Inheritance | Glossary | Frequently Asked Questions
INHERITANCE
We work in many different countries and inheritance law differs from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In the 1920's English law was simplified to allow inheritance in intestacies only as far as first cousins or descendants of first cousins. The late Dorothy L. Sayers in one of her early Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries mentioned this change in the law when the whole point of the motive for the crime depended on whether the victim's estate could legally pass to the murderer if the victim died after the Inheritance Act. Previously, it was true that an inheritance could pass back along a family line to third-fourth or even more distantly related cousins. However, the further back you go the more difficult it is to prove a legal bloodline. Although this is the law in England, that doesn't hold true for other countries. In some American states, the heir can be a second cousin or someone even more remote.
Please click here for a Genealogical Chart outlining family relationships to first cousins.
GLOSSARY
Administrator
A person appointed to manage the estate
of a person who has died without leaving a valid will.
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study and investigation of family history. This involves
tracing lines of descent from common ancestors to living members of a
family.
Intestate
When a person dies without having made a will describing how they
want their property to be disposed.
Next-of-Kin
The next-of-kin represent the closest family members of a deceased person
able to make a claim on their estate.
This relationship is defined by law and depends on the
jurisdiction of the estate. Please see our genealogical
tree chart for a graphical explanation of family relationships.
Will/ Testament
A written document that outlines how a person wishes to have their
property and personal possessions distributed at the time of their death
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Below is short list of questions and answers organised under general categories. If you cannot find your answer here, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will endeavour to answer your query
About who can claim an inheritance?
- Who can claim an inheritance if a person dies
without having written a will?
- Do I have to share any inheritance with other
relatives?
About who is involved?
- Are you hired by the government to undertake your
investigations?
- Who is the administrator and what do they do?
- Do I have to use your services or can I put forward my own claim
to an estate?
About the size of the estate?
- Why can't you tell me the value of the estate?
- What is done with the personal assets of the
deceased such as real estate, furniture, jewellery etc.?
- Is any interest paid to the estate?
About our working practices and how long the process
takes?
- How long will it take for me to receive any money?
- Why can't you divulge the name of the deceased?
- Can you give me names and addresses of other members
of my family that you have found?
About the cost?
- How much do you charge to find a beneficiary?
- Do I have to pay you for your research if my claim is
not successful?
Short Answers
Who can claim an inheritance
if a person dies without a will?
Legislation in England and Wales, recognises the claims of a spouse, children
and other blood relatives -up to first cousins once removed. Please see
our genealogical
tree chart for a graphical explanation of family relationships.
Nevertheless, the law in foreign jurisdictions can be very different and in such cases it is best to contact us for further information.
Do I have to share any inheritance
with other relatives?
Yes, if there are other relatives who have a similar family relationship
to the deceased.
Are you hired by the government
to undertake your investigations?
No, we do not engage in work for any
government department. In the event that no next-of-kin are found, it is common practice amongst governments across the world to
expropriate those assets. Therefore, private companies like Celtic
Research undertake the task of finding missing heirs at their own risk.
Who is the administrator
and what do they do?
The administrator is responsible for making sure that the estate of the
deceased is distributed lawfully. They oversee the payment of debts & tax and
approve the accounts to show how much money is available for distribution.
The administrator can be a family member, a lawyer, a banker, or any trustworthy
person of legal age.
Can I put forward my own claim
to an estate?
Yes, you have every right to carry out
the necessary research and put forward your own claim to a decedent's
estate -providing you can produce the relevant proofs to satisfy the
solicitors administering the estate. However proving your own claim can be
a lengthy, difficult and often expensive task. You can repair your own
car, or even lay the tiles in your kitchen, but it is often better to
leave that job to a professional. Celtic Research executes all the research
and ancillary work necessary, thereby ensuring speed, efficiency
and accuracy.
Why can't you tell me the value
of the estate?
We cannot say how much an estate is worth if we do not have this
information made available to us. Public administrators and solicitors in
most jurisdictions around the world will not make such details public. For
example, in England & Wales, the Treasury Solicitor has to comply with the
Money Laundering Act 2007, which means it won't divulge the value of
an estate to anyone that cannot prove they have a legal claim. This means that unless we submit a claim
with supporting documents for an heir, we cannot know the value of the
estate... and we cannot submit a claim for an heir unless the people we contact agree
to use our service. We hope you will agree this is a 'Catch-22' situation.
This means that most of the cases we research, do not have a
pre-determined value and we risk losing money in every case we research if
the final value is too small to cover our fees.
What is done with the personal
assets of the deceased such as real estate, furniture, jewellery etc.?
All the
deceased's assets, including personal items, are sold at market value
enabling the inheritance to be divided equally
amongst all next-of-kin.
Is any interest paid to the
estate?
Normally interest accrues to an estate during the time that funds
are placed in a bank account prior to distribution. There are instances
where interest can only accumulate for a set number of years. Everything
depends on the original jurisdiction involved. Contact
us for further details.
How long will it take for me to
receive any money?
It is difficult to estimate the length of time it will take for any
given estate to reach the distribution stage, but it can take between 6-12
months from the time we begin to process your claim. The time it takes
varies given on number of factors such as, legal complications,
missing/destroyed records and other events that can prevent an estate from
being distributed more quickly.
Why can't you divulge the name of
the deceased?
We will have taken a lot of time and trouble in order to find the
rightful next of kin and in order to safeguard our fees (which of course
are only recovered if we successfully prove the claims of those next of
kin) we reserve the right not to identify the deceased until we have
contracts or agreements from all of the potential heirs.
Can you give me names and addresses
of other members of my family that you have found?
If you would like, we are happy to forward your
details to other members of the family, but we cannot give you their contact
details without their permission.
How much do you charge to find
a beneficiary?
Please refer to Fees and contact
us for more information.
Do I have to pay you for your research
if my claim is not successful?
No. You do not have to pay us for our research costs. We bear the
risk in every case. Please refer to Fees.
