At Perseus & RC Abogados inheritance matters are handled by Ana María Reza Cortiñas, member no. 6064 of the A Coruña Bar Association and managing partner of the firm’s civil practice.
Before death
We draft wills and review existing ones, with the forced share calculated on the family’s actual assets. In Galicia that includes the widow’s usufruct under article 228 of Law 2/2006 and, where appropriate, the joint will. We also prepare preventive powers of attorney, so that a child or spouse can act if the owner loses the capacity to decide, and advance healthcare directives.
We assess gifts to children alongside the apartación and the pacto de mejora, the alternatives under Galician law, together with their tax effect and their effect on the other children’s forced share. We also review reverse mortgage contracts before signing.
There is more detail in the articles on making a will in Galicia, heir and legatee, the preventive power of attorney, the living will, gifts to children, apartación and the reverse mortgage.
After death
We handle the declaration of heirs and the acceptance of the estate. Where there are debts, the choice between acceptance with benefit of inventory and renunciation is made before accepting. We calculate and claim the forced share, including against gifts that encroach on it, and defend heirs against whom it is claimed.
Where the estate is blocked because an heir lives outside Spain, we prepare the documents for that heir to accept or renounce from the country of residence. Where siblings cannot agree over a property, we negotiate its allotment or sale and, failing agreement, apply for judicial division. If what is missing is one sibling’s signature, there are ways to divide the estate without it, explained on the blocked inheritance page.
There is more detail in the articles on estate debts, the forced share, disinheritance, heirs living abroad and division between siblings.
Galician civil law
If the deceased had Galician civil status, the estate is governed by Law 2/2006 on Galician civil law and not by the Civil Code’s division into thirds. The children’s forced share is one quarter of the estate (article 243), parents are not forced heirs (article 238) and the estate may be distributed during life through agreements the Civil Code does not allow.
The calculator below gives a first idea of what each child and the surviving spouse are entitled to in a Galician estate. It adds up what the deceased owned at death, deducts the debts and adds what was given away during life, which is how the law requires it to be calculated (article 244). It also has its own page with the most common questions.
Fees
Before any instruction we set out in writing the options available and the cost of each. If the matter can be resolved before a notary without a lawyer, we tell you that as well.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the forced share in Galicia?
The forced share of children and descendants is one quarter of the net estate, shared among all of them, under article 243 of Law 2/2006 on Galician civil law. The surviving spouse is also a forced heir and parents are not (article 238). The other three quarters can be left freely. It applies if the deceased had Galician civil status, which does not depend on where the assets are.
What happens if my father or mother dies without a will?
Intestate succession opens, which article 912 of the Civil Code applies when someone dies without a will or with a void one. Relatives inherit in the order set by law, children first, and a declaration of heirs must be obtained before a notary before anything can be divided. In Galicia a surviving spouse who concurs with children has a usufruct over one quarter of the estate (article 253 of Law 2/2006).
Do I have to pay the deceased's debts if I accept the inheritance?
If you accept purely and simply, yes, and with your own assets as well, under article 1003 of the Civil Code. Acceptance with benefit of inventory limits that liability to what the estate holds, and renouncing takes you out of the estate and its debts. It should be decided before doing anything that could be read as acceptance.
Can an inheritance be distributed during the owner's lifetime in Galicia?
Yes. Galician law allows the pacto de mejora, by which succession to specific assets is agreed in favour of descendants (article 214 of Law 2/2006), and the apartación, by which a forced heir is irrevocably excluded from that status in exchange for specific assets (article 224). They are final agreements and should be compared with a gift and a will before signing.
My brother will not sell the inherited flat. What can I do?
No co-heir can be forced to remain in co-ownership of the estate, under article 1051 of the Civil Code. If there is no agreement to allot the flat to one of them or to sell it, any of them can apply for judicial division of the estate. An agreement to allot or sell is usually attempted first.
Do I need a lawyer or is the notary enough?
For a classic will in an uncomplicated family, with a usufruct for the spouse and equal shares for the children, the notary is enough. It pays when there are second partners, children in different situations, a business, assets outside Galicia, debts in the estate, an heir who cannot be found or will not sign, or when you want to distribute during your lifetime through apartación, pacto de mejora or a gift.