After the expiration of the prescriptive periods with respect to inheritance in Vietnam, can a lawsuit be initiated to divide the estates?
My father passed away in 1995. He left an estate of 5,000 tael of gold. At that time, my sibling and I were still young, so our stepmother managed the 5,000 tael of gold. At present, my sibling and I have grown up. Due to our stepmother's behavior, we want to divide our father's estate. I have also learned that my father did not leave a will, and the 5,000 tael of gold was passed down to him by my grandfather before he married my mother. In this case, do my sibling and I have the right to seek a court order to divide our father's estate?
After the expiration of the prescriptive periods with respect to inheritance in Vietnam, can a lawsuit be initiated to divide the estates? - image from internet
My father passed away in 1995. He left an estate of 5,000 tael of gold. At that time, my sibling and I were still young, so our stepmother managed the 5,000 tael of gold. At present, my sibling and I have grown up. Due to our stepmother's behavior, we want to divide our father's estate. I have also learned that my father did not leave a will, and the 5,000 tael of gold was passed down to him by my grandfather before he married my mother. In this case, do my sibling and I have the right to seek a court order to divide our father's estate?
Answer:
Pursuant to Article 612 of the Civil Code in 2015 stipulating estates:
- An estate comprises property which the deceased owned and property which the deceased jointly owned with other persons.
According to the information you provided, the 5,000 tael of gold was determined as your father's personal property because it was inherited from your grandfather before your father's marriage. According to Clause 1 Article 651 of the Civil Code in 2015, when your father passed away, the legal heirs would include your stepmother, you and your sibling. However, the issue that arises is that since your father passed away a long time ago (24 years ago), it is necessary to consider the prescriptive periods with respect to inheritance for initiating a lawsuit, as regulated in Article 623 of the Civil Code in 2015. To be specific:
- The prescriptive period with respect to a claim of an heir for distribution of an estate shall be thirty years regarding immovable property or ten years regarding movable property from the time of commencement of the inheritance. Upon the expiry date of the aforesaid period, the estate shall belong to the estate administrator. In case where there is no estate administrator, the estate shall be dealt with as follows:
+ It shall belong to the person possessing it as prescribed in Article 236 of this Code;
+ It shall belong the State if there is no possessor prescribed in Point a of this Clause.
- The prescriptive period with respect to a claim of an heir for a declaration of right of inheritance of the requester or to disallow the claim to inheritance of another shall be ten years from the time of commencement of the inheritance.
- The prescriptive period with respect to a claim for an heir to fulfill property obligations of the deceased shall be three years from the time of commencement of the inheritance.
As regulated above, the sprescriptive period for initiating a lawsuit regarding the 5,000 tael of gold (which is movable property) is 10 years from the time the inheritance is opened. Therefore, it can be determined that you and your sibling no longer have the right to initiate a lawsuit regarding the 5,000 tael of gold. Therefore, this property is belong to the current inheritor who is managing the estate, which is your stepmother.
Best regards!
