LONDON (AP) — The only son of a British earl who has been missing since the family's nanny was killed in his home more than 40 years ago has been granted a death certificate for his father.

The certificate was granted Wednesday by Britain's High Court at the request of George Bingham. It means he can inherit his late father's title and become the Eighth Earl of Lucan.

"I am very happy with the judgment of the court in this matter," Bingham said. "It has been a very long time coming."

The disappearance of Lord Richard Lucan, the Seventh Earl of Lucan, has continued to fascinate Britons and cause endless media speculation.

He vanished after nanny Sandra Rivett was found dead at the family's London home on Nov. 7, 1974. Lucan's wife, Veronica, was hit in the head repeatedly when she ran downstairs to investigate, but she survived. Lucan's bloodstained car was later found abandoned near England's south coast.

In 1975, an inquest jury declared him Rivett's killer. Detectives believe the aristocrat — a habitual gambler nicknamed "Lucky Lucan" — intended to murder his wife, but killed the nanny by mistake.

Many believe he drowned himself in the English Channel soon after the killing, but no body was ever found.

Over the years there have been scores of reported sightings around the world. Stories of the purported discovery of Lord Lucan have been a tabloid newspaper staple in Britain for decades, and his name has become a byword in Britain for a person or object that can't be found.

Rivett's son, Neil Berriman, who had called for Lucan be prosecuted for murdering his mother, said he was satisfied with the court ruling.

"I think he's dead," Berriman said of Lucan. "It is fantastic and I am very pleased for" Bingham.