Under 28 U.S.C. § 2042, a party entitled to unclaimed funds "... may, on petition to the court and upon notice to the U. S. attorney and full proof of the right thereto, obtain an order directing payment to him."

To process the claim the court must determine who is requesting funds.

• Owners of Record - the person shown in the court's record as the owner of the funds.
• Successor Claimants - business successors, descendent's estates, assignees, judgment creditors, etc., who now have direct claims to the funds but are not the owner of record.
• Representative Claimants - typically fund locators who act on behalf of owners of record/successor claimants.

When a party contacts a court to request unclaimed funds, the party must submit a legal document - such as an affidavit - to the court requesting the release of the funds. At a minimum, that affidavit much include the following:

• A notarized signature of the claimant.
• A brief history of the claim.
• The name, address and telephone number of the claimant.
• The social security or tax identification number of the claimant.

The following information must be provided in support of the application

• Photocopy of photo identification, such as driver's license or passport of the party entitled to the funds.
• Completed W-9 Form
• Proof of notice to U.S. attorney.

When the owner of record is not the claimant, the signer or claimant requesting release of the funds must show proper authority. The court must receive the following additional information:

• Successor Claimants
  • Corporate claims
    • A corporate power of attorney signed by an officer.
    • A corporate seal.
    • A statement of the signing officer's authority.
    • Documentation establishing chain of ownership of the original corporate claimant.
  • Purchased or assigned claims:
    • Documentation evidencing the transfer of claim or proof of the purchase/sale of assets.
  • Descendent's estate (administrator, executor, representative):
    • Certified copies of probate documents establishing the representative's right to act on behalf of the descendent's estate.
    • Proof of personal identity of both the estate administrator and the descendent.
• Representative Claimant (i.e. Fund Locator):
  • A notarized, original power of attorney signed by the claimant on whose behalf the locator is acting.
  • Documentation sufficient to establish the claimant's entitlement to the funds.

NOTE: The court prohibits the issuance of a check solely to a fund locator, even if a power of attorney authorizes it. The court does not make a separate payment to the fund locator to split out it's fee or commission.