Heir-at-law

A heir-at-law is a person who is legally entitled to inherit the property or assets of a deceased individual who has died without a valid will (intestate). The specific order of inheritance is dictated by the laws of the jurisdiction where the deceased resided and the nature of the property. Typically, the surviving spouse, children, parents, siblings, and other relatives, in a predetermined order, become heirs-at-law. Proving heirship often requires legal proceedings to establish familial relationships and identify those entitled to the inheritance.

Heir-at-law meaning with examples

• After Mr. Abernathy's sudden passing, the court declared his two children, as his next of kin, to be his heirs-at-law, inheriting his estate equally. A lengthy probate process was initiated to assess all assets, determine liabilities, and distribute the holdings appropriately. His estranged wife, while in his life, had no legal claim without a will.
• When Mrs. Davies passed intestate, her sister's son, a nephew, became an heir-at-law, because there was no spouse, no children, and her parents had pre-deceased her. After going through the required legal proceedings to provide proof of their relationship, he was granted her estate. Her possessions were considerable.
• The deceased, a bachelor with no immediate family, had a distant cousin listed as his heir-at-law, discovered after an extensive genealogical search and several court proceedings. The cousin had to navigate complex legal requirements and proving relationships before obtaining a legal ruling. This was done with the help of a lawyer.
• Following a plane crash that took the lives of a wealthy couple, their orphaned grandchildren, designated as heirs-at-law by the court, faced a long and convoluted process. The distribution was complicated due to the estate's international nature and the involvement of various legal jurisdictions with no clear will.