Short answer. Yes, but only within five years of the judgment. Rule 91, Section 4 lets a devisee, legatee, heir, widow, widower, or other entitled person who files a claim within that period recover possession and title, or the sale proceeds; a claim filed later is forever barred.
What the law says
If a devisee, legatee, heir, widow, widower or other person entitled to such estate appears and files a claim thereto with the court within five years from the date of such judgment, such person shall have possession of and title to the same, or if sold, the municipality or city shall be accountable to him for the proceeds, after deducting reasonable charges for the care of the estate; but a claim not made within said time shall be forever barred.
Rule 91, Section 4 — When and by whom claim to estate filed. Read the full provision →
The five-year window
The clock runs within five years from the date of such judgment, meaning from the escheat judgment itself, not from when the previously-unknown heir happens to learn about it. Filing a claim with the court within that period is what preserves the right to recover. Because the period runs from the judgment rather than from discovery, an heir who only learns of a deceased relative's estate years later can still be caught out if the five years already lapsed before they found out.
Who may bring the claim
The list is broad: a devisee, legatee, heir, widow, widower or other person entitled to such estate. That last catch-all phrase is wide enough to cover an heir, like a granddaughter, who was simply unknown or unlocated when the escheat case was decided. It is the claimant's actual entitlement under the rules on succession that matters, not whether that person happened to appear or be named in the original escheat proceeding.
What a successful claimant actually recovers
If the property is still held by the municipality or city, the claimant gets possession and title to it. If it has already been sold, the local government must instead be accountable to him for the proceeds, after deducting reasonable charges for the care of the estate — so a sale in the meantime does not defeat a timely claim, it just changes what is recovered.
The consequence of missing the deadline
The rule is unforgiving on timing: a claim not made within said time shall be forever barred. However legitimate the claim, filing it after the five years have run does not revive it, and the municipality or city keeps the property or proceeds free of any further claim from that heir. The bar applies to the claim itself, so an heir who missed the window cannot get around it by framing the same demand as a different kind of action against the local government.
Related provisions
- Rule 91, Section 4 — When and by whom claim to estate filed
- Rule 91, Section 3 — Hearing and judgment
- Rule 91, Section 5 — Other actions for escheat