The most important thing is in inheritance law, a testator is not completely free to dispose of his entire estate as he pleases.
The law limits his freedom in favor of his close relatives, by means of the “reserved portion”.
This reserved portion is reserved for certain relatives of the deceased. Not all persons who would be entitled to inherit by intestate succession have reserved portions. Only the descendants, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters and the surviving spouse have rights to such a portion.
The amount of the reserved portion depends on the closeness of the surviving heirs to the deceased. The new Civil Code has decreased the extent of the reserved portion and expanded the amount of free disposal by the deceased person.
Descendant : Their reserved portion is half of their statutory share.
Let’s assume that the amount of the estate to be distributed is 80m TL and if four children are the successors, the intestate share of each would be one fourth or 10m TL.
Parents : Their reserved portion is one fourth of their statutory share.
Sisters and Brothers : Their reserved portion is one eight of their statutory share.
Spouse : If there are descendants of the deceased, one fourth of the estate will be the reserved portion of the spouse; if there are no descendants but parents of the deceased, ½ of the estate will be the reserved portion of the spouse. In all other instances, the reserved portion is three fourth of the statutory share.
Reduction of Disposition
The value of the estate is determined at the time of death. If the disposition made by the testator’s will exceed the amount left after the reserved portions, such dispositions will be reduced. Dispositions made during the testator’s lifetime are also subject to reduction in certain circumstances.
Debarment from Inheritance and Loss of Inheritance Rights
A successor of the deceased who commits a felony against the decedent or his next of kin or close friends, or negligently fails in fulfilling a statutory duty to the decedent during his lifetime or to his family may be debarred from inheritance by a testamentary disposition of the deceased. The share of such a person will pass to the other successors of the deceased as if the debarred person had died prior to the decedent.
In some cases, such as where the successor intentionally kills or attempts to kill the decedent, he loses his inheritance rights automatically.
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