Stanciu

The decedent, Doralee Vema Beckel, died intestate. It is undisputed that, under the laws of intestate succession, the estate will pass to the decedent’s surviving first cousins and to the surviving issue of deceased first cousins. The question on appeal is at what generation, if any, do lineal descendents of a predeceased intestate heir lose their status as surviving issue entitled to a share of the estate?

In the petition for determination of persons entitled to distribution, respondent, Maureen Stanciu, the estate’s administrator, limited surviving issue to the children of the predeceased first cousins, i.e., first cousins once removed. Accordingly, if a predeceased first cousin’s children also predeceased the decedent but the first cousin’s grandchildren survived the decedent, respondent took the position that those grandchildren, i.e., the decedent’s first cousins twice removed, were not entitled to a share of the estate. Similarly, if the surviving issue were the predeceased first cousin’s great-grandchildren, i.e., first cousins thrice removed, they were excluded. The trial court agreed with respondent and thus limited the distribution of the estate to surviving…