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Simple English definitions for legal terms
per stirpes
Read a random definition: right of entry for breach of condition
A quick definition of per stirpes:
Per stirpes: This is a fancy way of saying that if someone you want to leave your money to dies before you, their share will go to their children or other family members instead. For example, if you want to leave your money to your children per stirpes and one of them dies, their share will be split equally among their own children. This way, your money still goes to your family even if someone passes away before you do.
A more thorough explanation:
Definition: Per stirpes is a Latin phrase that means “by roots” or “by branch.” This phrase often appears in the context of wills and retirement accounts to define how your assets should be passed down in the event a beneficiary passes away before you do.
For example, let's say you have three children named A, B, and C. You want to leave your estate to them equally, but you also want to make sure that if one of them dies before you, their share goes to their children. If you set up your estate to be distributed “per stirpes” and child B dies before you, then each named, living beneficiary (A and C) would receive their original portion of your estate. Child B's children would split that portion of the inheritance equally. Therefore, with a per stirpes designation, any amount that you leave for a beneficiary who dies before you will be passed down evenly to their heirs.
Another example could be if you have four grandchildren named X, Y, Z, and W. You want to leave your estate to them equally, but you also want to make sure that if one of them dies before you, their share goes to their siblings. If you set up your estate to be distributed “per stirpes” and grandchild Y dies before you, then each named, living beneficiary (X, Z, and W) would receive their original portion of your estate. Grandchild Y's siblings (if any) would split that portion of the inheritance equally.
Overall, per stirpes ensures that your assets are distributed fairly among your beneficiaries and their heirs, even if one of them passes away before you.