The differences between the colloquial understanding of certain words and their meaning in legal language (i.e. the language used in statutes) and in legal practice (as employed in courts or procedural documents) can be considerable. This is precisely the case with the word “disinheritance”.
Intestate and Testamentary Succession
In light of the applicable provisions of the Civil Code governing the matter of succession, it is clear that every deceased person must have some legal successor (heir). If no will has been made, that successor will be a family member identified by the provisions of the Code (or, in the absence of family, the municipality of the testator’s last place of residence). By making a will, however, a testator may designate other, freely chosen persons; in particular, they may omit the closest relatives who would otherwise inherit under the statutory rules.
Disinheritance — What Does It Actually Mean?
In colloquial usage, disinheritance most commonly refers to the situation in which a testator deprives a given person of their inheritance (as indeed the etymology of the term suggests). A “disinherited” person, in this everyday sense, would be, for example, a son whom his father omitted from a will he had made. In reality, however, the legal position is rather different.
Deprivation of the Right to the Legitime (Zachowek)
The consequence of disinheritance (as it is understood under the Civil Code) is something else entirely — the loss of the right to the legitime (zachowek). Being omitted from a will carries comparatively less severe consequences, in that certain statutory heirs (descendants, a spouse, and parents) may still claim the legitime. If, however, they are effectively disinherited in the legal sense, they forfeit that entitlement. Importantly, disinheritance requires that the conduct of the person being disinherited justifies such a step — that it was, in a defined manner, wrongful or unworthy.