Premature

Can a prospective heir transfer his future inheritance? This is the issue raised in this case of Dan.

Dan was the son of Ben who was one of the nephews of Dona Maria, the registered owner of a parcel of land containing an area of 140,211 square meters covered by Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) No. 16776.

Dona Maria had no children so while still alive or way back on July 27, 1939, she executed a will in her own handwriting (holographic will) assigning and distributing her property to her nephews and nieces including Dan’s father, Ben, to whom she imparted 9,000 square meters of her property. But when Dona Maria died on December 8, 1941, the holographic will was not probated so the distribution of the land among the nephews and nieces was not carried out. In fact when Ben died in 1960 there was no distribution made yet and Dan just took the place of his father in succession.

On March 5, 1975 however, even without the distribution and partition of the property yet, Dan executed a “Deed of Absolute Sale of the Undivided Parcel of Land” disposing of his 9,000 square meter share of the land in favor of Larry.

It was only on August 1, 1994, or more than 50 years after Dona Maria’s death that her holographic will was finally given effect when her legitimate and forced heirs executed a Deed of Extrajudicial Succession with Partition wherein the 9,000 square meters was ceded to Dan.

After Dan died in 1996, his heirs tried to get possession of said property. Thus the heirs of Larry were constrained to file an action against the heirs of Dan for the quieting of their title over the subject land. They claimed that they were its lawful owners because it was sold to their father Larry by Dan who was its rightful owner by way of succession through a Deed of Absolute Sale dated March 5, 1975. Hence, they could not be ejccted from said property. Were they correct?

No.  The March 5, 1975 deed cannot be deemed valid because at that time, Dan was not yet the owner of the property. There is no dispute that the original and registered owner of the subject property covered by TCT No. 16776 from which the subject 9,000 square meters lot came was Dona Maria, who during her lifetime had executed a will dated July 27, 1939. In said will, the name of Ben, father of Dan, appeared as one of the heirs. But even if Ben died sometime in 1960, Dan could not yet validly dispose of the whole or even a portion thereof in 1975 for the reason that it was only on August 1, 1994 that Dan became the owner thereof by virtue of the execution of the Deed of Extrajudicial Succession with Partition by the heirs of Dona Maria.

Besides, under Article 1347 of the Civil Code, “No contract may be entered into upon future inheritance, except in cases authorized by law.” Under paragraph 2, such contract is void. The law applies when (1) the succession has not yet been opened; (2) the object of the contract forms part of the inheritance; and (3) the party has, with respect to the object, an expectancy of a right which is purely hereditary in nature.

In this case, when Dan executed the Deed of Sale in favor of Larry, Dona Maria’s Will had not yet been probated and the object of the contract, the 9,000 square meters property, still formed part of the inheritance of Dan’s father in the estate of Dona Maria on which Dan had a mere inchoate hereditary right. Hence, the sale to Larry is void and the subject property should be partitioned by Dan’s lawful heirs (De Belen Vda. De Cabalu vs. Tabu, G.R. 188417, September 22, 2012, 681 SCRA, 625).

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