• Illinois probate laws apply whether or not a person dies with a will.state seal of illinois image by Jan Ebling from Fotolia.com
  
  How the law handles a person's property after death is generally covered by the probate codes of each state. These laws establish the procedures and rules that apply to probate cases, those involving the distribution of property left behind be decedents. In Illinois, the state's probate code is generally found in Chapter 755 of the Illinois Compiled Statutes.
  
  

Wills

• The requirements for a valid will are set out in 755 ILCS 5/4-1 et. seq. All wills must made in writing, though the testator himself need not write it, and can be made by anyone who is 18 or older and of sound mind. The testator must declare his intent to make the will his in the presence of two competent witnesses. He can do this by either signing the will in the presence of the witnesses or by acknowledging his signature if previously signed. If the testator is physically unable to sign, he can direct someone else to sign on his behalf either in the presence of the witnesses or by subsequent acknowledgement.
  
  

Intestacy

• When a person dies without leaving behind a will, she is said to have died intestate, and the laws intestate succession, found in 755 ILCS 5/2-1 et. seq. 755 ILCS 5/2-1, determine how any property gets distributed. The law establishes a prearranged hierarchy of people who stand to inherit if a person dies intestate. For example, if a wife dies intestate, leaving behind a husband and two children, the husband receives half of the estate while the two children divide the remaining half between them. However, the law also states that such inheritances pass "per stirpes," meaning the portion going to the children gets distributed to their descendants if the children are no longer alive. So, if one of the children died before the decedent but left behind two children, those children inherit the portion of the estate to which their parents was entitled.
  
  

Procedures

• According to 755 ILCS 5/5-1 et seq., probate estates must be handled in the county where either the decedent resided, the county in which the greatest part of his real estate holdings are located or the county where he died. Once an estate is brought before the probate court, the court has to decide if any will is valid. Whether or not there is a will, the court must name a person to oversee the distribution of the estate property. This person is alternatively known as the executor or a personal representative and is the person who actually hands out the property to any beneficiaries, not the court.