I think copyright is inherited by the heirs (in most cases relatives of the deceased) and carries on quite a long time after death. So the relatives may actually sue you, and any discussion WRT relicensing would have to be addressed to them.
I actually consider putting something into my will that states that all my open-source contributions are relicensed to "public domain" (CC0 [1]) once I die.
[1] https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc...
Its also possible to transfer your copyrights before your death. For example to the FSF or to Software Freedom Conservancy. I hear there are tax implications for copyright bequeathment, which is why transferring copyrights is preferred.
Re:60x speed-up of Linux “perf”
by CodeWriter23 on Thursday September 09, 2021 @10:37AM
(#28470170)
Their heirs could do precisely that.
Re:60x speed-up of Linux “perf”
by colejohnson66 on Thursday September 09, 2021 @11:15AM
(#28470595)
Yep. It’s how the Marvin Gaye lawsuits these past few years have been able to happen (despite him being dead). His estate is suing.
IANAL but I believe a Qui Tam could take place by surviving family. Or inherited copyrights, etc.
What are they gonna do? Sue you from beyond the grave?