If a person dies without a will (intestate)—and with no heirs (relatives or descendants)—ownership of the deceased person’s (decedent’s) property may be transferred to (or said to revert to) the state government (usually the state treasury) through the common law doctrine of escheat. In addition to enriching the state treasury (or the Lord in feudal England), escheat prevents property from remaining in limbo with no rightful owner.

A state’s common law is comprised of court opinions written by judges to resolve disputes and most states adopted the legal doctrine of escheat from the English common law (from England) soon after the founding of the United States and each state’s admission to the union. But in more recent years many state legislatures have defined the law of escheat in their state’s statutes—making it statutory law—which is also known as codifying the law, because it is then part of a code or statute.

The property subject to escheat laws is sometimes referred to or classified as unclaimed or abandoned property. Upon transfer to the government the unclaimed or abandoned property may be referred to as escheated property. And in some states there may be a period (a statute of limitations) in which heirs or rightful owners of the property may be able to reclaim escheated property.

Escheat laws vary from state to state and often depend on the nature of the asset involved (personal property, real property, bank account, brokerage account).

In Montana, if a person dies intestate (without a will) and has no identifiable heirs, the property of the deceased may escheat, or revert, to the state. This process is governed by Montana's Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (Title 70, Chapter 9, MCA). The Act outlines the procedures for handling unclaimed or abandoned property, including how such property is to be reported, when it is considered abandoned, and the process for the state to take custody of the property. The state holds the escheated property and provides a means for potential heirs or rightful owners to claim the property within a certain period, typically up to seven years for most types of property. If no claim is made within this period, the property permanently becomes state property. The Montana Department of Revenue is responsible for administering unclaimed property and maintains a database for individuals to search for and claim any property that may belong to them.