Kinships

When someone dies intestate (i.e. without a last will and testament) in the US, a kinship hearing can be required in court.

 

The forensic genealogy required to prove kinship (who the heir(s) is/are) can span 150+ years on both maternal and paternal sides of the family, with ancestors, estates and heirs often in multiple countries for one kinship case. The burden to prove kinship lies with the alleged heir(s). These cases are very involved, time consuming and challenging. Global Shareholder Services® assumes this burden of proof and works with the alleged heirs to prove their claim to all or a share of the decedent’s estate.

 

Our Founder, Johan Boakes, is a court recognized expert witness and has many years of experience successfully resolving kinship cases. We have never lost a kindship case that we have worked on. Our client service is second to none and we are regularly in contact with our clients to update them. At the conclusion of the case our clients also receive a family history booklet and extensive family tree.

We provide expert testimony in court and submit our findings and documentation via an attorney with whom we partner on kinship cases. Furthermore, we offer the most competitive fees in this industry.

If you are an alleged heir please understand the process is not simple or quick. A kinship case does not mean simply providing a death certificate for your deceased relative and your birth certificate and an explanation from you as to your knowledge of the family tree. Each person dead and alive who are part of the family tree from a common blood relative must be identified and accounted for to the courts’ satisfaction.

An example of one of several kinship cases we have successfully completed:

 

Research of someone who died in the US but involved research dating back to the 1850’s and the marriage in the 1870’s of the decedents’ maternal and paternal grandparents in Ireland. We were able to successfully identify, locate and establish each family member from the grandparents forwards in a family tree spanning over 160+ years and covering 21 aunts and uncles and even more first cousins. We were able to establish first cousins in the US, Ireland, UK, and South Africa, and the research even took us as far afield as Australia.

Fees

We often work by way of a no risk contingency fee. Our fee usually includes our research time and the cost of our legal partner, a credible attorney with experience in kinship cases, to ensure you have the best, most experienced team working for you. Kinship hearings are unusual so it is vitally important that you have a competent genealogist and legal representative who are both familiar with the specific and particular needs of kinship cases to avoid delays, keep your case on track and to succeed. As our fees are paid only when we have successfully proved your claim by way of a percentage of the monies we will have helped you recover so you have no risk in using our services.

 

We offer the most personalized service and the best value for money by way of the most competitive contingency fee rates. If you believe you are an heir, have been contacted by another company, have questions and/or are not sure how to proceed, kindly contact us with no obligation to use our services.

 

The legal court kinship process is long and we always keep our clients up to date so you are not left for months at a time in the dark wondering what is going on. Let us help you, after all it’s your inheritance.