Establishing the fact of accepting an inheritance: features of litigation

Home » Inheritance » Actual acceptance of inheritance

To take possession of inherited property, you must accept it. There are several options for transferring ownership: by will or by law. However, another way to gain rights is guaranteed by law. According to Art. 1153 part 3 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), the successor can actually take possession of the property.

What does it mean to accept an inheritance?

By law, accepting an inheritance means filing an application for its acceptance or for the issuance of a certificate of inheritance. Relatives can submit an application through a notary office at the place where the proceedings were opened or by contacting a person authorized to perform notarial acts.

According to clause 37 of the “Fundamentals of the Legislation of the Russian Federation on Notaries” No. 4462-1 dated 02/11/1993, if the deceased lived in a village where there are no public or private offices, then the following have the right to issue a certificate:

head of administration of a locality or municipal district;
authorized local government official.

Important! The official must submit any information regarding notarial proceedings to the notary chamber in a constituent entity of the Russian Federation within 5 working days. After which another 2 working days are allotted to enter this information into the unified register.

The application can be submitted personally by the successor or sent by Russian post. If sent by post, the applicant's signature must be certified by a notary or authorized person in accordance with Art. 37 of Law 4462-1 person.

Property rights can also be accepted by the official representative of the heir, subject to the presence of a power of attorney.

In order to protect the interests of successors of varying degrees of kinship, deadlines for the adoption of property rights are established by law. The general term is fixed in Art. 1154 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and it is 6 months from the date of opening of the inheritance, i.e. from the date of death of a relative. It is during this period that it is decided who acquires the assets and liabilities of the deceased; it is calculated what is included in the hereditary mass and its location is determined.

In addition to the general six-month period, the Civil Code also establishes special deadlines for accepting an inheritance:

If a relative is missing and the day of his presumed death is established by a court decision, 6 months are allotted from the date the court decision entered into force. In this case, the opening day of the proceedings is considered to be the period determined during the meeting, but the countdown of 6 months begins from the date of the resolution.
If the heirs of the first stage are recognized as unworthy on the basis of Art. 1117 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, then designated relatives and second-degree relatives receive 6 months to complete the application. The countdown begins from the day the successors of the next turn have the right to receive a part.
If the immediate relatives have renounced their rights, then the designated successors may accept their shares within 3 months from the end of the total 6-month period.

If the legally established deadlines were missed for a good reason, you can go to court to restore them.

Exception: a person who has missed the deadline can receive his share if the relatives agree and declare their rights on time (Article 1155 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

What it is

The law provides for two different options for entering into inheritance rights after the death of a relative - by submitting an application to a notary for the acceptance of property assets, or by actually accepting things and objects. In the second case, a citizen can apply for a certificate of inheritance, although he has not previously submitted an application to confirm his rights to property.

As a rule, the actual acceptance of property assets is undisputed and is accompanied by the absence of claims from other recipients (other heirs may be completely absent). In this case, the relative who lived with the deceased owner until his death can continue to use the property as his own.

The actual acceptance of inherited assets will consist of the following actions:

taking over and managing assets that belonged to the deceased owner;
implementation of measures to protect and preserve inherited assets;
incurring expenses for the maintenance and operation of things and objects.

A typical example of such an inheritance option is the ownership and management of a private house and land. In this case, the heir actually begins to use and manage the property - he lives in the house, bears the costs of its maintenance, installs a fence around the land plot, etc. The commission of such actions is relatively easy to prove in court if you collect all documents about the expenses incurred in advance.

If a citizen actually takes possession of the property, he may not exercise the right to contact a notary to obtain a certificate. If we are talking only about movable property, such a certificate may be needed only in the event of disputes with other claimants to the inheritance, or during the subsequent sale of things and material assets. For real estate and vehicles, the actual entry into inheritance will not allow re-registration of rights until the citizen receives a certificate from a notary or a judicial act.

When an inheritance is considered accepted

An inheritance is considered accepted when a citizen turns to a notary with a corresponding application. According to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, relatives cannot receive only part of the property of the deceased. For example, re-register an apartment in your own name, but give up debts. Entering into rights to a part of the property is equivalent to accepting the entire hereditary mass, regardless of where it is located or what it consists of. However, if one of the relatives in line decides to receive his share, this does not mean that the remaining successors also enter into property rights. For example, after the death of a husband, the wife may receive her share, but the daughter may refuse.

Sometimes a successor may enter into a share for one or several reasons at once: by will, by law or by the right of hereditary transmission.

According to paragraph 4 of Art. 1152, property passes to the beneficiary from the day the inheritance is opened, regardless of when it was actually accepted or when a certificate of transfer of ownership was received.

Preparation of written evidence of actual acceptance of ownership

A sample of evidence could be as follows:

certificates from the housing department, internal affairs department or local government authorities about living in the residential premises that are to be inherited;
certificates stating that the property included in the inherited estate is actually used by you;
receipts for payment of utility bills, insurance premiums, taxes and other amounts in relation to inherited property, or certificates issued by authorized bodies stating that funds were received on your behalf;
concluded agreements with legal organizations on carrying out repairs on the territory of the inherited residential space, as well as on renting out the premises or installing a security alarm;
receipts for repayment of debts on a loan that was received by the deceased from a banking institution;
a copy of the statement of claim from you to third parties who have unlawfully taken possession of the property, with a note that the court has accepted the case for proceedings and the judge has determined the suspension of the issuance of a certificate of recognition of ownership.

How to enter into an inheritance after the fact

If a relative treats the property of the deceased as personal and performs the same actions regarding it that he would do with personal property, then according to Art. 1153 of the Civil Code, it is considered that a citizen has entered into an inheritance in fact. Thus, the person who takes possession, manages, protects the property or bears the costs of its maintenance is actually considered to have accepted the inheritance.

Possession or so-called physical possession, i.e. living in an apartment or house during the period of entry into rights, moving the personal belongings of the deceased to his apartment.
Management – transfer to third parties for hire, rent, free use.
Protection – any action to protect property from third-party interference. For example, changing locks, installing alarms, bars, transferring some things for safekeeping.
Maintenance - in the case of real estate, this can be payment for utilities, in the case of a car - payment for maintenance, replacement of spare parts, repair work.
Payment of debts - repayment of a loan or credit, overdue payments for utility services, tax or insurance payments.

Important! The list is not final. In each individual case, the notary evaluates the actions of the beneficiary depending on the situation.

If the heir lived in the testator’s residential premises

The actions of the heir, which have signs of actual acceptance of the inheritance, are initially interpreted in the context of a presumption, i.e. are not indisputable. To make a final decision, it is necessary to compare various circumstances, facts and events.

Example.

A person lives in premises that belong to the testator. That is, in fact, this person owns this premises and the property located in it. And often his actions relate to the fact of accepting an inheritance, although here there is a confusion of the everyday and legal concepts of “ownership”.

The mere fact that a person lives in the testator’s residential premises is not enough to indisputably prove the fact of acceptance of the inheritance - this is a common judicial practice. This circumstance can be regarded as the fulfillment of the obligation provided for in Art. 153 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the title owner. This right arises even before the death of the testator.

But in a number of cases, courts are limited only by the fact of a person’s residence in a residential building to confirm the fact of acceptance of the inheritance, or are completely limited to the presence of registration of the heir in the testator’s apartment.

If creditors get involved

If the heir lived in the testator’s premises, the court establishes the fact of his residence and payment of utilities. After this, the demands of creditors to recognize the heirs as having accepted the inheritance and to collect debts from them are automatically satisfied.

We also note that there have been cases when the son who managed the late father’s company and paid off his debts was recognized as the actual heir (Appeal ruling of the judicial panel for civil cases of the Moscow City Court dated October 5, 2010 N 33-31083). In addition, according to the Appeal Determination of the Judicial Collegium for Civil Cases of the St. Petersburg City Court dated July 24, 2012 N 33-9323/2012, the actions of the trustee in accepting the inheritance for the missing heir were recognized as the actual acceptance of the inheritance.

We also note the opposite cases when the court did not see signs of actual acceptance of the inheritance in the actions of the heir - for example, when assistance was provided to relatives after the death of the testator.

The court may also refuse a claim to accept an inheritance due to the fact that the statute of limitations has passed. Although this is also a contradiction, since once the right to inheritance, recognized by the court, has been realized, the heir can no longer “lose” the means to protect it.

If you actually accepted the inheritance, but did not formalize it

Sometimes a relative who has actually accepted the property can use it for a very long period of time without re-registering any documents. However, in the case of real estate or cars, it is better to follow the standard procedure and contact a notary within six months to issue a certificate. Otherwise, future successors will have difficulty taking ownership. The property cannot be registered, since the testator did not receive a notarial certificate at the time, but only actually accepted the property. In this case, the successor cannot do without legal support, because You must first prove the fact that the deceased relative accepted the property, and then accept the inheritance. The case is complicated by the remoteness of the events and difficulties in finding witnesses and documents.

Attention! The actual acceptance of the property must be documented.

Contents of the Resolution

All paragraphs of the document can be divided into 9 large parts.
The fairly extensive preamble discusses in detail the procedure for submitting an application for inheritance and the grounds for refusing to accept the claim. Here are examples of those inheritance issues that cannot be resolved out of court.

The first part is devoted to the analysis of general issues of hereditary relations. In particular, the resolution explains:

what is included in the concept of “inheritance”;
when legal relations of inheritance arise;
how to establish the place of opening of the inheritance;
what facts should be taken into account by the court when removing an heir;
what standards will be used to decide the issue of invalidating inheritance transactions?

The second part focuses on disputes related to wills. This section details the nuances of drawing up, amending and canceling the testator’s orders.

The procedure for invalidating a will is also considered.

The third section, which regulates the procedure of inheritance by law, emphasizes the rules for establishing the order of heirs, defines inheritance rights and provides examples of determining the obligatory share.

The fourth section sets out step by step the procedure for obtaining property by the successors of the testator. It describes what consequences arise after:

gaining actual access to material assets;
division of the inheritance mass;
transfer of debts to heirs.

The fifth section of the Resolution of the Plenum on Inheritance regulates in detail the inheritance procedure:

residential premises;
shares, contributions;
Money;
transport;
awards of the deceased.

The sixth part indicates the specifics of the heir receiving land plots or a land share. The document determines that the decision on the fate of the site does not entail automatic recognition of the heir's rights to the houses and outbuildings on it. All property located on land plots is inherited independently.

The seventh section consolidates the main conclusions on the new practice for the Russian Federation of inheriting rights to the results of intellectual activity. Resolution No. 9 was the first document that described in detail the important controversial issues of the transfer of rights to intellectual property.

To transfer an object of intellectual property, the testator must be:

the author of the work;
creator of a database, computer program, selection achievement;
owner of a patent for an invention, utility model or industrial design;
the performer or creator of the phonogram;
owner of a trademark, commercial designation, place of origin of the product.

The eighth part is devoted to procedural issues in the consideration of inheritance disputes. The inheritance procedure does not always go smoothly. Why were they bypassed in the will, why did the deceased leave a house to one person and a car to another - these are just some examples of the questions that heirs have. Therefore, the expediency of protecting one’s rights in court is an important guarantee of the legality of inheritance legal relations.

According to the provisions of the Decree on judicial practice in inheritance cases, relatives of a deceased citizen can apply to the court with a statement:

on appealing a will;
on recognizing the refusal of inheritance as invalid;
on deprivation of the right to inherit:
on recognizing the actions of a notary as illegal (in particular, when refusing to draw up documents for an inheritance).

Depending on the essence of the dispute, inheritance cases can be considered both in a special manner and according to the rules of general claim proceedings.

The resolution adopted on May 29, 2012 regulates the main issues that may arise in inheritance. The conclusions of judicial practice on which this document is based were made based on a synthesis of decisions of courts of general jurisdiction and regulations governing inheritance law. Based on Resolution No. 9, thousands of illegal acts are challenged every year throughout Russia and the rights of millions of heirs are restored.

How to prove the fact of acceptance of an inheritance

In order for a notary to issue a document confirming the transfer of ownership, the legal beneficiary must provide convincing evidence that he performed the actions specified in Article 1153 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Confirmation of the actual acceptance of property for the court or notary can be written or material evidence and testimony of witnesses.

Written evidence

a certificate from the Housing Office stating that the person lived in the apartment or house of the deceased before and after his death;
certificates issued by the chairman of the cooperative (dacha, garden or garage);
documents confirming payment of any payments on the property of a deceased relative;
any cash documents confirming the purchase of spare parts or components, construction materials, etc.;
certificates of work (services) performed or agreements on alarm installation, repair, rental;
bank receipts for payment of loan payments, promissory notes;
any other documents relating to actions with property.

Important! All official certificates must be correctly executed, have a seal or stamp and the signature of the responsible person, as well as a registration mark (reference number).

Witness testimony

Eyewitness testimony can be powerful evidence for a notary. The following may be allowed to testify:

relatives, friends, acquaintances and friends of the beneficiary;
neighbors in the house, garage, summer cottage;
hired workers who helped import/remove things and carried out construction and repair work on the premises;
citizens who can confirm the fact of using a vehicle if the subject of the dispute is movable property (refueling attendant, parking lot security guard);
citizens present at the transfer of debt, if the creditor was an individual.

Evidence

Most often this concerns small but valuable things, the presence of which can be confirmed in court or a notary office. For example, jewelry or expensive collections (stamps, coins, figurines, etc.).

How does judicial evidence work?

To prove the fact of a family relationship, birth and marriage certificates, passports, archival certificates, etc. must be attached to the application. If documentation of relationship is completely missing, circumstantial evidence may be presented or witnesses may be called. To prove the fact of acceptance of inheritance, you can use:

title documents for real estate, transport and movable property confirming ownership of the deceased owner;
documents confirming the incurrence of expenses for management, operation, current and major repairs of property - contracts, checks, receipts, estimates, etc.;
photo and video materials confirming the use of property;
an expert’s opinion on improvements made at the applicant’s expense after the death of the owner;
testimony of witnesses (neighbors in the area or house, other persons);
official correspondence with state and municipal authorities confirming due care for the safety of property from encroachment by other persons.

If other persons do not claim distribution of property after the death of a relative, the specified evidence will be sufficient for the court to make a decision. However, a dispute may arise when the heirs of the first or subsequent stages, who timely submitted an application to the notary, will claim the seizure of property from the actual owner. In this case, the court will evaluate the inheritance rights of all participants in the process. If this dispute arises, the burden of proof will be assigned to persons who do not agree with confirmation of the fact of actual acceptance of the inheritance.

If the court evaluates the presented arguments and evidence and grants the application, the following consequences occur:

a judicial act will be the basis for applying to a notary and obtaining a certificate of inheritance (if the property actually accepted constitutes only part of the assets of the deceased, the size of the share will be indicated in the certificate);
upon receipt of the certificate, the citizen will have to pay a fee according to the standard rules of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (for example, if there is a close relationship with the deceased, the fee will be 0.3% of the value of the property, but not more than 100 thousand rubles);
rights to real estate and motor vehicles must be re-registered in the departments of Rosreestr and the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate - for this, a notarial certificate is presented and a fee is paid.

If the fact of a family relationship has already been confirmed in court proceedings, the notary is not obliged to repeatedly request similar documents. When issuing a certificate, only property actually accepted by the citizen is taken into account (other assets of the deceased not received by the applicant will not be included in the certificate). Therefore, within the framework of inheritance proceedings, part of the property can be transferred on the basis of a certificate, and the other part - according to a judicial act.

Having confirmed the right to inherited assets and registered ownership, a citizen will be able not only to use the property, but also to dispose of it - rent, sell, give, exchange, etc. If a certificate or judicial act has not been received for the property actually accepted, legal disposal will be impossible.

Arbitrage practice

There are often cases when it is difficult for a successor to prove to a notary that he has entered into an inheritance and he needs to go to a court of general jurisdiction. Legal proceedings, which are opened in the absence of disputes between relatives, are classified by lawyers as special. In this case, an application is submitted to establish the fact of inheritance.

If agreement between the successors is not reached, then a claim is filed to recognize the ownership of the actually accepted property; the case is considered in litigation proceedings and may combine several claims: for confirmation of the actual receipt of property and for recognition of the right to receive a share in the property.

Example 1 . Citizen Yu. and citizen D., who are siblings, filed a claim in court to establish the fact of acceptance of the deceased mother’s inheritance in the form of an apartment and a cash deposit in Bank N. The statement set out the following facts as arguments: within six months Y. and D. actually accepted the property, organizing the mother’s funeral, maintaining the apartment in proper condition, and paying for utilities according to tariffs. However, they did not apply for inheritance rights, so the notary refused to issue a certificate of inheritance of property. The plaintiffs' mother had no other heirs.

Plaintiff D, acting under a power of attorney from Yu., stated that during her lifetime her mother left a will, according to which the right to the apartment remained with Yu., and the right to a monetary contribution remained with D. The heirs began to use the property of the deceased immediately after her death and believed that An application to a notary must be submitted after 6 months.

In Art. 1153 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that the actions of the heirs in managing property can be regarded as the basis for recognizing the actual acceptance of the inheritance by the children of the deceased.

Based on the above facts, the court decided to recognize Yu.’s ownership of the apartment and recognize citizen D. as the heir to bank deposit N with all interest and compensation.

Example 2. Plaintiff A. went to court to establish the fact of acceptance of the inheritance after her deceased father. According to the will, the testator left her an inheritance in the form of a cash deposit in bank N, however, without a certificate of inheritance of property, A. cannot receive the bequeathed amount. Defendant K. is the plaintiff’s brother and the testator’s own son.

In the statement, A. indicated that she accepted her father’s inheritance in the form of a certificate of disability, an autobiography, letters and postcards, a university diploma, and a cane. A. did not submit an application to the notary for the right to inherit property.

The court found that within six months, K.’s son was issued a certificate of inheritance of property by law and will. After 6 months, A. tried in court to restore the period for accepting the inheritance, but the court refused to satisfy her demands.

The plaintiff did not live with her father, and her acceptance of personal belongings is not evidence of actual inheritance of property (Article 1153 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

As a result, the court decided to refuse to establish the fact of acceptance of the inheritance and recognize the right of ownership of the testator's monetary contribution.

Court rulings in cases of actual acceptance of inheritance based on the possession of personal belongings of the deceased are ambiguous. In the second example, the plaintiff’s claim was denied because her behavior after the death of the testator—failure to contact a notary to obtain a certificate of inheritance—was regarded as a lack of intention to accept the property.

Nuances of resolving legal disputes

Typically, probate proceedings do not last long. The judge takes into account all the facts stated by the parties and makes a decision. However, in some cases, the judicial process is complicated by a large amount of controversial data, the need to study archival materials, etc. As a result, the hearing can drag on for several months, or even years. Let us consider the complex issues in judicial practice in more detail.

Acquisitive prescription

If the testator owned the property for a long time, he could obtain the right of acquisitive prescription. In order for the property to subsequently pass to the heirs of the deceased, it must be in the ownership of the latter. But registration of property rights to an object is impossible after the death of a citizen. Therefore, heirs need to file a claim not only for inheritance, but also for recognition of property rights. It can be satisfied only if the deceased bona fide owned the disputed property for the last 15 years.

The court may also look at the total time of ownership of the property. For example, if the testator owned the property for 13 years, and then his successor used the property in good faith for 3 years, then the total period will be 16 years. It should be understood that registration of the right to an object is possible after 15 years of common ownership.

The concept of compulsory heirs

The legislation defines a special category of successors, who in no case should be deprived of a share in the property of the testator. If the obligatory heir is not specified in the will, then he receives half of the share that would be due to him by law. The following persons fall into this category:

disabled or minor children of the deceased;
disabled dependents;
parent or spouse of the testator who has lost his ability to work.

The allocation of obligatory shares occurs from the untested part of the inheritance mass. If it is not enough, then part of the bequeathed property is alienated.

A reduction in the mandatory share is possible in the following situations:

Due to the allocation of a compulsory share, it becomes impossible to transfer property by will.
The heir under the will used the property for living or for earning money.

Also in inheritance law there is the concept of transmission. We are talking about the alienation of the property that was inherited by the testator. If the deceased did not have time to register such property in his name, then it passes to his successors by way of transmission, without being included in the general inheritance mass.

Commorients

This category includes those citizens who died on the same day, being heirs in relation to each other. In inheritance law, the time zone is not taken into account; the binding is based on the date. It should be understood that commorients do not inherit each other's property. Their property passes to other heirs legally.

How to correctly draw up an application to establish the fact of acceptance of property?

The document is submitted to the court at the applicant’s place of residence or location of assets. The header indicates the name of the court, full name, contact information of the applicant and other heirs (if any). The following text states:

what is included in the actually accepted inheritance;
what actions were performed by the citizen regarding the accepted property;
list of evidence;
purpose of the application (issuance of a certificate and state registration of transfer of ownership), the applicant’s requirements;
date of compilation, personal signature of the applicant.

The claim consists of the following parts:

Introductory – where to submit, information about the plaintiff, the deceased, and other applicants. The value of the assets must be indicated.
Descriptive - indicates what served as the basis for inheritance; circumstances preceding entry into rights; what actions were performed by the plaintiff to actually accept the property; How can this be proven? It also lists what exactly is included in the hereditary mass.
Petition - a request to recognize the actual inheritance and transfer of ownership.
List of supporting documents:

death certificate or court decision;
documents confirming kinship or will;
any evidence of actual acceptance of the inheritance;
certified receipt from the bank confirming payment of the state duty

Actual taking over of rights seems to be the simplest way to take over property. However, in reality everything is much more complicated. Legal practice shows that in most cases, if there is evidence, the court takes the side of the plaintiff. However, sometimes difficulties arise if the assets were actually accepted, but not documented.

Disputes also often arise between relatives if some have gone through the legally established notarial procedure, while others have only actually inherited part of the property. Such disputes are resolved exclusively in court.

The article covers general issues; each particular case requires an individual approach. The lawyers of the portal https://ros-nasledstvo.ru/ will help you understand all the intricacies of succession. To receive a free consultation, you must fill out the electronic form.

FREE CONSULTATIONS are available for you! If you want to solve exactly your problem, then

describe your situation to a lawyer in an online chat;
write a question in the form below;
call Moscow and Moscow region
call St. Petersburg and region

Save or share the link on social networks

- FREE for a lawyer!

Write your question, our lawyer will prepare an answer for FREE and call you back in 5 minutes.

By submitting data you agree to the Consent to PD processing, PD Processing Policy and User Agreement

Useful information on the topic

Entry into inheritance after death under a will

The procedure and rules for entering into inheritance under a will are established by the chapter...

Lawsuit to restore the deadline for accepting an inheritance in 2020

The judicial hearing of the case on restoration of the period for accepting an inheritance begins with...

How to enter into an inheritance for grandchildren after the death of a grandmother or grandfather

The legislation establishes two methods of inheritance: by will and by law....

How to challenge a will for an apartment?

According to Article 62 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Civil Code of the Russian Federation), citizens...

Heirs of the first stage

The Civil Code of the Russian Federation defines two options for inheritance: by will and...

Terms of inheritance after death according to law

The procedure for receiving an inheritance or a share in it after the death of someone...

Going to court

The legislation determines that the application is sent to the district court at the place of residence of the heir. But this appeal is not a claim against anyone, since it is aimed at establishing a legal fact. Accordingly, such cases are considered in a special legal procedure - in them the defendant is not declared and the dispute is not indicated.

The statement itself does not have the postscript “claim”. The content of the appeal must indicate:

name of the court and its address;
applicant’s details – full name, address, telephone;
details of interested parties (if any);
the essence of the appeal - as dryly as possible, but reflect in detail the essence of the appeal, indicating the full name of the deceased, the composition of the heirs, and other facts;
confirmation of the fact of acceptance of the inheritance - lists the reasons that confirm the use of the inherited property, its protection, maintenance or receipt of funds (payment of debts) on behalf of the testator;
request to the court - establishing the fact of acceptance of the inheritance;
attachments – evidence of the application and related papers.

An application to the court about the fact of acceptance of the inheritance is submitted only if the notary issues a written refusal. If there is no such paper, the heir’s application will be ignored.

In some situations, the court completely refuses the applicants to establish the actual acceptance of the inheritance. For example, this may happen due to the impossibility of confirmation using documents. But in this case, you can turn to witness testimony.

S.’s family actually inherited the house from their grandmother in 2012; the ownership right was not formalized. The house was used as a summer cottage. The family has good relationships with neighbors. In 2014, the house collapsed and the site was abandoned for some time. One of the family representatives in 2020 finally decided to register ownership of the plot for the construction of a new house. An appeal followed, but the documents were not found years ago. The court refused to approve the actual acceptance of the inheritance. The lawyer advised filing an appeal against the court's decision, taking into account the testimony of neighbors, who confirmed not only the actual use of the house until it collapsed, but also the cultivation of a vegetable garden. The appeal was upheld, and S.’s family was confirmed in the inheritance.

Legal force of the document

The legislation of the Russian Federation is a clear hierarchical system of regulations. Judicial practice does not formally create binding norms and is not included in the sources of Russian law.

The practice of the courts matters only to the institutions themselves. To ensure that the position of the courts regarding the application of the rules governing the inheritance procedure does not differ in different constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation periodically issues decisions summarizing the practice.

USEFUL INFORMATION: Witness at a wedding

General recommendations on cases related to inheritance are adopted by the collegial bodies of the RF Armed Forces - the plenum and the presidium. The plenum is a general meeting of judges, and the presidium is the governing body of the meeting itself.

The functions of the Plenum of the RF Armed Forces include:

ensuring the unity of judicial practice;
clarification of the content of legal norms;
interpretation of legal acts.

Formally, documents adopted by the Plenum of the RF Armed Forces do not have legal force. However, when making a decision, not a single judge will go against the rules set out in the decisions of the highest body of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, since this may lead to a violation of the unity of Russian practice and the cancellation of a judicial act.

To form a unified position of the courts on disputes between heirs, the Supreme Court published the general conclusions of the Plenum on inheritance relations.

general characteristics

The resolution of the Plenum on inheritance cases was adopted to create the same practice of relations regulated by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. It clarifies controversial issues regarding the application of norms:

on the jurisdiction of inheritance cases;
about the composition of the hereditary mass;
about the inheritance procedure;
about the order of heirs, etc.

The document consists of several sections, united by common topics. The main content of the Resolution is devoted to the procedure for transferring property to heirs by law and by will.

The act also explains the meaning of some material institutions (for example, the circle of heirs of the eighth stage is highlighted, the obligatory share is examined in detail), and the procedural features of the consideration of inheritance cases are also clarified. The Resolution also provides clarifications that are new to Russian practice regarding the inheritance of intellectual property.

Transfer of inheritance by law

Resolution No. 9 brings clarity to the issue of transfer of inheritance to spouses whose marriage was dissolved before the opening of the inheritance - their right to inheritance is canceled. Moreover, if the testator’s spouse had children, then they also cannot claim anything, since in fact they are no one for the testator. Adopted children registered in accordance with the law, just like adoptive parents, are the heirs of the last line - the seventh.

The document explains the nuances of the transfer and the size of the mandatory inherited share, as well as the rules for transferring this share in the event of refusal of the heir.

In the event of the death of one of the spouses, not only all of his property passes to the heirs, but also the share of the joint property acquired together with the second spouse.

Document overview

The most important issues regarding inheritance are explained.

In particular, it is important to remember that an inheritance includes both property and debts. The death of the debtor is not a circumstance entailing early fulfillment of his obligations by the heirs

For example, the heir of the debtor under a loan agreement is obliged to repay the principal debt and interest on time and in the manner prescribed by the agreement. A loan issued to the testator for needs not related to business may be returned by the heir ahead of schedule in full or in parts, subject to notification of this to the creditor within the prescribed period. A loan granted in other cases can be repaid ahead of schedule with the consent of the lender. All heirs who accepted the inheritance are liable for the debts of the testator. In addition, the state and municipalities into whose ownership the escheated property is transferred. Those who refuse to enter into an inheritance are not liable for the debts of the testator.

USEFUL INFORMATION: Allotment of a share in kind is required: claim for division of an apartment in kind, sample

The basis for the invalidity of a will cannot be individual violations that do not affect the understanding of the will of the testator, in particular, if the time and place of making the will are missing or incorrectly indicated, or there are corrections and clerical errors.

The court refuses to accept the claim brought against the deceased. After all, only a person with legal capacity can be held accountable for violation of the rights and legitimate interests of a citizen.

The guarantor of the testator becomes the guarantor of the heir only if he agrees. The heirs of the guarantor are liable within the limits of the value of the inherited property also for those obligations of the guarantor that existed at the time of opening of the inheritance.

The testator has the right to dispose only of a building belonging to him or only a plot of land (the right of lifelong inheritable possession). But it is impossible to bequeath separately the part of the plot occupied by a building, structure, structure and necessary for their use, and the real estate itself.

If a citizen who is not an individual entrepreneur (IP) has inherited the exclusive right to a trademark and service mark, then it must be alienated within a year from the date of opening of the inheritance. The exclusive right to the name of the place of origin of a product, to a commercial designation can be inherited only by a legal entity or individual entrepreneur.

To obtain a certificate of the right to inheritance, which includes a share (share) in the joint (authorized) capital of an organization, the consent of its other participants is not required. The issue of the heir’s participation in a legal entity or his receipt of the actual value of the share (share) or the corresponding part of the property is resolved in accordance with the laws or constituent documents.

To view the current text of the document and obtain complete information about the entry into force, changes and procedure for applying the document, use the search in the Internet version of the GARANT system:

Liability for debts

The resolution provides the following answers to the pressing question regarding the debts of the testator. If the testator's liability for debts does not cease under the contract due to death, then all heirs automatically become debtors. Even the Russian Federation itself, its constituent entities and individual cities are not exceptions.

True, the heir can be held liable only to the extent of the value of the property transferred to him. That is, when the property received by inheritance is not enough to repay the debt, the creditor does not have the right to repay the debt at the expense of the heir’s personal funds or property, which were not included in the inheritance itself. The creditor's demands become illegal.

If there are several heirs, then the debt is divided among them in proportion to the shares of the inheritance passed to them.

Escheat

In situations where there are no heirs of all orders, the property passes to the state. Unclaimed land shares in a timely manner, not registered and not processed, are also considered escheat. They are transferred to the municipality or rural settlement by court decision.

Case No. 2-37/2018

Case No. 2-37/2018 was heard at the initiative of officials to recognize the ownership rights of the Moscow Region to the unclaimed shares of the deceased. The court noted that in anticipation of the court hearing, the administration posted information about plots that may be considered unclaimed. It was established that none of the heirs lay claim to the agricultural land. The plot became the property of the municipality.

Case No. 2-2/2018

Case No. 2-2/2018 was initiated by the administration’s claim against citizens who inherited the agricultural lands of the former state farm. They did not make a division in kind, and no inheritance cases were opened for the disputed plots. The court recognized the right of municipal ownership of the disputed plots.

Case No. 2-111/2018

The decision in case No. 2-111/2018 put an end to the administration’s attempt to recognize the share in a residential building owned by the deceased as municipal property. He didn't leave a will. The relatives did not open an inheritance case with the notary, however, the heirs by law actually assumed their rights: they lived in the house, made repairs, and therefore have the right to own a share by way of inheritance by law.

Unfair successor

The resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on judicial practice in inheritance cases clarifies who will be denied the right to inherit property.

Case No. 2-348/2018

Case No. 2-348/2018 considered the claim of the heirs of the first stage against the children of the deceased. According to their statement, the defendants, on the eve of their father’s death, destroyed outbuildings and removed expensive property from the house, deliberately reducing the plaintiffs’ share. When opening the inheritance, the defendants concealed from the notary the presence of the living parents of the deceased. The plaintiffs are asking to disinherit the children. The court rejected the claim with reason: the plaintiffs did not provide evidence of “malice” on the part of the defendants.

Case No. 2-30/2018

Case No. 2-30/2018 was based on counterclaims. The heir under the will demanded that the legal successor be deprived of the inheritance right - the son of the deceased was not entitled to a mandatory share, since he had repeatedly beaten his mother. In turn, the legal heir demanded to deprive the plaintiff of his rights. Allegedly, he tricked an old woman suffering from a mental disorder into transferring her property to him. The judge found that the testator was not registered at a psychoneurological dispensary. According to witnesses, she did her homework on her own until her last breath. On the other hand, no evidence was presented of the son's illegal actions.

Case No. 2-721/2018

Case No. 2-721/2018 considered the claim of an heir under the law to restore the period for acceptance of property and to recognize the heir under the will as unworthy. The plaintiff missed the period of entry into legal rights, citing ignorance of his father’s death. The court found that the heir under the will did not interfere with communication between relatives and was completely “reliable.” The delay in accepting the inheritance was caused by an unjustifiable reason. The court refused to recognize the plaintiff as an heir under the will as an unscrupulous beneficiary.