Securing your legacy. Protecting your rights.
We provide expert legal support in all matters of succession law, whether you wish to plan your estate or assert your rights as an heir. Our office handles:
Types of Succession in Greek Law
Intestate Succession
When a person dies without leaving a will, their estate is distributed according to statutory rules set out in the Greek Civil Code. Inheritance rights are granted to surviving relatives and the spouse, in a predetermined order of succession (“classes”). If no legal heir is found, the estate is transferred to the State.
Note: In the first class (children and descendants), the surviving spouse is entitled to ¼ of the estate. In subsequent classes, the spouse inherits ½.
It is critical to assess whether heirs of a prior class have accepted or renounced the inheritance, as this determines who may inherit next.
Inheritance Litigation (Lawsuit for Inheritance Rights)
This type of action protects your legal title as heir when challenged. It can be:
Such lawsuits may involve the entire estate and can be brought by any heir — whether by law, by will, or under any legitimate legal claim.
Τax clearance must precede the filing of such a lawsuit.
Forced Heirship (Compulsory Portion)
Certain relatives — namely descendants, parents, and the spouse — are entitled by law to a minimum statutory share of the estate, regardless of the testator’s wishes.
This compulsory share equals ½ of what the heir would have received under intestate succession. If a will deprives a statutory heir of their lawful portion, they are entitled to contest the will and initiate proceedings to claim their share.
This often involves valuation of lifetime donations, assessment of estate assets, and civil litigation for enforcement.
Certificate of Inheritance
This is a judicially issued document confirming the legal status of an heir and is commonly required when dealing with banks, public authorities, or real estate transactions. It may be necessary even in the presence of a valid will.
Documents typically required:
Probate of a Holographic Will
If a handwritten will is found, heirs may file an application for probate — to officially register it and confirm its authenticity through court proceedings.
Documents typically required:
What is an action to recover inheritance and when can we bring it?
An action to recover inheritance is defined as the right that protects an heir’s inheritance rights when these are disputed. This action is a negative action, i.e. it obliges the defendant to return the inherited property to the plaintiff.
Instead of a negative action to recover inheritance, it is also possible to bring a declaratory action to recover inheritance, requesting either the recognition of the plaintiff’s inheritance right and the recognition of the obligation of the defendant, the owner of the inheritance, to return the inheritance or its objects, or only the recognition of the inheritance right to the inheritance or its objects, provided that the action invokes that the defendant is withholding the inheritance or its objects.
Furthermore, an action for inheritance is distinguished by its universality, since it concerns all objects of the inheritance, regardless of type or value. An action for inheritance may be brought by any heir, i.e. any person who has a right to an inheritance. This right is acquired either by legal succession or by will. Therefore, the lawsuit may be brought by intestate heirs, testamentary heirs, and heirs based on another inheritance relationship.
In order to bring the lawsuit, the inheritance must first be settled for tax purposes.
