In In re Estate of Hatten,[1] the supreme court held surviving domestic partners do not inherit any of the intestate’s property as a testamentary matter. A man and woman lived together for twenty years in a domestic partnership before the man died intestate. The surviving domestic partner filed a claim against the man’s estate seeking a fair division of property based on the intestate’s promise to provide for her for the rest of her life. The woman’s claim against the estate was denied because the state’s intestate succession laws did not contemplate domestic partnerships and the evidence indicated the intestate’s failure to create a will was intentional. On appeal, she argued the superior court erred in failing to recognize her property rights via a domestic partnership. The supreme court affirmed the lower court’s decision, reasoning that, under the probate code, property interests from a domestic partner do not vest if the partners never separate during lifetime. Still, the surviving partner could contest particular property in the estate under courts’ equitable and property principles. Because the woman was a domestic partner, she did not inherit property via intestacy. Affirming the lower court’s decision, the supreme court held surviving domestic partners do not inherit any of the intestate’s property as a testamentary matter.
[1] 440 P.3d 256 (Alaska 2019).
