Martlets are specialists in locating missing heirs. If you are a solicitor or trustee tasked with administering an estate where you are unsure as to the extent of entitled kin, or where there are missing beneficiaries, we will undertake the necessary genealogical research and provide a full report on our work.

With only a limited amount of information available, which may be no more than a detail on a death certificate or a last known address, we can construct a full family tree of the deceased intestate and, using public records and databases, locate those persons who are legally entitled. We can also provide supporting documentation, such as copies of birth, marriage and death certificates and court documents (probate/divorce records).

At the start of a case, we cannot know whether we will find one, ten or even fifty or more legal heirs (in some cases the most extensive research will demonstrate that there are in fact none). In the majority of our cases our research will lead us to cousins of the deceased and their descendants. The construction of a complete family tree showing all extant kin can be a painstaking process, as we often research families whose ancestors may have been one of ten or more children (often the norm for late nineteenth century families). Or, in the case of a family estrangement, we may be tasked with finding a missing sibling to the deceased. Whatever the family circumstances of the deceased, it is vital that all legally entitled heirs are found, so that the estate may be distributed correctly.

Whether you need to trace just one person, or require an entire maternal and paternal family tree prepared, please contact us for a no obligation assessment of your requirements.