The concept of "quasi-community property" usually comes up in the context of spouses who acquire property while living outside of California and who later move to California. The general rule is that "quasi-community property" is property that would have been considered "community property" had they acquired it while residing in California.

This area of law can become a bit complicated to understand, but the purpose of the post is to give you a basic framework.

Divorce vs. Death (Family Code vs. Probate Code)

At the outset, it's important to note that "quasi-community property" in the context of divorce is different than in the context of death of a spouse.

In the divorce context, California Family Code Section 125 states that:

“Quasi-community property” means all real or personal property, wherever situated, acquired before or after the operative date of this code in any of the following ways:

(a) By either spouse while domiciled elsewhere which would have been community property if the spouse who acquired the property had been domiciled in this state at the time of its acquisition.

(b) In exchange for real or personal property, wherever situated, which would have been community property if the spouse who acquired the property so exchanged had been domiciled in this state at the time of its acquisition. 

In the death context, California Probate Code Section 66 provides:

“Quasi-community property” means the following property, other than community property as defined in Section 28:

(a) All personal property wherever situated, and all real property situated in this state, heretofore or hereafter acquired by a decedent while domiciled elsewhere that would have been the community property of the decedent and the surviving spouse if the decedent had been domiciled in this state at the time of its acquisition.

(b) All personal property wherever situated, and all real property situated in this state, heretofore or hereafter acquired in exchange for real or personal property, wherever situated, that would have been the community property of the decedent and the surviving spouse if the decedent had been domiciled in this state at the time the property so exchanged was acquired.

The key difference involves real estate. In the divorce context, quasi-community property includes all real estate wherever it is located. In the death context, quasi-community property real estate includes only real estate within California.

Thus to understand the quasi-community property character of a certain asset, we must look at (a) where the spouse was domiciled at the time he or she acquired the property and (b) whether the property was personal property, California real estate, or non-California real estate.

Intestate Succession: Surviving Spouse's Right

Generally, quasi-community property is distributed like community property for purposes of intestate succession. However, there are some peculiarities unique to quasi-community property that are not found with typical community property. 

Upon death, 1/2 of the deceased spouse's quasi-community property belongs to the surviving spouse, and the other half belonging to the deceased spouse. The same does not hold for the surviving spouse's quasi-community property. The surviving spouse's quasi-community property belongs completely to the surviving spouse. A deceased spouse has no ability to bequeath his or her interest in the surviving spouse's separate property that would be considered quasi-community property under California law.

Couples moving into California with substantial assets outside of California would be wise to consult an estate planning lawyer to understand and determine the impact of quasi-community property rules on their estate plan.

Who Gets Your Assets if You Die Without an Estate Plan?

Whether you like it or not, everybody in California needs an estate plan. If you've failed to prepare actual estate planning documents, then it means that you are relying on the body of California law to dictate who will receive your property. Here's an overview of how some of your assets will get distributed:

1. Joint Tenancy assets automatically pass to the other joint tenants when you pass away.
2. Community property with right of survivorship is a special way of owning assets available to married couples and registered domestic partners. When one of the spouses or partners passes away, the other one automatically becomes the owner.
3. Assets with beneficiary designations automatically go to the beneficiaries that you've named on those accounts. A couple of common examples include life insurance and retirement accounts.
4. Assets held in a trust get distributed based on the terms of the trust document.

Intestate Succession?

If you die owning assets that are not subject to immediate transfer when you pass away and you have no Will in place, those assets are distributed according to the laws of "intestate succession." Under this statutory framework, these assets get distributed to your "heirs" (this is the legal term for people who would inherit from you if you had no Will and is generally comprised of your closest family members).

Probate

With a few exceptions, assets that are subject to the laws of intestate succession generally have to be "probated." Probate is a court-supervised process to make sure that your debts are paid off and your assets get distributed to your heirs. It can be a very expensive and time consuming proposition. For many Californians, avoiding the arduous process of probate is their primary goal in preparing an estate plan.