Chain of Title

Every link in the chain is a deed, probate, AOH, court order, patent, or other recorded instrument. A "broken chain" — a gap where ownership passed but the recorded paper trail doesn't close cleanly — is a curative target.

The most common break is a deceased grantor with no recorded transfer. The decedent is on file as the last grantee. They die. The minerals pass to heirs by intestacy, or to devisees by will, or to an executor for sale. But if no AOH, no will admitted, and no executor's deed gets recorded, the chain ends at the decedent's name. Decades later a curative landman sees the same name on the runsheet and starts the probate hunt.

Building the chain is sometimes called "running title." The output is a runsheet — chronological list of every instrument touching the tract, annotated with what it does to the chain.