Documents / Judgment Declaring Heirship
Judgment Declaring Heirship
A court order naming the heirs of a decedent who died intestate.
When an AOH won't do — because the family is contested, the decedent's relationships are complex, or a title company refuses to insure on an AOH alone — the next move is a formal heirship proceeding under state probate code. The court takes evidence and issues a judgment naming the heirs.
Heirship judgments are the strongest curative document available short of a probate. They bind the parties and successors in title, and they're recorded in the deed records of every county where the decedent owned property.
Filed at: Probate or district court
Typically appears when: Decedent died intestate · AOH is insufficient or contested · Real property needs a court-ordered chain of title
Also called: determination of heirship, judicial heirship, heirship proceeding
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