Helping Heirs
Get What's Theirs

With over 100 years of combined experience in our industry, the research and legal teams at Legacy Probate International conduct in-depth genealogical research to locate likely beneficiaries and help them to claim and defend their inheritance rights.

WHOM WE HELP

Defending Your Claim

Unfortunately, identifying a rightful heir does not guarantee that they will be able to claim their inheritance. Legacy Probate International helps heirs navigate probate courts and inheritance laws to ensure that beneficiaries receive what is rightfully theirs.

HOW IT WORKS

From There to Heir

No Known Beneficiaries

When a person dies without a will or immediate heirs, their estate is reconciled in probate court. If an heir cannot be found, often the government will absorb the value of the estate.

Locating Heirs

Legacy Probate International uses forensic genealogy to trace family lineage as far back as the 1800s, literally searching the globe to identify and locate an estate’s rightful heirs.

Establishing a Claim

We notify the potential heir, and offer our services in helping them to file their claim. Often the research used to locate them is needed to support the legitimacy of their claim in probate court.

Claiming Your Inheritance

Legacy Probate International’s professional expertise can make the difference in helping you secure your inheritance. We don’t get paid unless your claim is successful.

ABOUT US

About Our Firm

Legacy Probate International has helped thousands of heirs claim their rightful inheritances. Our probate and forensic genealogical experience have made us one of the industry’s most respected leaders.

Found Before Lost

Most of the heirs we locate do not know that they stand to inherit from an estate, introducing them to a legacy that would be otherwise lost to them.

Genealogical Detectives

We use an intricate genealogical process to locate legal heirs, establishing a solid probate case as part of our detective work.

NEVER Out of Pocket

We assume all risk for the work that we do. We will NEVER charge any fees until your inheritance is settled.

With You All The Way

You can count on us to walk you through the process every step of the way from beginning to end – no matter how long it takes.

RESULTS

Case Highlights

Forensic genealogy can be fascinating work. Over the years, this process of tracing bloodlines through birth records and historical data has led us to some intriguing discoveries that help reveal the value of the work we perform.

When the forensic genealogists of Legacy Probate International begin work on a case, we never know where it may lead us. Genealogy does not discriminate and so we find heirs from all walks of life. Over the years we’ve located famous heirs and regular Joes (& Joans!), rich and poor, foreign and domestic. Sometimes the heirs we locate are interesting, but other times it’s what we uncover in the past that gets the crew excited. And so it was when we dug into the genealogy of Cynthia M. It turns out her father was married a couple times and while we searched through the records we uncovered a marriage to a woman named Grace. She just happened to be the granddaughter of President Theodore Roosevelt. Apparently his son Teddy Jr. met our decedent’s father while hunting in Indochina so he introduced him to his daughter and the rest is history, except for the part about her cousin being President Franklin D. Roosevelt. We can only imagine the pressure on him when he went to dinner for the first time with the Roosevelts!

Ann Stevenson Gillem was born in Illinois in 1905. In researching her estate, we found that Ann was a descendant of one of the most famous political families in Illinois history. Ann’s great uncle was none other than Adlai Stevenson, the 23rd Vice President of the United States, serving during President Grover Cleveland’s second term. Early on, we discovered Ann had moved to Hollywood to pursue an acting career. Our research soon revealed acting ran in the family. She had another famous relative, her first cousin, Edgar McLean Stevenson, Jr., better known as McLean Stevenson, an actor most recognized for his role as Lt. Colonel Henry Blake on the TV series M*A*S*H. We had the pleasure of contacting McLean Stevenson to inform him that he was one of several of Ann’s surviving first cousins and an heir to her estate.
While doing research on the estate of Joyce M., we ran into a sports historian’s dream scenario. The research for this case reached back to the mid 1800’s. The Legacy Probate research team found Joyce’s grandfather, August, born in 1863 in Wuppertal, Germany and then we located a ship’s passenger list showing him sailing to the U.S. in the 1890’s with his wife and two kids. Once they reached the fertile shore of America they had four more kids, including Joyce’s father, Frank. Grandpa August must have had some athletic genes because his middle son, Bernhard Borgmann, surprisingly turned out to be one heck of a basketball player. He played professionally from 1919-1936 with the Kingston Colonials and the Original Celtics. He was considered the best offensive player of his era and his knowledge of the game was so widely respected that he became the head coach of the Syracuse Nationals who eventually became the Philadelphia 76ers. Bernhard capped off his basketball career by getting inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1961!
We at Legacy Probate International get our fair share of good stories and while many of them begin overseas, sometimes it’s the good old fashioned American tales that really stay with you. When we worked on the estate of Stacy B, the trail brought us to Motown aka Detroit, MI. Our research eventually brought us to the realization that her uncle was a member of the famous pioneering music quartet, the Four Tops! You may not remember their songs, so here’s a list and I bet some of these titles will get you humming! Baby I Need Your Lovin’, It’s the Same Old Song, Reach Out I’ll Be There, Sugar Pie Honey Bunch, Walk Away Renee, If I Were a Carpenter, Ain’t No Woman(Like the One I’ve Got), & When She Was My Girl just to name a few.
All that was known initially about Mr. Lott was that he had no close relatives and had spent much of his life suffering from injuries he received in World War II. While we were collecting the necessary documents to present in court, one family member sent us something quite extraordinary: a cover of Life Magazine dated January 29, 1945, featuring a photograph of George Lott and the caption, “George Lott, Casualty, Odyssey of a Wounded Soldier.” The photo of Mr. Lott shows him sitting in a wheelchair in what appears to be a full-body cast. We were able to locate Mr. Lott’s cousins and they can now proudly claim their relation to this war hero.
Sometimes when you embark upon a genealogical journey things get difficult and you want to “exit stage left”. Other times, you “eats your spinach” and persist through the tough times until the genealogical puzzle finally shows itself. The best cases are when you figure out the historical aspects of the family and, along the way, you find something that simply makes you smile. This is what happened when we worked on the Marie T. estate. The research began in the late-1800’s in Italy when Marie’s uncle, Vincent, travelled through Ellis Island into the United States. He set up shop as a barber in Brooklyn. Back then many immigrant kids carried on the family business, but one of Vincent’s kids had other ideas on how to make it in America. He was none other than Joseph Barbera, the creator of some of the most iconic cartoons of our times including Popeye, the Flintstones, Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, and Scooby Doo! One can’t help but think of young Joe in the back of his father’s barber shop with a pencil and paper working on the outline for Popeye’s new girlfriend (of course that would be Olive Oyl!).

RESULTS

Case Highlights

Forensic genealogy can be fascinating work. Over the years, this process of tracing bloodlines through birth records and historical data has led us to some intriguing discoveries that help reveal the value of the work we perform.

When the forensic genealogists of Legacy Probate International begin work on a case, we never know where it may lead us. Genealogy does not discriminate and so we find heirs from all walks of life. Over the years we’ve located famous heirs and regular Joes (& Joans!), rich and poor, foreign and domestic. Sometimes the heirs we locate are interesting, but other times it’s what we uncover in the past that gets the crew excited. And so it was when we dug into the genealogy of Cynthia M. It turns out her father was married a couple times and while we searched through the records we uncovered a marriage to a woman named Grace. She just happened to be the granddaughter of President Theodore Roosevelt. Apparently his son Teddy Jr. met our decedent’s father while hunting in Indochina so he introduced him to his daughter and the rest is history, except for the part about her cousin being President Franklin D. Roosevelt. We can only imagine the pressure on him when he went to dinner for the first time with the Roosevelts!

TESTIMONIALS

What Our Clients Say

I want to thank you for all your kindness, time and information regarding my third cousin’s estate. It’s sad that he didn’t have anyone close to him while alive. I never even knew he existed and I’m sure he didn’t know of me either. It’s all very fascinating and if it weren’t for people like you, I may never have known of him. I want you to know how much your firm is appreciated for what you do. Thanks again.

ESTATE OF JAMES A.

Juliet C., California

Thank you so much for ‘finding us.’ We kept in touch with our cousin for many years but then lost track of her. We received our check a week ago. It meant a lot to my husband since he
has debilitating arthritis and had to retire early. God Bless You.

ESTATE OF CAROL V.

Evelyn T., Nebraska

This note is to thank you for your prompt attention to my request for a chronological account of my second cousin’s estate. The material is fascinating and I have spent hours recalling forgotten relatives. I don’t remember my grandmother talking about so many brothers and sisters. I sent a copy of the family tree to my brother. He will love it too. Again, thank you. 

ESTATE OF RUTH H.

Ellen M., Hawaii

I would like to thank you for the research and resulting check that you sent me. I realize that your company does this sort of thing for financial reasons but I can’t help but think it is helpful to a lot of people. Actually, it is like a gift from heaven. As we are in our 80’s we want to stay in our home as long as possible and of course there are things that need to be kept up because you know one day you will have to sell. We are planning on updating our appliances in our kitchen and possibly a new furnace so we really appreciate the unexpected gift. Thanks again for all your hard work.

ESTATE OF GUSSIE W.

Estella P., Washington

Thank you for all your help. You have been a very nice, professional firm to communicate with. That is hard to find these days, trust me. It was a pleasure doing business with a company that helps others. A lot of people, including myself at one time didn’t know this profession existed.

ESTATE OF JAMES G.

Diane S., Louisiana

Let Legacy Probate International help you claim your birthright.