Do Grandchildren Get the Inheritance If Their Dad Dies before Me?

What if parents have wills and their contingent beneficiaries are their two adult children. If one of the adult children dies before the parents, who gets that contingent beneficiary’s share?

It is not that uncommon that a child dies before a parent. The question then arises about who gets that share of the inheritance. Is it the children of the decedent child (the will maker’s grandchildren), or do the will maker’s other children split the share of the decedent child?

The language of the will itself governs what happens with each beneficiary’s share in the event one of the adult children dies before his or her parents.

Per Capita Distribution

Some wills divide the remainder among the will maker’s children who are still living. With this approach, the surviving siblings would receive the entire estate.

This is called “per capita,” which is a Latin phrase that translates literally to “by head.” In a per capita distribution, each designated beneficiary receives an inheritance only if they are living when the inheritance vests (at the will maker’s death).

If a beneficiary dies before this, that beneficiary’s share is divided among the surviving named beneficiaries. As a result, the children of the decedent beneficiary get nothing, unless they are specifically designated as beneficiaries.

Per Stirpes Distribution

However, the more common approach is for a will to state: “I give, devise and bequeath my residuary estate to my descendants, per stirpes.”

Per stirpes is a Latin phrase that translates literally to “by roots” or “by branch.” A per stirpes distribution means that a beneficiary’s share passes to their lineal descendants if the beneficiary dies before the inheritance vests. Per stirpes effectively designates a class of beneficiaries to receive estate property, rather than designating only specific individuals to inherit property.

Therefore, providing this language in the will means that if a child predeceases the testator and the predeceased child has surviving descendants, that predeceased child’s share will go to that predeceased child’s descendants, the will maker’s grandchildren.

Key Takeaway

Consult an experienced estate planning attorney about how each of these designations would work in your specific situation when you draft or update your will. The language you choose can have a significant impact on how your assets are distributed to future generations.