Yes. In every U.S. state, grandchildren do inherit a deceased parent’s share of a grandparent’s estate. When an adult child dies before their own parent, that child’s descendants step into the child’s place and take what the child would have received. Lawyers call this inheriting “by representation.” How much each grandchild ends up with depends on whether the grandparent left a will, what that will says, and which distribution rule the state uses when there isn’t one.
When There Is No Will
If a grandparent dies without a will, state intestate succession law decides who inherits.1Legal Information Institute. Intestate Succession The share of any child who died before the grandparent doesn’t disappear and doesn’t get redivided among the surviving children. It flows down to that child’s own children.
Simple example. A grandmother dies with three children. One of those children died last year, leaving two kids of her own. The estate splits into three equal shares. The two surviving children each take a third. The two grandchildren split their late mother’s third between them.
Three Methods That Change the Math
The straightforward example above works out the same way under any state’s rules. The three methods only diverge once the family tree gets uneven, with more than one deceased child and different numbers of grandchildren in each branch. It’s worth knowing which method your state uses, because it can shift the size of an individual grandchild’s share meaningfully.
Per stirpes. Latin for “by the roots.” The estate divides into equal shares at the children’s level, whether those children are living or not. A deceased child’s share drops straight down and is split among that child’s descendants. This is the most common method written into wills and the default in many states.
Per capita by representation. Shares are divided equally at the first generation with at least one living member. Any shares belonging to deceased members of that generation then drop down to their descendants. The result matches per stirpes in most families and only diverges in specific configurations.
Per capita at each generation. This is the default under the Uniform Probate Code and is used by a growing number of states. Shares belonging to deceased members of a generation get pooled and redistributed equally among the next generation’s descendants. The effect is that all grandchildren at the same level receive equal amounts, even when they come from branches of different sizes. Under strict per stirpes, a grandchild from a smaller branch takes a bigger individual share than a cousin from a larger branch.
If your family has multiple deceased children with unequal numbers of grandchildren, the state’s default rule is what determines each person’s cut.
When There Is a Will
A will overrides the intestate rules, so whatever the document says controls. Most estate planning attorneys build per stirpes language into wills as a matter of course, so that a beneficiary who dies before the testator has their share pass to their descendants rather than getting absorbed by the surviving beneficiaries.
The wording carries real weight. A will that leaves everything “to my children, equally,” with no representation language, is ambiguous about whether grandchildren of a deceased child inherit anything. Some states read that phrase to include the deceased child’s descendants; others read it to leave them out. Language like “to my children, per stirpes” or “to my children, by representation” removes the guesswork.
The Pretermitted Heir Gap
Most states protect children who were accidentally left out of a will, typically because they were born or adopted after the will was signed. These “pretermitted heir” statutes give the omitted child a share equal to what they’d receive under intestate succession. That protection generally reaches children of the person who wrote the will, not grandchildren. A grandchild whose parent died before the grandparent and who isn’t named in the will usually gets no automatic statutory protection. If a grandparent’s will was written before the parent’s death and never updated, a grandchild can find themselves excluded even though intestate law would have included them.
Adopted and Step-Grandchildren
Adopted grandchildren inherit on the same footing as biological grandchildren in nearly every state. A grandchild who was legally adopted by the grandparent’s child inherits through that child the same way any biological grandchild would, whether the grandparent left a will or not.
Step-grandchildren are a different story. Without a legal adoption, a step-grandchild generally has no inheritance rights from a step-grandparent’s estate. Intestate succession statutes in most states don’t recognize step-relationships for inheritance. The reliable way to include a step-grandchild is to name them in the will or a trust. A narrow doctrine called equitable adoption exists in some states, where a court may treat a child as adopted if the decedent clearly treated them as their own and promised to adopt without ever completing the process. Courts demand strong evidence, and the doctrine is applied sparingly.
Taxes a Grandchild in This Situation Should Know About
Direct transfers from grandparent to grandchild can trigger a federal generation-skipping transfer tax on top of any estate tax, imposed at the estate tax’s top rate of 40%.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 2641 – Applicable Rate The tax exists to stop wealthy families from skipping a generation to dodge estate tax.
For the specific situation this article addresses, the important rule is the “predeceased parent rule.” If a grandchild’s parent (a lineal descendant of the grandparent) is already dead when the transfer happens, federal law treats the grandchild as if they were the grandparent’s own child for generation-skipping tax purposes. The transfer is no longer a “skip,” and the GST tax doesn’t apply.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 2651 – Generation Assignment
Federal estate tax itself only applies to estates above the basic exclusion, which is $15,000,000 per individual for 2026.4Internal Revenue Service. Estate and Gift Tax5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 2010 – Unified Credit Against Estate Tax The vast majority of estates fall well below that. A handful of states also impose their own inheritance tax on the person receiving the assets, though most of those states tax lineal descendants at reduced rates or exempt them.
One benefit worth knowing about: inherited assets like real estate and stocks get a step-up in basis to fair market value on the date of death.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1014 – Basis of Property Acquired From a Decedent If a grandparent bought stock decades ago for $10,000 and it was worth $200,000 at death, the grandchild’s basis becomes $200,000. Selling soon after produces little or no capital gains tax.7Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances
How the Share Actually Reaches You
When a grandchild inherits through a will or through intestate succession, the estate typically goes through probate. The probate court validates the will, inventories assets, sees that debts get paid, and oversees distribution. If a will’s language is unclear about whether grandchildren take a deceased parent’s share, the probate court interprets it.
If the grandchild inheriting is a minor, the court appoints a guardian or conservator to manage the money until the child reaches adulthood. The guardian generally has to account to the court for how the funds are used. Assets held in a revocable trust skip probate entirely and can also stagger distributions to a grandchild over time rather than releasing everything at 18.
Small Estate Shortcuts
Not every estate needs full probate. Most states offer a simplified process for smaller estates, typically through a small estate affidavit. The qualifying threshold varies by state, running roughly from $50,000 to over $150,000. A qualifying heir signs a sworn statement, attaches the death certificate, and presents it to whoever holds the asset. The whole thing can wrap up in weeks. Two limits to keep in mind: minors generally cannot sign these affidavits, so a parent or guardian has to act for a minor grandchild, and the small estate process usually does not cover real estate. Before hiring a probate attorney for a modest estate, it’s worth asking whether the small estate route is available.