How to make a refusal of inheritance?

Rejection of the inheritance is the waiver of the title of heirship and the rights and obligations that come with the inheritance by the legal or appointed heirs by declaring that they do not accept the inheritance left to them.
The main reason for the heirs to resort to this method is that the debts of the heir exceed the assets of the heir, that is, the estate is "insolvent". Since the inheritance passes as a whole (as a whole), the heirs inherit not only the rights but also the debts. If the inheritance is not rejected, the heirs become liable for the debts of the deceased with their personal assets. The refusal of inheritance acts as a shield against this liability.

There is a definite period of time set by law for the refusal of an inheritance. This period is for three months. This is a three-month grace period;

• For legal heirs: Unless they can prove that they learned that they were heirs later, it starts from the date they learned of the death of the heir.
• For appointed heirs: It starts from the date on which they are officially notified of the testator's disposition (will).

If the inheritance is not rejected within this three-month period, the inheritance is deemed to be accepted unconditionally and unconditionally and the heirs lose the right to reject the inheritance.

The person to whom a certain property is left in the will or to whom an heir is appointed (in our example, the spouse), if the other heirs (son) do not fulfill this will will enforcement (execution) case the testator files a lawsuit. This action ensures that the contents of the will are legally enforced and the property is registered in the name of the testator.

When this lawsuit is filed, the son, the heir whose reserved share has been violated, has two main options:

1. Filing an Equalization Lawsuit: Against the enforcement of the will, the testator may file a lawsuit for equalization claiming that his/her reserved share has been violated. In this case, the court decides that the will is valid, but the part exceeding the reserved share is invalid (annulment). The assets are divided between the spouse and the son in such a way that the son's reserved share is protected.
2. Waiving the Case: The child heir may waive the action for the enforcement of the will. This waiver means that he/she will not object to the execution of the will. However, this does not mean that he/she waives his/her right to reserved share. The waiver is specific to the enforcement action. The heir reserves the right to file a separate equalization lawsuit later on within the legal time limits.

The refusal of inheritance is subject to a specific procedure. These are the steps that must be followed:

1. Competent and Authorized Court: The refusal of inheritance is realized through an application to the Civil Court of Peace in the last settlement of the heir.
2. Oral or Written Declaration: Heirs may apply to this court and declare their rejection of the inheritance orally or in writing. In practice, it is generally preferred to apply with a written petition. In the petition, the will to unconditionally and unconditionally reject the inheritance must be clearly expressed.
3. Registration of the Declaration of Refusal: The judge of the Civil Court of Peace shall record this verbal or written declaration of refusal in a minute and register it in the special register of the court.

Once these procedures are completed, the refusal of inheritance becomes legally valid.

• Rejection must be unconditional and unconditional:

The inheritance cannot be rejected with a condition such as "I do not accept the debts, but I accept the rights". The rejection must be unconditional and unconditional.

• Irreversible Refusal:

Once the inheritance has been duly rejected, it is not possible to reverse this decision.

• Not Interfering in Inheritance Affairs:

Within the three-month refusal period, behaviors that may imply acceptance of the inheritance should be avoided. For example, an heir who intervenes in the affairs of the estate, such as selling, renting out or paying debts on behalf of the heir, in a way that exceeds the limits of ordinary administration, is deemed to have implicitly accepted the inheritance and loses the right to refuse.

The process of refusal of inheritance is a technical process that should be carried out with care in terms of its legal consequences. In order to avoid any loss of rights, it is of great importance to seek legal support from a lawyer.