Alabama Probate and Intestate Succession: What Happens Without a Will (2026)

Alabama probate cases go to the Probate Court in the county where the deceased lived, one of 67 courts led by an elected Judge of Probate serving a six-year term. Unlike many states, Alabama specifically declined to adopt the Uniform Probate Code's formal and informal procedure tracks.

Information last verified on 2026-07-16. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

How Probate Works in Alabama

Alabama's probate statutes sit in Title 43 of the Alabama Code, formally called the Probate Code, but Alabama specifically declined to adopt the modern Uniform Probate Code's informal, formal, and supervised administration tracks when it revised its probate law in 1982. That means Alabama does not offer the registrar-only "informal probate" shortcut available in states that follow the UPC model. Every full estate administration in Alabama starts the same way: someone petitions the county Probate Court for Letters Testamentary, if a will names an executor, or Letters of Administration, if there is no will or the named executor cannot serve. Ala. Code § 12-13-1 gives the Probate Court jurisdiction to grant these letters.

When no will names an executor, or the will fails, Alabama law sets a fixed priority order for who the court appoints as administrator: the surviving spouse has first priority, followed by the next of kin entitled to share in the estate, then the largest creditor residing in Alabama, and finally any other person the court finds fit to serve.

Most of Alabama's 67 counties handle probate matters exclusively in the Probate Court. A handful of counties, including Jefferson, Mobile, Shelby, Pickens, and Houston, share concurrent jurisdiction over estate administration with the Circuit Court, either by local act or by a population-based constitutional amendment covering counties of roughly 300,000 to 500,000 residents. In those counties, an estate can sometimes be administered in either court depending on how it was filed.

Alabama law also sets a statutory floor on how quickly an estate can close. Under Ala. Code § 43-2-350, creditors have until 6 months after the grant of letters, or 5 months from the first publication of notice to creditors, whichever is later, to present a claim against the estate, with creditors who receive actual notice getting 30 days from that notice. In practice, simple Alabama estates without real property often close in 6 to 9 months, estates involving real property commonly take 9 to 15 months, and contested or complex estates, particularly in Jefferson or Shelby County, can run 1 to 3 years or longer.

Because Alabama has no informal registrar track, even a straightforward, uncontested estate still requires the Probate Court's involvement at each major step: appointing the personal representative, approving the inventory, and approving the final settlement. This does not necessarily mean Alabama probate takes longer than a UPC state's formal track. It means Alabama does not offer the option to skip a hearing entirely the way some UPC states do for uncontested cases.

Intestate Succession in Alabama: Who Inherits Without a Will

When someone dies without a valid will in Alabama, Ala. Code §§ 43-8-41 and 43-8-42 control who inherits, and the exact split depends on precisely who survives the decedent.

If the decedent leaves a surviving spouse and no surviving children or parent, the spouse takes the entire estate. If the decedent leaves a surviving spouse and a parent but no surviving children, the spouse takes the first $100,000 of the estate plus half of whatever remains, with the parent or parents taking the rest. If the decedent leaves a surviving spouse and children, and every one of those children is also a child of the surviving spouse, the spouse takes the first $50,000 plus half of the balance, with the children sharing the remainder. But if the decedent leaves a surviving spouse and one or more children from a different relationship, someone the surviving spouse is not the parent of, the spouse's share drops to a flat one-half of the estate, with no separate dollar figure attached, and the children divide the other half.

Whatever portion does not pass to the surviving spouse goes to the decedent's children, called "issue" in the statute, per stirpes, meaning by representation, so that a deceased child's own children step into that child's share.

Alabama is a common-law, separate-property state, not one of the nine community-property states. That means a surviving spouse in Alabama does not already own half of property acquired during the marriage the way a spouse in Arizona or California does. The entire intestate share described above is assigned directly by the statute, not carved out of a pre-existing ownership interest.

If no spouse survives, the decedent's parents inherit the entire estate equally under Ala. Code § 43-8-42, or all of it to the surviving parent if only one is living. If no spouse, children, or parent survives, the estate passes to the issue of the decedent's parents, meaning siblings and, by representation, the children of any deceased sibling. If none of those relatives survive either, but a grandparent or a grandparent's descendant does, the estate splits evenly between the paternal side and the maternal side of the family.

One way to make sure your property goes to the people you actually choose, rather than following Alabama's intestate succession order, is to have a valid will in place. recordinglaw.com's free Alabama Last Will and Testament Generator can help you create one, with no account required.

Small Estate and Simplified Probate in Alabama

Alabama's Revised Alabama Small Estates Act, effective October 1, 2025, governs a simplified "summary distribution" process under Ala. Code §§ 43-2-690 et seq. that lets a small estate's personal property move to heirs without a full administration.

The dollar threshold is not a single flat figure. It is the sum of the homestead allowance under Ala. Code § 43-8-110, the exempt property allowance under § 43-8-111, and the family allowance under §§ 43-8-112 and 43-8-113, each adjusted for inflation by the State Treasurer under § 43-8-116. That adjustment runs on a three-year cycle, not an annual one: § 43-8-116 directs the Treasurer to adjust the amounts on July 1, 2017 and at the end of each 3-year period after that, rounded to the nearest $25, with each new set applying to exemptions claimed on or after the following April 1.

The Treasurer's published amounts for exemptions claimed on or after April 1, 2024 are $18,800 in homestead allowance, $9,400 in exempt personal property, and $18,800 in family allowance, a combined small estate amount of $47,000. The July 1, 2026 adjustment raises those to $20,475, $10,225, and $20,475, a combined $51,175, but that set does not take effect until exemptions claimed on or after April 1, 2027. Note that the base figures written into the statutes themselves, $15,000 and $7,500, are the un-indexed 1982 amounts; the Treasurer's published table is the one that controls. Confirm the figure in force against that table or with the local Probate Court before relying on it.

Real property does more than sit outside the process; it can disqualify the estate outright. Ala. Code § 43-2-691(2) defines the qualifying estate as all the personal property of a decedent who owns no real property at the time of his or her death for which title does not pass by operation of law. So a decedent who held real estate in a form that does not transfer automatically, a solely titled house being the common case, leaves no small estate to distribute at all, and the family needs a full administration rather than a summary distribution of the personalty. Real property that does pass by operation of law, such as a jointly held home with a right of survivorship, does not itself close the door, and where the route is available it still reaches only personal property. To use the process, no personal representative can already be appointed or have a pending petition, funeral expenses must be paid or arrangements made for payment, and at least 30 days must have passed both since notice was filed and published and since the Alabama Medicaid Agency received notice of the filing, since Medicaid has a right to seek reimbursement from some estates. The petition is a sworn filing with the Probate Court, and the judge issues an order or supporting affidavit that the petitioner then presents to banks or other asset holders, so the process is faster and cheaper than full administration but still involves the court, unlike a purely self-executing affidavit used in some other states. Summary distribution is not available if a minor child who is not also the surviving spouse's child survives the decedent. Only the surviving spouse may file the petition if one exists; otherwise, any distributee entitled to share in the estate may do so.

Does Alabama Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?

Alabama has neither a state estate tax, which was repealed in 2005, nor a state inheritance tax, according to the Alabama Department of Revenue. Only the federal estate tax can apply to an Alabama estate, and its 2026 exemption of $15 million per individual, effectively $30 million for a married couple through portability, means it affects only the largest estates in the state.

Do You Need a Probate Attorney?

Many straightforward Alabama estates, particularly ones that qualify for summary distribution, can be handled without hiring a probate attorney. An attorney is worth engaging when a will is likely to be contested, when the estate includes a business interest with real valuation questions, when the family is blended in a way that creates gaps intestate succession does not cover, such as stepchildren who were never legally adopted, or when the estate is large enough to raise a genuine federal estate tax question. Because Alabama has no informal probate track, an attorney can also help navigate the state's creditor-notice and hearing requirements, which apply even to relatively simple estates.

For a look at how these same questions play out in other states, see Probate by State.

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about probate and intestate succession in Alabama as of the verification date above. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. It is not a substitute for advice from a probate attorney licensed in Alabama, particularly for a contested estate, a business interest, a blended family, or an estate large enough to raise a federal estate tax question. Figures, thresholds, and program details change; verify current details directly with the Alabama Probate Court or the Alabama Department of Revenue before relying on any figure here.

---

Last updated: 2026-07-16. Figures and statutes cited reflect their in-force version as of 2026-07-16.

More Alabama Laws

• Alabama Child Custody Laws
• Alabama Divorce Laws
• Alabama Power of Attorney Laws
• Alabama Unclaimed Property