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Cordia Ethel Whitehead Burgess_lost Heir

Cordia Ethel Whitehead Burgess_lost Heir

Posted: 1 Mar 2015 6:20PM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: lost heir
My great grandmother is named on an estate, will, trust, or land deed overseas. Possibly Scotland. I dont know who this person was that passed away. My grandmother had a right to claim but sadly did not know about it. I have only come across this info recently. Is there a way that I can search for documents that list Cordia as an heir or beneficiary overseas. Or will I need to hire an attorney??? Please help.

Re: Cordia Ethel Whitehead Burgess_lost Heir

Posted: 17 May 2015 5:11AM GMT
Classification: Query
Where are you getting this information? Family story handed down, letter from someone or an actual legal document from an executor? How do you know about it and she didn't.

From time immemorial, there were and still are people going around informing families they or an ancestor were/are long lost heirs to titles, land and or money overseas. The family just need to pay the fees to those individuals who "found" the "lost family" to be able to claim their inheritance.

If she was truly named in any of the above named legal documents you stated then executor and probate court overseas would have been obligated to see she was sent all legal documents by certified mail.

Now a will or trust is the usual document to file with a probate court to convey inheritable property to beneficiaries, usually personal items, land, money, of an "estate". You need to know the country the probate was filed in. It is a total waste of money to hire a lawyer unless you know that basic fact. Realistically if there was any thing left to Cordia and she didn't claim it by close of probate then what ever it was was given to others named in the will or trust or sold because of lack of payment of storage fees or if land, then property taxes gone unpaid. Or turned over to the Government.

Also unless she was an only child and this "inheritance" is from an ancestor then all her siblings her parent and their siblings and all generations back to this "will/trust" are in line to receive anything too. As well as all her children and grandchildren, etc as her descendants.

Re: Cordia Ethel Whitehead Burgess_lost Heir

Posted: 31 May 2015 5:03AM GMT
Classification: Query
5-30-2015

Please clarify your posting by explaining exactly how you found out that your great grandmother is named on an estate. Is she still living now or deceased? Did she or you receive a letter from a company that specializes in tracing, researching and locating heirs? Please mention the name of the company and the city, state and country they are located in. What city and state and country does your great grandmother live in?

I generally agree with the excellent comments that the previous poster made regarding your situation, but sometimes there are exceptions to the circumstances mentioned. If your great grandmother was deceased, the funds could have been left to her AFTER she died and the decedent's estate holding the funds for her behalf may not have done thorough enough research to know for sure that she had died and then the funds would have had to be held in escrow until she or her heirs was located. Even if she is still living, they still might not have known how to do the research to locate her. The financial information is generally not known to the public or accessible by the public except in rare instances. The heir tracing companies get their information from going to the courthouses in person or from published legal notices or they buy lists for sale from other companies. If you don't know the name of the family member or friend who died in Scotland and left her this money, then you are not likely to figure it out yourself.
An attorney will generally not be able to assist you in this particular situation.

If I were you I would do online research by using a search engine to research the company's name to see if there is a record of reliability or complaints and also using the Better Business Bureau if it is an American company.

You have the choice of dealing with the company or not dealing with them. Do NOT promise to pay any fees upfront, as most legitimate companies will collect their fee from the heirs AFTER the heirs have been paid. Have they contacted other family members of yours? If the company is asking you to pay a 30% fee or more, you are in a fairly strong negotiating position to attempt to negotiate their fee downward by telling them you are willing to pay 10% or 20%, and they will probably be inclined to accept, since they don't get any money at all if the heirs decline to agree to their terms.

keith345@hotmail.com
Genealogical Researcher

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