how the uniform simultaneous death act works
the uniform simultaneous death act was first enacted in 1940 and has been revised in subsequent years most states adopted the law in the u s while only 21 states and the district of columbia have enacted the revised version which was updated to include certain provisions in 1993 1 one of these amendments allowed the law to be applied to individuals who are missing for at least five years in the event that a body can t be located and the person is presumed dead 2someone who dies without leaving a will is said to be intestate when someone dies in intestacy it s up to a probate court to decide how the estate is administered the uniform simultaneous death act helps heirs avoid this step by clarifying issues surrounding inheritance when two or more people die without leaving wills here s how it works let s say a couple are involved in a plane crash if one is pronounced dead at the scene and the other dies a day later the uniform simultaneous death act goes into effect in this case the assets are combined and distributed to the relatives of both individuals equally rather than transferring all the assets first to the estate of the wife and then to all of her relatives without the law two probates would be necessary to process the transfer of estates before the assets are distributed probate is the general process used to administer the will of a deceased person or the estate of an individual who doesn t leave a will behind probate costs can be rather high deflating the value of an inheritance when the estates of two spouses are involved the uniform simultaneous death act helps cut down the administrative costs related to the probate process special considerationsit is possible that a person s will contains language that alters or eliminates the application of the uniform simultaneous death act as such clauses in the act such as the 120 hour survival period requirement may be waived under a variety of conditions if a will deed trust insurance policy or other governing instruments include language that expressly addresses simultaneous deaths or deaths in a common incident the provisions from that document would go into effect 3 for example an individual s last will and testament may specifically detail how to direct the release of particular assets in the event of a simultaneous death with their spouse or if their deaths occur within a set time frame of each other the 120 hour waiting period may be waived if there are any governing documents discuss simultaneous deaths or if its application has adverse effects 3 the required 120 hour survival period as prescribed by the act may also be ignored if its application has adverse effects this includes instances involving an unintended failure or duplication of a disposition survival however must still be established with convincing and clear evidence 3 uniform simultaneous death act vs uniform probate codewhile 21 states and the district of columbia have adopted the uniform simultaneous death act as law others have enacted all or parts of the uniform probate code as law 1 this code governs inheritance and the estates of deceased parties by providing uniformity to the probate process the upc was first promulgate in 1969 4 the code is made up of several articles that cover issues surrounding the death of individuals without a will the probate of wills how to administer estates nonprobate property transfers and other related topics 