Presumption of Death

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The sudden disappearance of a person who then remains missing for a lengthy period of time may give rise, in some legal systems, to a Presumption of Death. Under this case, if a person has met the requirements, they can be deemed dead, and have their assets divided via a will. These requirements are;

The person must be missing for a period of seven or more years.
Said absence has gone on consistently without explanation.
No person(s) have been contacted by the presumed.
The person can not be found with any searches.

There are cases in which the presumed has a much shorter time-span to be found. Under certain conditions where the presumed was in extreme danger, such as the collapse of the World Trade Center, or natural disasters such as Avalanches, the presumed can be declared dead within a year.