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Heir

A beneficiary of a will or an intestacy.

Initially, at common law, a heir referred to a person who took real property of a deceased as a result of an intestate estate.

But the term has evolved to refer generically to any person who in-her-its from an estate - the whole line of descent of the testator - whether it be real property or chattels, intestate or pursuant to a will.

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Unless otherwise noted, this article was written by Lloyd Duhaime, Barrister, Solicitor, Attorney and Lawyer (and Notary Public!). It is not intended to be legal advice and you would be foolhardy to rely on it in respect to any specific situation you or an acquaintance may be facing. In addition, the law changes rapidly and sometimes with little notice so from time to time, an article may not be up to date. Therefore, this is merely legal information designed to educate the reader. If you have a real situation, this information will serve as a good springboard to get legal advice from a lawyer.

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