What is...Succesion?
A succession is the transfer of goods and property to another person upon the death of the original owner. In the rest of the country, this process is known as probate. Succession records describe how property was divided among heirs in the court. Louisiana has laws that partially dictate which relatives must be heirs, regardless of any will.
When a person dies they either die testate or intestate. Testate means that they died with a will. Intestate means that they died without a will.
A will, also known as a testament is a legal document recording how a person would like their possessions to be dispersed and to whom upon their death. Louisiana currently permits two types of wills.
An olographic will is a will that is hand-written by the person whose will it is. The document must be entirely hand-written by the person, and it must also be dated and signed by them.
A notarial will may be written by the person or someone else. However, it must be signed in the presence of a notary.
An inventory is a list of a person’s possessions at the time of their death. Possessions may include both movable property (furniture, cash, etc.) and immovable property such as real estate.
Orleans Parish Civil Court Records
Many probate and succession records are available on microfilm or online.
Learn More
Learn More:
Louisiana State Legislature: Notarial testament
Louisiana State Legislature: Olographic testament
Loyola University New Orleans College of Law: Successions in Louisiana