Expert: Steven Taylor - 10/30/2011

Question
Upon reviewing my mother's estate we came across a receipt that she had purchased some stocks in the years 1976-1979. She purchased them through E.A. Manning. The share are with the Kenartha Oil and Gas Company Limited. How do I find out if the shares are still valid? I did not come across a certificate but do have a receipt of payment.

Answer
Hedy, from the information I have available, Kenartha was acquired in 1989 for 37 cents per share cash. Your mother should have received a check for her shares at that time. If not, the money would have been turned over to the government for safekeeping, so you could search the missing property offices of every State or Province in which she lived from the time she first bought the shares until the buyout in 1989. You can search many of them for free at www.missingmoney.com and www.naupa.org.