What about the legitimate portion and the step-parent?

Questioner

My father is married to a different woman than my mother, who is a lot younger than himself. Due to conflict in the family, he has said that he will disinherit me and my brother. Heirs in group 1 are therefore his wife, my brother, and me. I have read that I am always entitled to a legitimate portion of the inheritance. My search on the internet for exactly how an inheritance works brought up a number of questions that I could not immediately find answers to: 1. What about the legitimate portion and assets that are not cash? Suppose my father's house is 100% in his name and is worth 500,000. He also has 200,000 in a savings account, so a total of 700,000 in assets. Is my legitimate portion then 200,000*0.33*0.5 = 33,000 or 700,000*0.33*0.5 = 115,500? 2. Suppose my father has drawn up a two-step will in which his wife is designated as the sole heir. What about the legitimate portion? What if his wife spends all the money before she dies? Can I also claim a legitimate portion earlier? 3. Are there other ways in which I can be disinherited, leaving me with no inheritance? In other words: what is the minimum inheritance that I am entitled to anyway? Thanks in advance for your response :)

Lawyer

1. Are your father and his wife married in community of property? If so, then half of the assets (possessions of both minus debts of both) already belong to the surviving spouse upon death. Suppose that the house and savings belong to your father alone, then your legitimate portion is 115,500, house and savings both count. Question 2: the legitimate portion remains the same, if the stepmother spends everything: then you are out of luck, you can normally only claim the legitimate portion after the death of the surviving spouse. Question 3: There are avoidance strategies in circulation to make the legitimate claim as small as possible, but in principle you are entitled to your legitimate portion of 1/2x1/3 of your father's estate.

Lawyer

1. The legitimate portion is a legally established part of the estate to which a child is always entitled, regardless of what is stated in a will. The legitimate portion is equal to one third of the estate, divided among all children. If you as a child are entitled to the legitimate portion, you can claim it when settling the estate. In your situation, as a child of your father, you are entitled to the legitimate portion of his estate. This means that you are entitled to one third of the value of the assets that your father has at the time of his death, divided among all the children. This applies to all types of assets, including the house and the money in the savings account. The value of the assets is determined at the time of death, so in your example the value of the assets would be 700,000 euros. Your legitimate portion would then be 115,500 euros (700,000 euros / 3 x 0.5).

Lawyer

2. If your father has drawn up a two-step will in which his wife is designated as the sole heir, she is entitled to the estate after his death. As your father's child, you are not entitled to a portion of the estate, but you do retain your right to the statutory portion. This means that you can claim the statutory portion when the estate is settled. You can claim the statutory portion when the estate is settled, i.e. after the death of your father and his wife. If she spends the money before she dies, this will not affect your right to the statutory portion. You can also claim the statutory portion earlier if your father and his wife agree to this, or if the court allows this.

Lawyer

3. There are a number of ways in which you can be disinherited. This can happen, for example, if your father makes a will in which he excludes you and your brother as heirs, or if he makes a two-step will in which only his wife is designated as heir. If you are disinherited, you are not entitled to a share of the estate. In this case, you do retain your right to the statutory portion, unless your father includes a full disinheritance clause in his will. There is no minimum inheritance to which you are entitled as a child. However, you are always entitled to the statutory portion, unless you have been disinherited. I understand that you have questions about the legitimate portion and the rights of stepchildren in the settlement of an estate. I advise you to contact the Divorce Shop (telephone number: 0800 822 4433) for further advice. They can give you more information about your specific situation.