                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

ENTRY OF ORDER THAT PRESUMPTION OF DEATH IS APPLICABLE; EFFECT (§ 64.2-2305)

A. If, after the hearing conducted pursuant to &#xA7; 64.2-2304 and any
subsequent publication required pursuant to that section, the court determines
that the presumption of death is applicable, the court shall enter an order
determining that the presumed decedent is in fact dead. Upon entry of such
order, the court shall proceed to admit any will to probate, issue letters of
administration to the party entitled thereto, or order that the claim of the
heirs at law, devisees, next of kin, legatees, beneficiaries, survivors, or
other successors in interest of the presumed decedent be established. If the
order is subsequently revoked pursuant to &#xA7; 64.2-2307, all acts done in
pursuance of or in reliance on the order shall be as valid as if the presumed
decedent were actually dead.

B. The court&#8217;s order determining a person to be dead shall state the
person&#8217;s date of death to be:

   1. The date of the expiration of the seven-year period in a proceeding
   governed by subsection A of &#xA7; 64.2-2300, except that in a proceeding
   governed by subdivision A 1 c of &#xA7; 64.2-2300 it shall be the date of the
   Department of State&#8217;s issuance of a report of presumptive death unless
   the evidence shows the likelihood of death at an earlier date;

   2. The date of the person&#8217;s exposure to the specific peril of death in a
   proceeding governed by subsection B of &#xA7; 64.2-2300; or

   3. The date of the person&#8217;s disappearance in a proceeding governed by
   subsection C of &#xA7; 64.2-2300.

C. A certified copy of the court&#8217;s order determining that the presumed
decedent is in fact dead shall be accepted as proof of death in all situations
in which a certificate of death issued by the State Registrar of Vital Records
of the Virginia Department of Health would have been accepted as such proof.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 64-107; 1968, c. 656, § 64.1-111; 2006, c. 351; 2012, c.
614.