Lawyer for inheritance law in 1010 Vienna and Krems an der Donau

I advise my clients on wills and legacies, which allow the testator to dispose of his assets during his lifetime in the event of his death. By means of a will, one or more persons can be appointed as heritages who, as universal successors, assume all the rights and obligations of the deceased. The other legal heritages who were not appointed as heritages in the will are reduced to the so-called compulsory portion by way of the appointment of certain heritages in the will. Under certain (strict) conditions, it is also possible to deprive the respective beneficiary of the compulsory portion in the will, i.e. to disinherit him or her, or to reduce the compulsory portion again by one half. Furthermore, it is possible to allocate individual items to specific persons either in the will or in a separate legacy. Registering the will in the register of wills and depositing a copy of the will with your lawyer ensures that the will will be found and taken into account.

Daily practice shows that inheritance matters cannot be settled early enough. If the deceased dies without having made a will in advance and if there are substantial assets in the estate, disputes among the heritages are often unavoidable. The statutory provisions that apply in the absence of a will are often not suitable for adequately reflecting the last will and testament of the decedent.

The so-called precautionary transfer of assets aims at dividing the existing assets among the persons selected by the owner during his lifetime, which usually happens on the basis of gifts. The Austrian legal system provides for various legal instruments that serve to secure the interests of the gift giver. If a property is given as a gift to the children or another person, it is possible, for example, to reserve a lifelong right of residence or a right of usufruct for the donor, to prevent further disposals of the property during the lifetime of the donor by means of a prohibition of sale and encumbrance, to grant the donor a right of first refusal or to provide the donor with a regular payment by means of a life annuity entered into the land register. A compromise between the disposition of assets in a will, which can be revoked at any time, and the generally irrevocable immediate gift during one’s lifetime is the gift on death, which is irrevocable but only takes effect upon death.

Gifts of Austrian real estate or apartments trigger real estate transfer tax and registration fees are incurred for the registration of the right of ownership in the land register. For gifts within the family, there are certain reductions that reduce these taxes and fees to a reasonable level. The basis for such dispositions is usually a gift or transfer agreement, which governs the reciprocal rights and obligations in detail. In the case of gifts during the lifetime of the deceased, it must be taken into account that under certain circumstances these can be counted against the inheritance or the compulsory portion and can therefore lead to a result not desired by the testator. The desired legal consequences can be ensured by waivers of the inheritance and the compulsory portion.

If claims under inheritance law are disputed by the parties involved, they can be asserted either in the course of proceedings to determine the right to inherit or in civil proceedings.

If one of the parties claims a better right of inheritance during the probate proceedings (for example, due to an invalid will), such party may start a proceeding to establish the right of inheritance. The invalidity of wills can result, for example, from the lack of external form or authenticity of the will as well as the testamentary incapacity or deficiencies in the will of the deceased. In the proceedings for the determination of the right to inherit, the applicant seeks the determination of his or her right to inherit.

After the decree of inheritance has been issued by the court, claims under inheritance law can only be asserted by means of an action for inheritance. The inheritance action seeks the restitution of the estate’s assets and may be combined with an application for a sworn statement of assets. If, in the absence of an agreement on the division of the estate, the heritages are given a share in the estate and thus become co-owners of, for example, a property, the action for the division of the estate makes it possible to set aside this joint ownership.

If the beneficiary of the compulsory portion has not received what he or she is actually entitled to, then he or she has a claim against the heritages for payment or supplementation of his or her compulsory portion. This can be asserted by means of a compulsory portion action. If claims to a compulsory portion are impaired by gifts from the deceased, the beneficiary of the compulsory portion may, under certain circumstances, be able to bring an action for a compulsory portion against the donee, according to which gifts are to be added to and taken into account in the calculation of the compulsory portion. An action to enforce a legacy can be used to assert a claim for the fulfillment of a legacy.