Title 19 — Descent, Distribution, and Trusts. [Enacted title]
11 chapters · 244 sections in this title.
D.C. Code § 19-101 Family allowance; construction; penalties
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-101.01 Applicable law
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Sections 19-101.01 to 19-101.06 apply to the estate of a decedent who dies domiciled in the District of Columbia. Rights to homestead allowance, exempt property, and family allowance for a decedent who dies not domiciled in the District of Columbia are governed by the law of the …
D.C. Code § 19-101.02 Homestead allowance
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A decedent’s surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner is entitled to a homestead allowance of $15,000. If there is no surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner, each surviving minor child and each surviving dependent child of the decedent is entitled to a homestead all…
D.C. Code § 19-101.03 Exempt property
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In addition to the homestead allowance, the decedent’s surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner is entitled from the estate to a value, not exceeding $10,000 in excess of any security interests therein, in household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances, and perso…
D.C. Code § 19-101.04 Family allowance
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(a) In addition to the right to homestead allowance and exempt property, the decedent’s surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner, and minor children whom the decedent was obligated to support and children who were in fact being supported by the decedent are entitled to a re…
D.C. Code § 19-101.05 Source, determination, and documentation; equitable apportionment when minor children are not in custody of the surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner
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(a) If the estate is otherwise sufficient, property specifically devised may not be used to satisfy rights to homestead allowance or exempt property. Subject to this restriction, the surviving spouse, surviving domestic partner, guardians of minor children, or children who are ad…
D.C. Code § 19-101.06 Penalties
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Whoever, with respect to the allowances or exemptions authorized by sections 19-101.01 to 19-101.05 , (1) makes a false affidavit, (2) willfully violates an order of the Probate Division, or (3) willfully violates a provision of this chapter, shall be fined not more than $2,500 f…
D.C. Code § 19-102 Dower and curtesy abolished
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The estates of dower and curtesy are abolished.
D.C. Code § 19-103 Forfeiture of dower by desertion and adultery
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-104 Absent or incompetent spouse
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-105 Jointure before marriage as bar to dower
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-106 Jointure after marriage; election
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-107 Effect of acts of one spouse
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-107a Release of dower
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-108 Recovery of dower withheld; damages
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-109 Recovery of dower obtained by default or collusion; damages
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-110 Assignment by guardian; rights of heir
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-111 Reendowment upon eviction from jointure
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-112 Devise or bequest to a spouse or domestic partner
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Subject to section 19-114 , and unless it is otherwise expressed in the will, a devise of real estate or an interest therein, or a bequest of personal estate or an interest therein, to the surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner, bars his or her share in the decedent’s est…
D.C. Code § 19-113 Renunciation of devises and bequests; election; time limitations; renunciation or election by guardian or fiduciary; maximum rights; effect of no devise or bequest or if nothing passes under either; antenuptial or postnuptial agreements
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(a) Subject to section 19-114, a surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner is, by a devise or bequest specified in section 19-112, barred on any statutory rights or interest he has in the real and personal estate of the deceased spouse or deceased domestic partner unless, wi…
D.C. Code § 19-114 Right of surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner if there is no renunciation
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A surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner who does not renounce as provided by section 19-113 is entitled to the benefit of all provisions in his favor in the will of the deceased spouse or deceased domestic partner and shall share, in accordance with sections 19-301 and 1…
D.C. Code § 19-115 Definitions
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For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Domestic partner” shall have the same meaning as provided in § 32-701(3). (2) “Domestic partnership” shall have the same meaning as provided in § 32-701(4). (3) “Probate Court” means the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
D.C. Code § 19-301 Course of descents generally
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The real estate in the District of Columbia, of a deceased person, male or female, if not devised, shall descend in fee simple, and the surplus of the personal estate of a deceased resident of the District, if not bequeathed, shall be distributed, to the surviving spouse or survi…
D.C. Code § 19-302 Share of spouse or domestic partner
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The intestate share of a decedent’s surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner is: (1) The entire intestate estate, if no descendant or parent of the decedent survives the decedent; (2) Two-thirds of any balance of the intestate estate, if the decedent’s surviving descendants…
D.C. Code § 19-303 When surviving spouse entitled to one-third
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-304 When surviving spouse entitled to one-half
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Repealed Repealed.
D.C. Code § 19-305 Distribution of surplus after payment to surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner
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The surplus, above the share of the surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner, or the whole surplus, when there is no surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner, descends and is distributed as provided by this chapter and by section 19-701 .
D.C. Code § 19-306 Children to share equally
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When the intestate leaves children and no other descendants, the surplus is divided equally among them.
D.C. Code § 19-307 Grandchildren’s share
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(a) Subject to subsection (b) of this section, and to section 19-319, when the intestate leaves a child and a child of a deceased child, the child of the deceased child takes such share as his deceased parent would, if living, be entitled to, and every other descendant in existen…
D.C. Code § 19-308 Share of father and mother
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When the intestate leaves no child, or descendant, the whole is divided equally between the father and mother or their survivor.
D.C. Code § 19-309 Share of brother or sister or their descendants
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When the intestate leaves a brother or sister, or child or descendant of a brother or sister, and no child, descendant, or father or mother, the brother, sister, or child or descendant of a brother or sister is entitled to the whole.
D.C. Code § 19-310 Brothers and sisters to share equally
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Each brother and sister of the intestate is entitled to an equal share, and the children or descendants of a brother or sister of the intestate, stand in the place of their deceased parents respectively.
D.C. Code § 19-311 Share of collateral relations
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After children, descendants, parents, brothers, and sisters of the deceased and their descendants, all collateral relations in equal degree share, and representation among the collaterals is not allowed.
D.C. Code § 19-312 Share of grandfather and grandmother
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The grandparents, or such of them as survive, share alike where there are no collaterals.
D.C. Code § 19-313 Death of distributee before distribution
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When a person entitled to distribution dies before the distribution is made, his share goes to his estate or legal representatives.
D.C. Code § 19-314 Share of posthumous children
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A right in the inheritance to real or personal property does not accrue to or vest in a person other than the children of the intestate and their descendants, unless the person is in being and capable in law to take as heir or distributee at the time of the intestate’s death; but…
D.C. Code § 19-315 No distinction between whole- and half-blood
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There is no distinction between the kindred of the whole- and the half-blood.
D.C. Code § 19-316 Share of children born out of wedlock; their heirs; mother; father
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Children born out of wedlock and the heirs of children born out of wedlock are capable of taking real and personal estate by inheritance from their mother or from their father if parenthood has been established, or from each other, or from heirs of each other, as the case may be,…
D.C. Code § 19-317 Trust estates
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When a trustee is seized of the naked legal estate in real estate in fee simple, and dies intestate thereof, the legal estate descends according to section 19-301 to the persons who would inherit the beneficial estate if it were vested in them.
D.C. Code § 19-318 Antenuptial children
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When a man has a child by a woman whom he afterwards marries, the child, if acknowledged by the man, is, in virtue of the marriage and acknowledgment, legitimated and capable in law of inheriting and transmitting heritable property as if born in wedlock.
D.C. Code § 19-319 Advancements
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(a) If a child or descendant has been advanced by the intestate during the intestate’s lifetime, by settlement or portion, real estate or personal estate, the value thereof is reckoned for the purposes of descent and distribution as part of the estate of the intestate descendible…
D.C. Code § 19-320 Felonious homicide as barring inheritance; insurance policies; bona fide purchasers
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(a) A person convicted of felonious homicide of another person, by way of murder or manslaughter, takes no estate or interest in property of any kind from that other person by way of: (1) inheritance, distribution, devise, or bequest; or (2) remainder, reversion, or executory dev…
D.C. Code § 19-321 Descent through alien ancestor no bar
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In making title by descent it is no bar to a party claiming as heir that an ancestor, whether living or dead, through whom he derives his descent from the intestate, is or has been an alien.
D.C. Code § 19-322 Definitions
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For the purposes of this chapter, the term “domestic partner” shall have the same meaning as provided in § 32-701(3).
D.C. Code § 19-501 Definitions
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For the purposes of the chapter, the term: (1) “Co-owners with right of survivorship” includes joint tenants, tenants by the entireties, and other co-owners of property or accounts held under circumstances that entitles one or more to the whole of the property or account on the d…
D.C. Code § 19-502 Requirement of survival by 120 hours under probate laws
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(a) Except as provided in section 19-506, if the title to property, the devolution of property, the right to elect an interest in property, or the right to exempt property, homestead or family allowance depends upon an individual’s survivorship of the death of another individual,…
D.C. Code § 19-503 Requirement of survival by 120 hours under governing instruments
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Except as provided in section 19-506 , for purposes of a provision of a governing instrument that relates to an individual surviving an event, including the death of another individual, an individual who is not established by clear and convincing evidence to have survived the eve…
D.C. Code § 19-504 Co-owners with right of survivorship; requirement of survival by 120 hours
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Except as provided in section 19-506 : (1) If it is not established by clear and convincing evidence that one of 2 co-owners with right of survivorship survived the other co-owner by 120 hours, one-half of the property passes as if one had survived by 120 hours and one-half as if…
D.C. Code § 19-505 Evidence of death or status
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In addition to the rules of evidence, the following rules relating to a determination of death and status apply: (1) Death occurs when an individual is determined to be dead under section 7-601. (2) A certified or authenticated copy of a death certificate purporting to be issued …
D.C. Code § 19-506 Exceptions
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Survival by 120 hours is not required if: (1) The governing instrument contains language dealing explicitly with simultaneous deaths or deaths in a common disaster and that language is operable under the facts of the case; (2) The governing instrument expressly indicates that an …