What is the ‘killer rule’ and how might it apply to who will inherit the Renners’ estate

fatal stabbing There has been widespread mourning over the passing of filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner and his wife, photographer and producer Michelle Singer Reiner.

The tragedy, discovered on December 14, 2025, is also increasing people’s interest in what happens when murderers can inherit wealth from their victims. That’s because Nick Reiner, his son, was charged in two cases First-degree murder four days after the couple died in their Los Angeles home.

What is the ‘killer rule’?

All states have some type of murder statute that prevents murderers to inherit from one’s victimsAlthough the rules vary slightly from state to state, they always prevent murderers from profiting from their crimes,

Simply put, if you are found guilty of murdering someone or plead guilty to their murder, you cannot receive anything from your victim’s estate.

In some states, it may go even further Heritage And apply to jointly held property, insurance policies, and other types of accounts.

Most of these manslaughter statutes, including California’s, only apply to “heinous and intentional” murders, meaning they don’t apply if you accidentally kill someone. Although there is no need for a judge or jury to return a guilty verdict or for the accused to plead guilty, certain findings of willful and wanton murder must be made by a criminal or civil court.

These rules, known as Slayer Rules, have a long history in the United States. They became more prominent after an 1889 murder case in New York State, in which a 16-year-old boy poisoned his grandfather in order to receive an inheritance that was written in his grandfather’s will.

How often are the Slayer rules enforced?

It’s hard to say for sure. As far as we know, no one tried to keep track.

The murderers’ statute of limitations applies when a person who would otherwise receive property from an estate is accused or found guilty of murder, and the murderer is entitled to receive the property from the victim.

These tragic cases almost always involve murder Done by relatives. Several high-profile people have been linked to murders in California.

Famous disenfranchised killers include Lyle and Eric Menendez, Californians known as the Menendez brothers. In 1996, a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder GuardianJose and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez. The parents of the Menendez brothers, who were murdered in 1989, would be worth more than $35 million today.

The brothers, who became eligible for parole but were denied it in 2025, have been in prison since then.

Once a deliberate and heinous murder is discovered, even if the murderer is later released on parole – or even if they serve no prison time – they will still inherit nothing.

In practical terms, this means that even if one or both of the Menendez brothers are granted parole in the future, they will be ineligible to inherit any of their parents’ assets upon release from prison.

California’s manslaughter rule also meant that salesman Scott Peterson, who was convicted of murdering his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson, in 2002, could not collect the money from her life insurance policy that he otherwise would have received.

Peterson has been in jail since 2005.

What could prevent its application?

In the absence of a murder conviction, the murderer rule cannot apply. For example, a conviction for a lesser criminal offense, such as murder, may allow the accused – or their lawyers – to argue that the killing was unintentional.

This exception may be relevant to the prosecution of the Reiners’ murders if it turns out that Nick Reiner’s defense can show that substance abuse or schizophrenia had driven him insane when he allegedly murdered his parents in their Los Angeles home.

On the other hand, under California law, even if there is no conviction, the probate court administering the murder victim’s estate can still separately find that the murder was intentional and aggravated. That civil finding would prevent the murderer from inheriting without a criminal conviction.

Does this only apply to families with large wealth?

The laws regarding murderers apply to people who murder one or more of their relatives, whether their victims are rich, poor, or in between.

When large amounts of money are at stake, cases attract more attention due to media coverage during the criminal trial and subsequent inheritance litigation.

Who will inherit Rob Reiner and Michelle Singer Reiner’s estate?

It is too early for both the public and the family to know who will inherit what from the Renners.

Wills are generally public documents, although wills may also include other types of estate planning, such as reinvestor trusts, which generally do not become public records. And celebrities with valuable intellectual property rights, such as the copyrights to many of Renner’s film and television properties, tend to set up trusts.

Considering that, like many parents, the Renners left most of their estate – reportedly worth around US$200 million – to their children, including Nick, then California’s homicide statute could come into play. The couple had two other children, Romy and Jake.

Rob Reiner also had another daughter, Tracy Reiner, whom he adopted after his marriage to his first wife, actor and film producer Penny Marshall.

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It is also possible that the Renners included charitable bequests in their estate plans. He was a strong supporter of many causes, including early childhood development.

Could the killer rule apply to Nick Reiner?

It’s too early to know.

It is important to emphasize that the will and other estate planning documents of Rob Reiner and Michelle Singer Reiner have not yet been made public. This means that if the Slayer Rule proves to be irrelevant in this case, what Nick Reiner might inherit is unknown.

Nor, with the couple’s deaths still under investigation, can anyone make any assumptions about Nick’s innocence or guilt.

And, as of mid-December 2025, an unnamed source was telling entertainment reporters that Nick Renner’s legal bills were being paid by the Renner family.