BSLM 3-1 Magadia: Succession and Wills (General Provisions and Testamentary Succession)

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms from Succession and Wills (General Provisions and Testamentary Succession).

Succession

A mode of acquisition by which property, rights, and obligations are transmitted after death to others, either by will or by operation of law.

Decedent

The person whose property is transmitted through succession (whether or not a will was left).

Testator

The decedent who left a will; the person whose will designates heirs.

Executor

Person designated to carry out the provisions of the decedent’s will and manage the estate before final disposition.

Administrator

Court-appointed person who performs the same duties as an executor when there is no executor or the executor cannot serve.

Inheritance

All the property, rights, and obligations of a person that are not extinguished by death.

Heir

Person called to the succession, either by the will or by operation of law; includes devisees and legatees.

Devisee

Person to whom real property is bequeathed by a will.

Legatee

Person to whom personal property is bequeathed by a will.

Compulsory heirs

Heirs entitled by law to a legitime; include primary, secondary, and concurring groups.

Primary compulsory heirs

Those with precedence over others (e.g., legitimate children and descendants).

Secondary compulsory heirs

Those who succeed only in the absence of primary compulsory heirs (e.g., legitimate parents and ascendants).

Concurring heirs

Heirs who succeed together with primary or secondary compulsory heirs (e.g., illegitimate children and surviving spouse).

Voluntary heirs

Heirs named by the testator who can freely dispose of a portion of the estate; the share is determined by the will.

Legitime (legitime)

The legally fixed portion of an estate that compulsory heirs are entitled to by law.

Free portion

The portion of the estate left for voluntary heirs after deducting the legitime.

Legal or intestate heirs

Heirs who succeed by operation of law when there is no valid will or when the will does not dispose of the entire estate.

Testamentary succession (testate)

Succession that results from designation of an heir in a will.

Mixed succession

Succession partly by will and partly by operation of law.

Order of intestate succession

The sequence of heirs when there is no will: legitimate children, legitimate parents/ascendants, illegitimate children, surviving spouse, brothers/sisters, other collateral relatives, and finally the State.

Wills

An act allowing a person to control, by complying with formalities, the disposition of his estate to take effect after death.

Notarial/ordinary/attested will

A will executed under formalities prescribed by law, in writing, signed by the testator, and attested by three or more credible witnesses.

Holographic will

A will that is entirely handwritten, dated, and signed by the testator; no witnesses required.

Codicil

A supplement or addition to a will, executed to explain, add to, or alter dispositions; must be executed like a will.

Incorporation by reference

A provision where a will refers to another document; the document must exist at execution, be clearly described, identified, signed on each page, and capable of proof.

Revocation of wills

A will may be revoked by the testator before death; revocation abroad is valid if done under local law or Philippines law; revocation can occur by burning, tearing, canceling, or obliterating the will.

Disinheritance

A testamentary disposition depriving a compulsory heir of the inheritance; only valid if stated in a will and applicable to compulsory heirs (not to voluntary heirs).

Republish and revival

Republishing occurs when a codicil refers to a previous will, effecting modification; revival occurs when a later will revokes the prior and the prior is revived only by another will or codicil.

Witnesses to wills

Persons of sound mind, 18+, able to read/write, who witness the will; certain persons are disqualified (e.g., non-domiciled in the Philippines, convicted of falsification or perjury).

Acknowledgment

The act of the testator and witnesses acknowledging the will before a notary; notary is not required to retain a copy.

Joint will

Two or more persons cannot make a joint will in the same instrument for reciprocal benefit or for the benefit of a third person.

Capacity and age to will

All persons not expressly prohibited may make a will; those under 18 cannot; testator must be of sound mind at execution.

Married woman’s will

A married woman may make a will without her husband’s consent or court authority and may dispose of separate property and community property as permitted.

Form of will requirements

A will must be in writing and in a language known to the testator; must be signed by testator or by someone in his presence and direction, and attested by witnesses; pages must be numbered and an attestation clause included.