es ‧ cheat /ɪsˈtʃiːt/ BrE AmE noun [countable] American English law
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: eschete , from escheoir 'to fall, be given to another' , from Latin cadere 'to fall' ]
a legal process in which someone’s money and property are given to the state after they die if they do not have a ↑ will , or if there is nobody else with a legal right to receive their money or property