Have you ever heard this line from your parents? "If you don't study, you'll never get anything from me." Or worse, "If you marry that person, you won't get any inheritance from me." Can your parents leave really you out of their will? We always hear these kinds of statements in the movies or local tv shows. In real life, we also hear these lines jokingly from our parents or even grandparents. For some people, it isn't even said jokingly. Can they really deprive us of an inheritance?
Our question comes today from Rafa and Spin P. Hi Rafa and Spin. And they ask,
"Attorney, our father is very strict. He is also a lawyer like you guys. And he wants us to take up law as he did. However, he says that if we do not take up law, we will not inherit anything from him. Is this true? Should we be worried?"
If you're like Rafa and Spin, stick around as we answer their questions.
This video was brought to you by the "Estate Settlement Guide". The fastest way to orient surviving family members when a loved one passes away. You will learn the basics of succession to know who can inherit and how much. It will guide you through the next steps your family needs to take so you don't incur penalties and you transfer the property to the heirs properly. Protect your family legacy, avoid unnecessary penalties. Go to info.legalguide.ph/estate to learn more.
Welcome to Legal Guide Philippines, where we simplify the law to help you make better choices. I'm attorney Ramon Ramirez and I'm with my partner, Attorney Erwin Zagala. So today we're talking about inheriting. Particularly, we're talking about the right of parents to deprive their children of their inheritance when the children disobey them. So attorney Ramon, can parents really do this? So the scenario is... the kids are disobedient and then the parents will say,
"You won't have inheritance, you will not receive anything." Okay, so the short answer is no, it's not that simple. Parents cannot just simply deprive children of their inheritance because children are part of what we call the "VIPs of succession". That sounds fancy. VIPS are very important persons. And actually, we have an article about that, right? So we have an article on that. And you can check that out at our blog, www.legalguide.ph. Okay, so we're talking about the vips of succession. So let's set the context first. Why are they VIPs? Yes. So we need to send the context.
What is Succession?
First, so what is succession? And of course, when we do that, what is we have to go to the law. If there is law involved, Attorney Basa will read the article. Yes.
I will be Attorney Basa. Okay... BASA. Article 774 of the new civil code says that Succession is a mode of acquisition by virtue in which the property rights in obligations to the extent of the value of the inheritance of a person are transmitted through his death to another or others either by his will or by operation of law.
There, is the definition clear Attorney Erwin? Too clear (sarcastic). Okay, so let's break it down, break it down. What does the law say or the civil code says it's a mode of acquisition. Of what? Of properties and rights and even obligations. So if you remember, we had an episode previously where we talked about "sale and donation", which are also modes of acquisition. So it's just different ways of how you can get the property. We can do sale, we can do donation. Another mode is succession.
So it's a mode acquisition then. But what's important here is this transfer, this acquisition, happens because somebody died. Somebody died. It's also important another important aspect of this is that this transfer happens because there's a will for or by operation of law. It's automatic. What is a will? Just a quick definition. A will is something that the decedent or the person who died wrote down and followed what the law requires and then the instructions were written on how their properties are to be divided.
If you like drama you might know it as the last will and testament. We'll talk about wills later on in another episode or maybe in another article. But for now, that's not the focus. Now we're talking about the VIP's So now that we understand what succession is, we want to focus on our bullet point titled: "to another or others". A while ago right? Yes. "To another or others". Who are these people? We call these people heirs. H-E-I-R-S.
That's pronounced as "errs", not "hairs". Who are the heirs? They are the ones called to succession to inherit so basically they are the inheritors. Okay, now among these heirs or inheritors, there are what we call at legal guide... We call them the "VIPs of succession" because they have special status. Yes, a special status.
Compulsory heirs
And these are, what we call them under the law, these people are compulsory heirs. I think it's a good picture to have because for VIPs, in an event, there is a red carpet and they don't need to fall in line. And I think it's the same for compulsory heirs. Because it's as if a red carpet has been laid out in front of them. They don't need to line up, they can go straight ahead. So yeah, very good. Attorney here is why is it they have a red carpet treatment as well.
Because they are heirs who inherit whatever happens. So whatever happens, the law, provides that they are supposed to inherit something. They don't need to do anything. By virtue of being a compulsory heir or a VIP. Yes. So they are included automatically. So that's why we call them in legal guide, we call them the VIPs. Okay, so if there is a will, they should definitely be part of it. Otherwise, the will is in danger of being invalidated.
If you don't include them, the will can be annulled. The will has issues. There can be a lawsuit. If there is no will, then definitely they will be given priority and they can even exclude other relatives. That's because they will be prioritized in the distribution of the inheritance. So the law reserves a minimum inheritance or a portion of the estate. So what is an estate? Estate is the thing that the decedent left. It includes properties and obligations and rights. So the law reserves a minimum inheritance or portion that they should receive So despite not having to do anything, a portion has already been reserved for them. And this is what we call, this is a term that we use in the law, we call that the legitime.
So the legitime is that part of the decedent's property or in this case, they've written a will that the testator's property which he cannot dispose of because the law has reserved it for certain heirs. And these heirs are called compulsory heirs. Now I see why they are VIPs. Okay, you may be asking, we understand compulsory heirs. There's something reserved for them. Okay, now what are the proportions or percentages of the estate that are reserved for the heirs? Okay, guys, that's a pretty long list for this episode, but we discuss this actually in our estate settlement guide. So you can check out our Estate Settlement guide at info.legalguide.ph/estate So if this is something that you really want to learn, go there and you can learn it there.
Who are the compulsory heirs
Okay, so let's talk about who are these compulsory heirs, we repeatedly talk about this. So who are these guys? When the first categories are legitimate children and descendants. So, the children or the descendants Who are those descendants Attorney Erwin? Downwards If you take me as an example, my descendants are in the direct line downwards... So my children.
They are my children/descendants. What is the next level Attorney Erwin? Grandchildren. Yes, grandchildren are considered descendants. Add another level, if you go lower. There are great-grandchildren. That's downwards. What about the next? Let's go to the next one. Legitimate parents and ascendants. Oh, what direction is that? If descendants go downwards, where do you think this leads? I think upwards. Alright, so ascendants are upwards. So who are my ascendants? Well, my first level of ascendants is my parents. Okay, second degree, will be my grandparents. Okay. And so on and so forth. Okay. And maybe let's also distinguish that from collateral relatives. So you have descendants -- downward, ascendants -- upward. Collateral relatives are not ascendants or descendants. They go sideward.
For example my siblings. Even if we have the same parents, they are my collateral blood relatives. Or my cousins, Tito, and Tita... these are collateral relatives. Okay. So the next level of compulsory heirs is the widow or widower. We also call this the surviving spouse. So they are compulsory heirs. So, they should inherit. I think it makes sense because they form part of the family so the law will protect these people definitely. The law assumes that you love your spouse so something should be left for them. Lastly, illegitimate children Attorney Erwin. Attorney Ramon, people have a lot of questions regarding that. If there is a child born out of wedlock, will they share in the inheritance? Let's answer the question: Yes. And they are actually compulsory heirs. Wow. Wow. VIP.
So don't mistakenly exclude illegitimate children and say "You are a child born out of wedlock so you don't matter!" That's true. Okay. Now guys, with respect to illegitimate children, the filiation or the fact that they are actually children of the deceased must be proven. Okay. So you probably have a birth certificate or whatever proof that you can show that you are an illegitimate child. Alright. So I hope that's clear. So these are the compulsory heirs Now let's talk about... ...okay... So now we have how many categories? Attorney 123-- 4 categories of compulsory heirs.
Are compulsory heirs equal?
Now the question is are these compulsory heirs, are they all equal? Are they created equal? I think... no. Good. Very good. Attorney Erwin. You're correct. No, they're not created equal. Now there are what you call primary compulsory heirs, secondary compulsory heirs and the concurring compulsory heirs. Okay. Who are the primary compulsory heirs? I think they are the "downward" heirs. Yes, definitely. So the primary compulsory heirs are the children and the descendants.
So, in the world of succession, they are the most preferred. And actually, they even exclude secondary heirs. The most important in succession or the VIPs are the primary heirs or the children or descendants. And that it makes sense. The children and the descendants are usually more vulnerable.
They may be young. Possibly they don't have jobs yet. As it makes sense to put them first. Yes. And also from a "love perspective", normally parents if their love is limited, they will give it to their children. Okay. So then you have your secondary compulsory heirs. Who are these secondary compulsory heirs? If there is a "downward" direction, then there is an "upward" direction. Correct. So our secondary compulsory heirs are the parents and ascendants. Okay. Now, these secondary compulsory heirs, they're only there... they only become compulsory heirs if there are no children or descendants. If there are children or descendants, It means that there are primary compulsory heirs so ascendants can't be compulsory heirs. But if the decedent didn't have kids, the parents are included okay? So I think that makes sense.
Well, okay. Now that we have the primary and the secondary, now we have concurring compulsory heirs. I am almost out of moves. A while ago we went upwards, ...Oh no wait... It's actually downwards, then upward, and then now... sidewards? Not necessarily, because our concurring compulsory heirs are the widow or the widower and the illegitimate children. Oh yeah, so it doesn't follow that just because I ran out of directions, it goes sideways because there is a specific category for that. Yeah. So what's so special about these concurring compulsory heirs? Who are those? The spouse, and the illegitimate children.
What's special about them is they succeed regardless if there is a primary heir. For secondary heirs, they succeed along with them. That's why we call them concurring. Kasabay? Yes. So they do not exclude anyone, and they succeed also along with the primary or secondary compulsory heirs. Are we clear on that Attorney Erwin? It's a good thing that you cleared that up so that there is no confusion. What about the cousins, siblings? These are the "sideward" heirs. I thought you might forget the "sideward" heirs. But for our purposes now they are not compulsory heirs. So they are not VIP, in terms of succession. What if the cousin was the one who really took care of the decdedent during the final days. Or maybe they are really close and the children abandoned their parents. Or they grew up like brothers. Does that have any legal bearing? The cousin is stil,l not a compulsory heir.
If the decedent wants to give to the cousin, there is a way to do it. Yes. Okay. But not as a compulsory heir. Definitely. Okay. So let's go to the last question for today.
Is the protection of a compulsory heir absolute?
Is the protection of a compulsory heir absolute? It's like, "Whatever happens... you'll receive something". There is no one or nothing that can take that away from you. "I'm a child, so in all cases, I should have a part of the inheritance". So is the protection absolute? The answer is no. Okay, here is what you call under the law the concept of disinheritance. That's actually what the parents joke about. "I would disinherit you." So guys, disinheritance-- there is a specific procedure to follow. And there are specific requirements that the law has.
So it has to be done in a will. You can't just declare it verbally or write it in your notebook, "Nagtatampo Ako sa Anak ko." There are grounds for that. Your reasons for disinheritance can't be flimsy. They're actually prescribed by law. So there is a list of approved grounds for disinheritance. Because it's so serious and heavy, it couldn't be left to the will of the people. such as, "They didn't give me food earlier today so I'm disinheriting them..." Or "They didn't study law!" like Rafa and Spin. Give us some examples Attorney Ramon, so that they will see how serious the grounds for disinheritance are under the law.
I think the one that comes to mind immediately is attempt on the life of the decedent or the parent. Attempted murder. Not just him or her, but including the spouse of the decedent, or even the decedent's kids or parents. So that is the level that we are talking about. Not those, "You have not taken law" stuff. Not that flimsy? And there's a really long list of the grounds for disinheritance. Which we invite you to check out. It's Articles 919 to 921 of the civil code so check it out. We also have an article on disinheritance as well in our blog.
So I think the title of that is "How can I disinherit my heir in my estate?" Okay, so go to www.legalguide.ph and check out our article if you are interested in disinheritance. Or we can make an episode about this later on. So if you want us to make an episode on disinheritance, send us a topic request later and then vote on it.
Recap
So Atty. Ramon, allow me to do a recap of what we talked about. First off, we talked about succession and we stressed the point that it's a mode of acquiring property. It's in line with the sale, donation, and now, this one is succession. Yes, because there was a decedent. Next is we talked about what are compulsory heirs and we found out that these are the vips. They get the red carpet treatment all the way and they are included in the event whatever happens. And we also talked about who are the compulsory heirs.
And when we came up with the list, I hope you guys were able to listen and pay attention to that. And we also talked about whether compulsory heirs created equal. It turns out that there is a hierarchy. And then finally is their protection absolute? Of course not. If you do something seriously wrong, you will definitely be removed as a compulsory heir. And that's what we call disinheritance.
Additional Resources
Now, if you want to learn more about succession and estates, please go to info.legalguide.ph/estate and if you want us to tackle your question on our show, go to www.legalguide.ph and click on the submit topic button. Next, we would like to know what's your biggest takeaway from today's video? Write it down in the comments so we can talk about it. And if you feel we've earned a good rating, please give us a like and subscribe.
It gives us feedback that we're doing a good job and it encourages us to do more videos. Thank you Attorney Erwin. So one last thing. Inheritance laws -- they're there to ensure that our loved ones are protected and will continue to enjoy the fruits of our labors in case we pass on. Let's not use it as a tool to control our kids, grandkids or loved ones just make them do what we want. On the other hand, for those of us who stand to inherit, the law protects you very well if you are a compulsory heir. But maybe, instead of waiting for an inheritance from your parents, a better way to do things is to live your life in such a way that you won't need it when the time comes. Try to make your own economy so that you don't rely on something that's outside of your control. so wasn't that simple. Now go make better choices.
