Estates - Maryland Uniform Simultaneous Death Act

SB 250 updates Maryland's estate law to clarify rules for cases where two or more people die simultaneously with no clear evidence of who died first. It establishes a 120-hour rule: if evidence doesn't show one person survived the other by at least 120 hours (5 days), the survivor is deemed to have predeceased the other for inheritance purposes. This affects heirs, beneficiaries, life insurers, and courts handling disputed property, joint accounts, or life insurance payouts. The bill renumbers existing sections and adds clear procedures to prevent inheritance disputes when death timing is uncertain. It does not change existing estate plans but provides a default rule for unresolved cases.