The Spanish court ruled in favor of a grandson who had been disinherited by his grandfather, after he alleged family abandonment and left his entire inheritance to the neighbors who accompanied him in the last years of his life. According to Noticias Trabajo, a Spanish website specializing in legal and labor matters, the Barcelona Provincial Hearing concluded that there was insufficient evidence that the family breakdown was the grandson’s fault, thus recognizing his right to the legitimate share of the inheritance.
The decision reverses part of the will made in 2019, in which the grandfather excluded both his adopted daughter and his grandson, justifying that both had removed him after his wife’s death in 2014.
This report was decisive for the testator to leave his assets to the neighbors who supported him during that period. The sentence now known only changes the impact on the grandson, keeping the daughter’s disinheritance valid.
A will marked by hurt and accusations
According to Noticias Trabajo, the grandfather said he felt rejected and emotionally abandoned by his daughter and grandson, claiming that they had cut off contact for years, despite living in the same neighborhood. In the testamentary document, he described his grandson as someone who had consciously and painfully avoided him, without showing any initiative to reestablish the relationship. However, the Provincial Hearing highlighted that, when the rupture occurred (2014), the grandson was a minor and insufficient evidence was presented that the lack of contact was exclusively attributable to him.
Court distinguishes responsibilities between mother and child
The Provincial Hearing clearly distinguished the behavior of the daughter and the grandson. In the daughter’s case, the magistrates considered voluntary removal proven, based on testimonies and records (medical and social) that describe a distant, hostile and interested attitude. As for the grandson, the judges concluded that the lack of contact was not demonstrated as being exclusively attributable to him: an essential requirement to validate the disinheritance provided for in the Civil Code of Catalonia.
Proving the cause is decisive to maintain disinheritance
The decision recalls that the burden of proof lies with whoever intends to sustain disinheritance. Pursuant to article 451‑20 of the Civil Code of Catalonia, if the disinherited legitimate party challenges the case, proof that it existed lies with the heir. In the case analyzed, this evidence was insufficient with regard to the grandson, which is why he regains legal status.
Who pays the legitimate
The inheritance left to the neighbors will have to be part of the grandson’s legitimate share. In this case, the Hearing ordered one of the heirs, Mercedes, to pay him the amount corresponding to the legitimate amount.
The decision is not final
The sentence has not become final and allows for a cassation appeal, which, in matters of Catalan civil law, runs primarily before the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJ-Cat). Until then, as explained by , recognition of the grandson’s right to legal inheritance remains.
And in Portugal?
If a similar situation occurred in Portugal, the outcome could be similar in terms of result (protecting the legitimate), but for different reasons. Unlike Catalonia, where there is a specific legal cause for the lack of family relationship, Portugal applies the Portuguese Civil Code, which establishes exhaustive and restricted causes for the disinheritance of legitimate heirs (art. 2166).
Valid causes of disinheritance (Portugal) are exceptional
Article 2166 provides for three situations:
– conviction for an intentional crime against the author of the succession (or spouse/parents/descendants/adopter/adopted), with a sentence of more than 6 months;
– slanderous accusation or false testimony against these people;
– unjustified refusal of maintenance to the author of the succession or to his or her spouse.
“Affective/moral abandonment” is not an independent cause of disinheritance in Portuguese law.
Proof and challenge in Portugal
The cause must be expressly stated in the will and is subject to judicial control. The challenge of disinheritance (due to the lack of cause) expires 2 years after the opening of the will (art. 2167).
What if the grandson was a minor, as in the Spanish case?
In Portugal, the (non)existence of the minor’s guilt for “abandonment” is not relevant to disinheritance, because this cause does not exist in Portuguese law. As for the grandson’s right to inherit by representation, this subsists if the mother is validly disinherited (personal effects of disinheritance do not affect the descendants of the disinherited).
The legitimate part in Portugal
The grandson’s legitime depends on the existence of the testator’s children. If the mother has been successfully disinherited, the grandson inherits by proxy; The specific quota varies by law, but is mandatory and cannot be eliminated by will.
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