What Happens If You Die Without a Will in California?

Jason and Emily lived in Carlsbad with their two daughters and a dog named Sushi. They’d talked about getting a will done “eventually,” but life always got in the way. He ran a digital agency in Del Mar, she worked in healthcare. Weekends were a blur of soccer games, Costco trips, and maybe one semi-romantic dinner per month.

When Jason died unexpectedly in a car accident at 41, Emily was thrown into a whirlwind of grief and red tape. Jason had no will. No trust. No plan. And what happened next? That’s where things get messy, and totally avoidable.

If you die in California without a will, you are considered to have died intestate. That means the probate court steps in and distributes your estate according to California intestacy laws. These laws don’t care about your personal wishes, your unique family dynamics, or any conversations you had over takeout about “who gets what.” They follow a formula.

In Jason’s case, Emily didn’t automatically inherit everything. Their home was only in his name. Half of certain community property and part of Jason’s separate property went directly to the kids. That sounds fine until you realize those kids were minors. The court appointed a guardian to oversee the children’s share. Emily, their mom, had to get court approval to do things like refinance or sell the house.

Meanwhile, Jason’s digital agency had no succession plan. His business accounts were frozen. Clients started pulling contracts. Payroll got dicey. The stress nearly broke Emily — all while she was planning a funeral and helping two little girls understand that Dad wasn’t coming home.

This isn’t a scare tactic. It’s real life. And it's why even basic estate planning, a simple will, a trust, and a few supporting documents can completely change what your family goes through after you're gone.

When you work with a San Diego estate planning attorney, you're not just deciding who gets your stuff. You're protecting your spouse from court battles. You're making sure your kids don’t inherit chaos. You're saving your family from months (or years) in probate. You’re doing what California can’t do for you, planning based on love, not law.

If you die without a will:

• You don’t get to choose who gets what. The state does.
• You can’t name guardians for your children… a judge decides.
• Your estate likely goes through probate, which is public, time-consuming, and expensive.
• Assets may get tied up for months, especially if there’s property involved in areas like La Jolla, Point Loma, or Pacific Beach, where real estate is valuable and complex.

If you take the time to get a basic estate plan in place, a will, a revocable living trust, a power of attorney and health care directive, everything changes.

And it’s not just about you. If you have a partner but aren’t legally married, the state won’t recognize them as an heir, no matter how long you've been together.

At Peaceful Warrior Law, we make estate planning feel less like a chore and more like a smart investment in your family’s peace of mind. We’ve helped young couples in Pacific Beach set up their first wills, high-net-worth families in Del Mar protect their real estate with trusts, and blended families in La Mesa navigate complicated dynamics with clarity and compassion.

Don’t wait for a tragedy to force your hand. Estate planning isn’t about dying, it’s about protecting the people you love most when they need you the most. And unlike the State of California, we actually care about your dog Sushi, your family beach house, and that slightly dysfunctional-but-lovable cousin you’d never want handling your affairs.

We’re here to help. No pressure. Just a conversation and a plan.