Returning the inheritance when the term has expired

Inheritance is the property, rights, and obligations that pass to heirs after a person’s death. The registration of inheritance is regulated by the Civil Code and has clear deadlines and procedures.

Case: Renewal of the term for accepting the inheritance after the expiration of the term

Not all Ukrainians know that an application for accepting the inheritance must be submitted to a notary within six months from the date of opening the inheritance (Part 1, Article 1270 of the Civil Code of Ukraine). This is especially a problem for those who are abroad and are unable to return in time. However, even if this term is missed, the heir has the right to apply to the court with a request to renew it.

Judicial renewal of the term for accepting the inheritance

With the support of the law firm “DE-JURE”, it is possible to renew the term for accepting the inheritance and receive the inherited property. Lawyer Iryna Pyatigorets tells about one such case:

– The client missed the term for submitting an application for accepting the inheritance because she made a mistake in calculating the terms for contacting the notary. After six months, the notary refused to issue her a certificate of the right to inheritance. Because of this, the client risked losing the right to the inherited apartment and land plot in Odessa, – explains Iryna Pyatigorets. – She turned to “DE-JURE”, and I helped her prepare a lawsuit to the court to renew the term for accepting the inheritance, justifying the presence of good reasons for the omission and the need to protect her inheritance rights.

According to Part 3 of Article 1272 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, the court may renew the term for accepting the inheritance if it is proven that the heir missed it for good reasons. Such reasons may include:

• a long illness that made it impossible to contact a notary in a timely manner;
• staying abroad without the possibility of arriving due to martial law, epidemic or other circumstances;
• inadequate information to the heir about the opening of the inheritance;
• misunderstanding of the deadlines for submitting the application.

To confirm good reasons, it is necessary to provide relevant evidence: medical certificates and hospital discharges, documents about business trips or stays abroad, witness statements, copies of reports or other documents confirming the circumstances that prevented the timely submission of the application. The more substantiated evidence is provided, the higher the chances of a positive court decision.

Positive court decision

During the trial, the lawyer proved that the client had good reasons for missing the deadline for accepting the inheritance, and also justified the need to restore her rights. As a result, the court ruled in favor of the client, granting her additional time to submit an application to a notary to register the inheritance after the deadline for accepting it had expired. Thanks to this, she was able to officially accept the inheritance and keep the property that belonged to her – an apartment and a land plot.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, you should not give up. Timely contact with a competent lawyer significantly increases the chances of successfully renewing the term and receiving inherited property.