User:SvareJM/Sandbox/Norway Probates

Introduction
Probate is the legal process of administering a person's estate after their death. The records are court documents that describe the distribution of a person's estate after death. These records are very helpful for genealogical research because in many areas the authorities began recording probate actions before the earliest birth and death records. These records can also give us a more personal glimpse into the life of an ancestor because of the detailed description of personal property.

The following information may be found in these records: • 2

The arrangement of a probate usually follows this pattern. Date and place of probate, the names of the deceased and heirs are mentioned first; then movable and immovable property, with their valuation; folowed by debts. Probate costs, remaining taxes and other things are deducted from this amount, and then the distribution of the estate takes place. The amount available to the heirs, and how it is to be distributed to each of them, culminating with the disbursement of what each will receive.

The FamilySearch Learning Center has the following classes on Norwegian probate records available:
 * Exploring Probate Records in Norway
 * Norwegian Probates
 * Norway Probate Records (2016 Family History Library Nordic Conference)

For additional information on the terms you will find in probate records see Weight and Measurement in Old Norway, Norwegian Currency, and the Norwegian Genealogical Word List.

History
Prior to the unification of Norway under Harald Fairhair in 872 AD, some districts had joined together under shared laws (laug, lag) which later became courts (ting), where one could come in order to settle disagreements, bring forth complaints, or hear the law. From the 14th century, the foged (bailiff) was responsible for law enforcement in his jurisdiction. Early probates were conducted by jurors, who were appointed by the lagmann (presiding judge) to act as lay judges in these matters. In 1591 the sorenskriver (scribe) was appointed to record matters brought before the court. In 1634 the sorenskriver was appointed to preside over probate cases and became judge of the lowest court (court of first instance). In cities the byfoged was responsible for probate administration.

These early probates were part of the general court records. Many probates were conducted privately, with the heirs dividing the property and paying the debts. The only probates that took place in court were when the heirs could not agree on the division, and it became a matter for the court to resolve the differences. While most probate records start around 1690, when Christian V’s Norwegian Law of 1687 mandated a more systematic procedure to record the process and better protect the rights of minor heirs, the earliest preseved probates date from 1656.

In these records whole families may be recorded, and in many probates long lists of heirs such as brothers, sisters, nephews, and nieces are given. While probate records are some of the most accurate sources of genealogical information, the relationships noted in the records may not always have the same meaning today. For instance, a brother-in-law may be recorded as a brother because legally that made no difference in probating the estate. Only about 25% of the population had probates. If a deceased person's estate did not contain enough assets to cover the expenses of a probate none was held.

Laws Regarding Probate
Christian V’s Norwegian Law of 1687 required probates to be held whenever the deceased left minor children, absent heirs or heirs living in foreign countries, or where no heirs could be located. The law also stated the surviving spouse should inherit 50% of the estate, and the children should divide the other 50% between them, the male child’s lot (broderlod) being twice that of the female child (søsterlod). Prior to this time records are usually fairly brief. If a woman was pregnant at the time of the death of her husband, she had the right to keep possession of all belongings until after the birth of the child so that the newborn would be part of the division of the property. This is called uskiftet bo (undivided residence).

The law specified a guardian would be appointed to represent the interests of each child if they were minors (under age 25). This guardian was usually appointed from among the male relatives of the deceased parent. In the case that there were no relatives living in the area to look after the interest of the children, the court would appoint a guardian for them. The surviving widow selected a laugverge (legal guardian), to represent her during the proceedings. This was more of a spokesman for the woman's interests, since a married woman could own property and make their own decisions. This was often a relative as a widow could choose her spokesman and was not appointed by the court.

If the property was owned by the family and had met the requirements to be considered an allodial property, the oldest son had odelsrett (primogeniture) to the property. If for some reason the family should lose the property, he or his children can take it back if he can prove that he has odelsrett. The oldest son did not inherit the property free and clear. His inheritance was not more than any of his siblings. To own the property he would have to purchase their interest or give them part ownership in the property. If there were no children in a marriage, the property of the deceased reverted back to his or her family, the parents if they were living, or siblings, or their children. Even though a probate record was not created for every person who died, the 1687 law required a probate if a parent died and left minor children. However, probates were not held for every person that died. Only about 25% of the population had probates. If a deceased person's estate did not contain enough assets to cover the expenses none was held.

A decree of 1697 required that the surviving spouse should report the death when there were heirs to the deceased’s estate. From this time on the probates become more detailed. In 1775 a Royal decree required that every death be reported to the probate officials by the sheriff in the county. In 1830, and still valid today, there was a change in the probate law, specifically on how the probate should be recorded. These last changes do not affect genealogical research.

The fee for the probate services was a small percentage of the value of the estate. The probate judge was paid well for his services. So was his scribe, the sheriff and the two appraisers that the court appointed to estimate the value of each item of the estate. These appraisers could not, according to the law, be related to the people affected by the probate. A fee also was paid for the stemplet papir (paper stamped with official mark) the probate was recorded on for the family to keep as their deed and proof of inherited property. There was also a small percentage allocated for support of the justice system (jail), and at various times for other official business. Sometimes these fees took enough out of the probate to make it a hardship for a family. And since the fees were paid “in kind” the nicest personal property often went to the officials.

In 1869 the law was changed requiring probates to be held for persons with a net worth over 100 speciedaler. In the late 1800’s the law was changed so that a daughter would inherit the same amount as a son.

The Probate Process
Probate records are among the most important genealogical sources of Norway, and the procedure for their jurisdiction had its beginning centuries ago. The country was divided into small districts. Several of these districts composed a lagdømme, a court where the law was expounded and disputes settled. From these beginnings evolved fogderier (legal circuits), which today are known as domsogn or sorenskriveri (probate courts). The administrative official in a len (county) in the earlier centuries was the lensherre. Later an amtmann (county governor) was appointed by the king. His local functionary was the fogd or foged (bailiff), and the fogderi was his official district. The foged became the official who collected taxes and enforced the law (politi og oppebørselsmann).

In the later part of the 16th century the scribe (sorenskriver) in the office of the fogd was appointed to take care of the legal division of an inheritance, or the settlement of an estate, and he prepared the probate documents as a probate clerk. Norwegian law required that the death of a person be reported to the district official as soon as possible in order to seal the estate of the deceased.

Exempted from this rule was money or property set apart for the funeral and the common household. The cost of these were recorded and accounted for at the closing of the probate. If the deceased was a parent, any children still living at home and the surviving spouse were to be present at home at the registration of the probate document, which registration was to take place on the third day after the death at the home of the deceased.

All the guardians had to be present at the time of the settlement. All heirs who were not living in the parish but were residents of the same county were expected to present themselves within a set time of the registration. Usually it was up to the district official (lensmann) to decide how soon each individual was expected to be present, depending on where they lived. Those heirs living out of the county were customarily to be present within 12 weeks after the date of death. If they lived outside the country, they were usually to present themselves one year and six weeks after the date of death. If a widow was pregnant at the time of her husband's death, she had the right to retain the undivided possession of the estate until the birth of the child so that the unborn child would also inherit from the estate.

A widow or widower could not marry again before a certificate was obtained that showed that the estate had been settled. From the commencement of such records, around 1660 to 1685, each probate court recorded deeds, probates, and other legal business in one chronological record. In 1685 the probate laws were revised and more firmly established under the authority of a bailiff in the rural areas and the mayor, aldermen, and city judge in the cities. By 1690, however, a district judge was the administrator in probate matters in the county courts. At the same time, the administration of probates in the cities came under the jurisdiction of the city judge alone. Probate records of clergy and school teachers were kept separately from the civil records and were administered by some of the local church officials. This separate condition existed in general up to 1809 and in some districts up to 1812.

According to the Law of 1685, which was in force until 1814, the sequence of distribution of an inheritance was as follows: The next of kin went to the court with a sponsor or guardian no sooner than 30 days after the death of the relative. In the earlier days, it was customary to give 50 percent of the property to the surviving spouse and the other 50 percent to the children, with male children receiving twice as much as female children. This rule was later changed so that all children received equal amounts. If no spouse or children were living, the estate reverted to the deceased's father or his brother and sisters. If these relatives were unavailable, the estate reverted to the deceased person's mother or her brothers and sisters, then to the grandparents, and then to other remaining relatives.

The Norwegian law provided for the guardianship of children under 25. At the mother's death the father was appointed. At the father's death one of the brothers of the children was appointed if he was over the age of 25 (a person was considered a minor until that age). Next in line was the grandfather on the father's side, then the grandfather on the mother's side. After the grandfather, the next in line were the uncles on the father's side and then the uncles on the mother's side. If none of these persons were alive, then the nearest relatives on the father's side were appointed. If this was impossible, then the nearest relatives on the mother's side were appointed. If no relatives could be found, the government appointed some reliable persons as guardians for the children.

Other Probate Jurisdictions
An ecclesiastical probate jurisdiction, on the level of prosti (deanery) was set up for the clergy, deacons (klokkar) and schoolteachers in 1661. This separate probate record was terminated around 1809, some districts continuing the practice a little later. In the military from 1690 until 1824, the regimental or garrison commander presided over the probate process for officers under his command.

The parish priest usually did not own the farm where he lived while serving as the priest. When he died the next priest would move onto the farm. This could cause a problem for the widow if the priest did not have other properties where she could go. In some cases the new priest would marry the widow of the previous priest, and in some cases a farm would be designated for priest's widows.

Probate Records
The probate records were kept by the sorenskriveri (rural magistrate), or byfogd (city magistrate). You can identify the correct jurisdiction by referring to the appropriate parish page in the FamilySearch Research Wiki, or by checking the FamilySearch Catalog for the locality and checking the subject heading Probate records.

Registers
The earliest register consist of single volumes usually covering a range of years. Most volumes contain a separate given-name index usually in the back of the book. Entries are made chronologically based on the date of the probate decision and include the date and place of the probate hearing, the name of the deceased, his heirs; creditors and debts; assessed value of property; and the final distribution of the estate. In the 1840s changes were made to how the records were arranged. Beginning in 1843 skifteutlodningsprotokoller which recorded the distribution of the estate were kept separately. In 1850 skifteforhandlingsprotokoll or skiftebehandlingsprotokoll were introduced to document the probate process.

Card Indexes
In the 1940s the regional archives created card indexes to the separate volumes of probate records that had been turned over to them. These cards are typed or handwritten. Indexes generally begin with the first volume of probates and go forward, but they do not all end at the same year. The indexes are grouped by registration district (sorenskriveri), then alphabetically by the name of the farm where the deceased lived, and then chronologically by year. The alphabetical arrangement begins with AA followed by A and ends with Æ and Ø.

Each card contains the following information: • 3

FamilySearch has microfilm copies of the indexes for the following counties: • 3

Access
Records are in the possession of the regional archives (statsarkivet) in Norway, and are part of the archives of the sorenskriver. Early probate records for clergy, school teachers, and military officers were often separated from the regular probate records. Church officials conducted probate proceedings for priests or schoolteachers, commanding officers for military officers. After 1812 a probate judge conducted these probates along with all other probates.

The Family History Library has an excellent collection of Norwegian probate records. These are listed in the catalog under:

NORWAY, [REGION] - PROBATE RECORDS NORWAY, [COUNTY] - PROBATE RECORDS NORWAY, [COUNTY], [PARISH] - PROBATE RECORDS

Records before 1687 are usually found in court records: NORWAY - COURT RECORDS NORWAY, [REGION] - COURT RECORDS NORWAY, [COUNTY] - COURT RECORDS NORWAY, [COUNTY], [PARISH] - COURT RECORDS

Online Availability
FamilySearch Digitalarkivet (The Digital Archives) There are several ways to locate images on the Digital Archives:
 * 1640 - 1903 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1) Søk etter skanna skiftemateriale (Search for scanned probate records)
 * 2) Søk i skifteregistre (Search in probate indexes)
 * 3) Finn kilde (Find sources)

This third way allows you greater specificity for selecting records. You can limit your search to a specific municipality or parish, record type (index cards, name indexes, journals, etc.), and time period.

The Digital Archives has an overview of the probate laws, process, and information contained in the records at Skifte og arv - en innføring (in Norwegian).