A number of years ago I inherited from my aunt several hundred mineral interests located across half a dozen states. Some interests are in her name and some had been conveyed to her trust. I am the personal representative of the estate, trustee of the trust, and sole beneficiary of both. The estate has been probated in two states but no title work done. Some interests have been sold along the way and some leases given. There are royalties being received on some interests and money in suspense for others. Getting this all sorted out and evaluated is beyond the scope of what I can do. What are the resources available to help me with the disposition of all this?
Your best bet is to work with a landman to help you determine what needs to be done in each state. You may have to work with more than one landman if your mineral interests are over that many states. It can get expensive, so I would suggest sorting through the information you have into excel to see the information you have collected from your aunt. I would try to work with the state you have the probates completed and have the most information. Depending on each state laws, you will more than likely be required to probate in additional states. Hopefully mineral interest owners with similar situations will chime in with their experience.
You need to file the Probate Order in each of the counties where the minerals are located with the County Clerk’s office. Then send a copy of that Order to the companies that are distributing the revenue so that they can get the proper parties in pay status. If you want to provide more information, like States & Counties, there are probably people of this forum that can help with more specific answers.
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Just to be sure, if your aunt’s estate was probated the court’s order is only valid in the state where it was issued. For example, a California probate order cannot transfer land in any other state. Often you can file an ancillary or summary probate proceeding in another state to clear up title there. In some states an Affidavit of Heirship transfers title with little trouble. In states like Oklahoma, a you will likely need a probate in order for companies to recognize your inheritance and pay royalties.
This sounds like a good problem to have.
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