New Developments in United States Succession Law

Abstract

Succession law in the United States is a not a federal issue, but is instead an area of private law relegated to states. Because of the impossibility of identifying the number of changes in the fifty juris dictions that compose the United States, this Report is limited to dis cussing the major trends and a few key minor currents occurring in succession laws in America over the last ten years. Methodologically, this Report proceeds by identifying in Part I the recent general changes or tendencies in succession laws within approximately the last decade. In Part II, this Report assesses and discusses the changes in the law that can be traced to comparative law scholarship. Finally, Part III of this Report concludes by examin ing what movements exist toward a supra-national law of succession.