# Q for the legal types here (not advice, idle curiosity) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 12, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088 "2010-08-12T21:50:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/1 "2010-08-12T21:50:24Z")
Have you ever been in the situation of having to contact someone who has inherited some money, someone who was NOT so close to the deceased that they automatically knew who it was, that he’d died, that they’d likely get a bequest? If so, did you run into any difficulties getting the recipient to believe you were on the up and up? Because with all the scams going on, my initial reaction to any mail about an inheritance I’m not expecting would likely be to drop the letter in the nearest trashcan. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/2 "2010-08-13T02:43:59Z")
If the letter comes from a firm of lawywers with an address that can be checked, names the deceased and explains his relationship to you, invites you to contact the firm to confirm your own address and does _not_ ask for your bank account details - they don’t need them, after all - why would you throw it in the bin? Even if you don’t recognise the name of the deceased, you _will_ recognise the names of the people through whom he is connected to you, and that should persuade you that the letter is on the up-and-up. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/3 "2010-08-13T03:00:50Z")
I guess. It would also probably help if fewer than 20% of the words are either misspelled or capitalized in wonky ways. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/4 "2010-08-13T03:47:14Z")
I am a litigator, but I know my firm has a standard form letter for contacting all persons to whom a bequest has been made. It has the name and number of a contact, details of the deceased as well as information on the bequest. I suppose a phone call shall clarify it. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/5 "2010-08-13T05:19:10Z")
If someone does throw it away, have they lost out? Is that the only attempt you will make at contacting them? ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/6 "2010-08-13T05:27:17Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > If someone does throw it away, have they lost out? Is that the only attempt you will make at contacting them? I don’t do probate, but I suspect that if a beneficiary doesn’t respond, they’re gonna get served with a summons before the court will allow the estate to be closed. If they ignore the summons, then they might lose out. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2010, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-for-the-legal-types-here-not-advice-idle-curiosity/550088/7 "2010-08-13T05:37:30Z")
There are law firms that specialize in finding the deceased relatives of people who die without relatives and without a will. My family had such a distant cousin die and a good 8 cousins were simultaneously contacted by the law firm. Unfortunately for said legitimate law firm, two of our relatives actually read the obituaries regularly in San Francisco where this happened to a 92 year old very distant cousin and actually knew who he was, even though they had never met him, apparently honoring whatever weird “we don’t talk to that side of the family” crap that had arisen before his birth. So it might be legit. My relatives, on the advice of a probate lawyer on yet another side of the family, just contacted SF’s Public Administrator, who split the money among the various cousins who were in line to receive. If you have no idea who the relative is, these firms will charge a contingent fee, usually about one-third for helping recover the money.