Property in Tennessee Without a Will?
Tennessee's Tennessee Code Section 31-2-104 ties your spouse's share directly to how many children you have, using whichever of two calculations is larger.
If You Have a Spouse and No Children
Your spouse inherits your entire estate when you have no surviving children or other issue.
If You Have a Spouse and Children You Share Together
Your spouse receives either one-third of your estate or a full child's share, whichever is greater. A child's share means the estate is divided by the number of children plus one for your spouse, so with two children, a child's share is one-third, giving your spouse and each child an equal one-third. With four children, a child's share drops to one-fifth, so your spouse instead takes the one-third floor and your children divide the remaining two-thirds.
If You Have a Spouse and Children From Another Relationship
The same calculation applies regardless of which relationship produced your children. Your spouse still receives the greater of one-third or a child's share, and your children, including those from an earlier relationship, divide the rest.
If You Have Children and No Spouse
Your children inherit your entire estate. If they are all the same degree of kinship to you, they take equal shares; if not, those of more remote degree take by representation.
If You Have No Spouse and No Children
Your estate passes to your parents in equal shares. If neither survives, it passes to your siblings and the children of any deceased sibling. With no siblings, the estate splits between your paternal and maternal grandparents' family lines.
What Assets Skip Tennessee Intestacy Entirely?
Not everything you own runs through Tennessee's intestacy formula. Retirement accounts and life insurance policies with a named, living beneficiary pass directly to that person, regardless of what the intestacy statute says. Property you own jointly with a right of survivorship, and bank or brokerage accounts set up as payable-on-death or transfer-on-death, work the same way, passing straight to the surviving co-owner or named beneficiary outside of probate.
This matters because it means intestacy usually only decides what happens to the assets you never got around to titling or designating a beneficiary for, most often a primary residence, a car, or a checking account still in your name alone. For a lot of families, that leftover category still includes the family home, which is exactly why the distribution rules above matter as much as they do.
Worth checking now, before any of this becomes relevant: whether every account you hold actually lists a current beneficiary, and whether an old designation from a divorce or a relationship that ended years ago is still on file with the bank or insurance company. That single detail can override even a carefully written Tennessee will, since a designated beneficiary is paid directly and never passes through the will at all.
What Does Dying Without a Will Actually Cost Your Family in Tennessee?
The one-third versus child's share calculation is not something most families can do in their head the day after a death, and Tennessee's probate court still has to confirm exactly how many children qualify before applying it. See how long Tennessee probate takes for the realistic timeline that follows.
For a larger family, the practical effect is that more children mean a smaller guaranteed share for a surviving spouse, since the one-third floor kicks in once a child's share would otherwise fall below it, which is rarely the outcome anyone in the family actually wants.
How to Make Sure Your Wishes Control What Happens
A signed Tennessee will replaces the one-third-or-child's-share formula with your own instructions for your spouse and children. See write a valid will in Tennessee for Tennessee's execution requirements, and common Tennessee will mistakes for the errors that most often get a homemade will challenged.
Our guide on 5 reasons not to die without a will covers the wider risks of leaving your estate to intestacy.
FastWill's will package helps you put a valid Tennessee will in place naming your own beneficiaries, instead of relying on a fixed statutory formula.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my spouse automatically inherit everything in Tennessee if I die without a will?
Only if you have no surviving children. If you have children, your spouse receives the greater of one-third of the estate or a full child's share, and your children divide the rest.
What happens to my house if I die without a will in Tennessee?
Your house is part of your estate and divided under the same one-third-or-child's-share formula as the rest of your property.
Do stepchildren inherit under Tennessee intestacy law?
No, unless you legally adopted them. Only biological and legally adopted children count as your issue under Tennessee intestacy law.
Can an unmarried partner inherit in Tennessee without a will?
No. Tennessee intestacy law does not recognize unmarried partners. A will or beneficiary designation is the only way to provide for a partner you are not legally married to.
How do I avoid Tennessee's intestacy rules?
Sign a valid Tennessee will or fund a living trust naming your own beneficiaries, so your own choices, not the one-third-or-child's-share formula, control your estate.
