Succession (Scotland) Act 1964 (c. 41)

(1) The whole of the intestate estate of any person dying after the commencement of this Act (so far as it is estate the succession to which falls to be regulated by the law of Scotland) shall devolve, without distinction as between heritable and moveable property, in accordance with— (a) the provisions of this Part of this Act, and (b) any enactment or rule of law in force immediately before the commencement of this Act which is not inconsistent with those provisions and which, apart from this section, would apply to that person’s moveable intestate estate, if any; and, subject to section 37 of this Act, any enactment or rule of law in force immediately before the commencement of this Act with respect to the succession to intestate estates shall, in so far as it is inconsistent with the provisions of this Part of this Act, cease to have effect. (2) Nothing in this Part of this Act shall affect legal rights or the prior rights of a surviving spouse [ F1 or civil partner ] ; and accordingly any reference in this Part of this Act to an intestate estate shall be construed as a reference to so much of the net intestate estate as remains after the satisfaction of those rights, or the proportion thereof properly attributable to the intestate estate. Textual Amendments F1 Words in s. 1(2) inserted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33) , ss. 261(2) , 263(10)(c) , Sch. 28 para. 1 ; S.S.I. 2005/604 , {art. (2(c)}

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act— (a) where an intestate is survived by children, they shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; [ F2 (ab) where an intestate is survived by a husband, wife or civil partner, but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving spouse or civil partner shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; ] (b) where an intestate is survived by either of, or both, his parents and is also survived by brothers or sisters, but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving parent or parents shall have right to one half of the intestate estate and the surviving brothers and sisters to the other half thereof; (c) where an intestate is survived by brothers or sisters, but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving brothers and sisters shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; (d) where an intestate is survived by either of, or both, his parents, but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving parent or parents shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; F3 (e) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (f) where an intestate is survived by uncles or aunts (being brothers or sisters of either parent of the intestate), but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving uncles and aunts shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; (g) where an intestate is survived by a grandparent or grandparents (being a parent or parents of either parent of the intestate), but is not survived by any prior relative, the surviving grandparent or grandparents shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; (h) where an intestate is survived by brothers or sisters of any of his grandparents (being a parent or parents of either parent of the intestate), but is not survived by any prior relative, those surviving brothers and sisters shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; (i) where an intestate is not survived by any prior relative, the ancestors of the intestate (being remoter than grandparents) generation by generation successively, without distinction between the paternal and maternal lines, shall have right to the whole of the intestate estate; so however that, failing ancestors of any generation, the brothers and sisters of any of those ancestors shall have right thereto before ancestors of the next more remote generation. (2) References in the foregoing subsection to brothers or sisters include respectively brothers and sisters of the half blood as well as of the whole blood; and in the said subsection “ prior relative ”, in relation to any class of person mentioned in any paragraph of that subsection, means a person of any other class who, if he had survived the intestate, would have had right to the intestate estate or any of it by virtue of an earlier paragraph of that subsection or by virtue of any such paragraph and section 5 of this Act. Textual Amendments F2 S. 2(1)(ab) inserted (30.4.2024) by Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 (asp 2) , ss. 77(1)(a) , 88(2) (with s. 77(2) ) F3 S. 2(1)(e) repealed (30.4.2024) by Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 (asp 2) , ss. 77(1)(b) , 88(2) (with s. 77(2) )