Provenance missing before an estate
An estate file had invoices for some works and nothing for others. This is an anonymized scenario, not a named client and not a return.
The gap in the file
Invoices existed for a few works. The rest of the collection had dealer names remembered at dinner and nothing dated.
An estate attorney asked for a chain of title. What arrived was a folder of PDFs with no object IDs. The works were in the house. The ownership file was not.
What we coordinated
One object list
Matched each work to whatever paper existed, and marked every object with no document at all.
Specialist reviews
Sent works with thin files to category specialists. We did not write certificates. We collected what those reviews produced.
A packet for counsel
Ordered invoices, letters, and blank decades into one dated packet the attorney could actually use.
File status after the work
This table is a documentation checklist, not performance. No IRRs, no multiples, no fabricated results.
Why the file held
Gaps stayed visible
Missing decades were labeled as missing. Completing a chain with a plausible story was not the work.
Counsel could read it
The packet had a cover note listing what was current and what was still outstanding.
No custody
Works stayed in the house. We coordinated documents and specialists.
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