The Short Answer

In Florida (not North Carolina), siblings are ahead of more distant relatives when someone dies without a will and leaves no surviving spouse, descendants (children/grandchildren), or parents. If there are no eligible siblings (or descendants of deceased siblings), Florida law then moves outward to grandparents, then aunts/uncles (and their descendants), split between the paternal and maternal sides.

What Florida Law Says

Florida’s intestate succession statutes set a strict order of who inherits. The key point for your question is that siblings (and the children of deceased siblings) inherit before more remote relatives like grandparents, aunts/uncles, and cousins—but only after the law rules out a surviving spouse, descendants, and parents.

The Statute

The primary law governing this issue is Fla. Stat. § 732.103.

This statute establishes that when there is no spouse’s share to distribute (or no spouse), the estate passes in order to: (1) descendants; (2) parents; (3) brothers and sisters and the descendants of deceased brothers and sisters; and only then (4) more distant “kindred” such as grandparents and aunts/uncles (and their descendants), divided between paternal and maternal sides.

Florida also applies a representation concept called “per stirpes” for these inheritances, meaning a deceased sibling’s share can pass down to that sibling’s descendants. See Fla. Stat. § 732.104.

If you want a broader overview, see our related article: How to figure out who inherits under intestate succession in Florida.

Why You Should Speak with an Attorney

While the statute provides the general order of heirs, applying it to a real family situation—especially where someone “handled” assets without opening probate—can get complicated fast. Legal outcomes often depend on:

• Strict Deadlines: Heirship and administration disputes can become much harder once assets are distributed, accounts are closed, or property is transferred—timing can affect what remedies are realistic.
• Burden of Proof: If someone is trying to exclude other heirs, you may need evidence of the family tree, deaths, marriages/divorces, adoptions, and whether any heirs predeceased leaving descendants (which can change shares under per stirpes rules).
• Exceptions and Priority Issues: Determining who has priority to serve as personal representative (and whether someone acted improperly without authority) can require court intervention, especially if there were no formal probate filings for one or both estates.

Based on your facts—two deaths, no wills, and alleged “administration” without court filings—this is exactly the kind of situation where an attorney can help you (1) confirm the correct heirs under Florida law, (2) evaluate whether the prior handling of funds was improper, and (3) pursue the right probate strategy to protect your inheritance rights. For more background, you may also find helpful: Who has priority to be estate administrator in Florida? and How to get letters of administration in Florida.

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Disclaimer: This article provides general information under Florida law and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change frequently. For legal advice specific to your situation, please consult with a licensed attorney.