Hi,
My mother passed away three months ago. I am the only surviving child and everything she had went to me. I haven't started probate though because the only real property she owned was mineral rights in Kansas that are currently non-producing.
Do I need to go through probate to obtain these rights, or can I just contact a lawyer in Kansas? My mother lived in Colorado as I do also.
Please let me know. I'm willing to go through probate, if necessary, but I don't know if I need to do that.
Thanks,
Kay
I am sorry for your loss. In California, and likely in other states, there are shortened methods by which someone with a small estate (here, just the mineral interests) can be transferred without a full probate. Such action would need to occur in Colorado, the state in which your mother resided. Once the transfer occurs, a copy of the certified document (here in California it would be an Affidavit re Real Property of Small Value) would need to be recorded in the county recorders' office where the property is located (i.e. in Kansas).
Hope this helps!
Jean
I am sure somewhere on this forum there is a Kansas landman or some who has worked in Kansas that could tell how Kansas law works.
Here in Texas, based on the information you presented, an Affidavit of Heirship would work in passing the minerals. You may not be out the expense of Probate but each state has its own set of laws
Kay, an heirship affidavit will transfer title in Kansas. I've worked in many a Kansas courthouse. I've sent you a friend request if you have any more questions.
Make sure you get the probate filed in Kansas. Are all of the minerals in Kansas in one county? Some counties there tax severed mineral interests. The counties that do will require that you list them or notify them of the ownership change. There appears to be no uniformity of the "listing" requirement. Maybe you will get lucky and not have to do deal with that at all!
Heirship affidavits should not be enough, since I bet fraudulent attempts have been made to acquire title!
What about in Oklahoma? Anyone have knowledge about this topic in Oklahoma?
What about in cases when there is fraud...and the probate attempts / attempted to transfer something in error due to fraud? Probate is historical.
My father had mineral rights in Oklahoma. As his only child, his right transferred to me through an Affidavit of Heirship.
Thank you for your reply.
Who or what entity did you present your information to (county, state)? Your presentation was presumably during the probate? If it your presentation of Affidavit of Heirship was after the probate closed for whatever reason then the presentation to the County Clerk for correction would still be sufficient.
If you are LITERALLY your mother's ONLY heir-at-law, the only person who would be entitled to inherit based upon Kansas' laws of descent and distribution (the laws that determine exactly WHO inherits a decedent's property when there is no Will or there IS a Will but it is not filed for probate), then there should not be a need to go through Probate (I say "should" because I have no idea what Kansas law says). In Texas, though, if your mother had a surviving spouse, that person would inherit an interest as well, possibly a life-estate interest in part of her minerals.