Practice Areas
Inheritance Law
Preventing loss of rights in estate division, reserved share and will disputes.
In short
Inheritance law determines who receives a deceased person's estate and in what shares, and is set out in the third book of the Turkish Civil Code. Statutory heirs are determined by a system of degrees. If a will or gift infringes an heir's reserved share, an abatement action lies; where heirs cannot agree on division, an action for partition of the estate is brought.
Inheritance disputes are as much family matters as legal ones, and they are unforgiving on deadlines. Disclaiming an estate must be done within three months, and an abatement action within one year of learning that the reserved share has been infringed.
Simulated transfers by the deceased — apparent sales made in order to keep assets from an heir — are the most frequent source of dispute in practice. Such files require land registry records, bank movements and witness evidence to be read together in order to establish the true intention.
What we do in this area
- Obtaining and annulling certificates of inheritance
- Actions for disclaimer of the estate, both express and by operation of law
- Abatement actions protecting the reserved share (Civil Code Arts. 505, 560)
- Title deed cancellation actions based on simulated transfers by the deceased
- Opening, execution and annulment of wills
- Disputes arising from inheritance contracts and lifetime care agreements
- Actions for partition of jointly owned estate property
- Determination and inventory of the estate; appointment of an estate representative
- Renunciation of inheritance, disinheritance and transfer of inheritance shares
How the process works
Establishing heirs and the estate
A certificate of inheritance is obtained and the scope of the estate mapped from land registry, bank and vehicle records.
Assessing the risk of losing rights
We determine whether urgent steps are needed in view of disclaimer periods, abatement deadlines and limitation.
Litigation or division
Where the heirs can agree, a division agreement is drawn up; where they cannot, the appropriate action is filed.
Registration and transfer
After judgment, land registry, bank and company share transfers are completed and the matter closed.
01What is the deadline for disclaiming an inheritance?
Statutory heirs have three months from the date they learn that they are heirs to disclaim the estate (Civil Code Art. 606). For appointed heirs the period runs from notification of the will. If no disclaimer is made in time, the estate is deemed accepted together with its debts.
02What is the reserved share and how large is it?
The reserved share is the minimum portion of the estate that the deceased cannot dispose of. The Civil Code sets separate proportions for descendants, parents and the surviving spouse; the reserved share of descendants, for example, is half of their statutory share (Art. 506). An heir whose reserved share is infringed may bring an abatement action.
03Is there a deadline for a simulated-transfer action?
An action for cancellation of title based on a simulated transfer by the deceased may be brought at any time after death; as a rule no limitation or forfeiture period applies. An abatement action, by contrast, is subject to one-year and ten-year periods — which is why the legal ground relied on matters.
04What happens if the heirs cannot agree?
If the heirs cannot agree on dividing the estate, any heir may bring an action for partition. The court orders division in kind where the property permits it, and otherwise division through sale.
05How can a will be annulled?
A will may be annulled for lack of capacity, defective intention, non-compliance with formal requirements, or content contrary to law or morality. The action must be brought within one year of learning of the ground and, in any event, within ten years of the will being opened.
Legally reviewed: Attorney at Law, Founder Gökay Kahan
Let's assess your legal position together
Tell us about your file and we will set out clearly which legal routes are open to you and how the process will unfold.
0553 681 31 63Monday – Friday, 09:00 – 18:00