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Simple English definitions for legal terms
lawful issue
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A quick definition of lawful issue:
A lawful issue is a person who is a direct descendant of someone else, like a grandchild. When someone dies without a will, lawyers need to figure out who all the living issues are so they can distribute the person's property according to the law. In the past, the term only applied to children born to married parents, but now it includes all descendants, no matter their parents' marital status.
A more thorough explanation:
In the field of trusts and estates, the term "issue" refers to a person's lineal descendants. This means that a person's children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so on are considered their issue. For example, if someone's grandchild is named in a will, they are considered an issue of the person who wrote the will.
It is important for lawyers to determine all living issues of a deceased person, especially if they did not leave a will. This is because the person's property will be distributed according to the state's intestate law, which determines who inherits the property when there is no will.
The term "lawful issue" used to only refer to children born to married parents, but now it includes all lineal descendants regardless of their parents' marital status.
For example, if someone dies without a will and they have two children and three grandchildren, all five of those individuals would be considered the decedent's issue and would have a claim to their property according to the state's intestate law.