The heir, although there is a will, but the designated heir is not clear, should be in accordance with the statutory inheritance, Kan Dao Hua lawyer for the party to recover its due inheritance share

Case Summary

The property in question is jointly owned by the four houses of the X family, each holding a quarter share. It has been rented out to the public since October 1987, with the rent divided equally among the four according to traditional customs. From December 1992 to April 2009, the total rent received by the original and defendant parties, amounting to 107,500 yuan and the interest on the deposit of 13,212.49 yuan (up to June 3, 2009), totaling 120,712.49 yuan. The plaintiff and the defendant are siblings, and regarding the rights and interests in the additional buildings on the land of the property in question (purchased back by the descendants of the four houses of the family and jointly owned by the descendants of the four houses of the family), the two plaintiffs demand that the rights and interests be divided equally among the two plaintiffs and three defendants in five equal shares.

Trial process

The father of the plaintiff and defendant left a will upon his death stating, "If there are changes to the house in the future, the property should be divided equally among the heirs, with one-third each, excluding personal property. No disputes should arise to make a fool of others," but due to the unclear specification in the will, the inheritance should be handled according to the statutory succession. Both the plaintiff and the defendant have a legitimate right to inherit the estate. The five children of the deceased are the first-order statutory heirs and have the right to inherit the estate, each inheriting one-fifth. Regarding the one-fourth interest in the house added to the pond (purchased by the descendants of the four major families of the clan and jointly owned by them), the two plaintiffs request that it be equally divided among the two plaintiffs and three defendants, which is in line with the principle of fairness, and this court confirms it. The judgment is as follows: 1. The one-fourth interest in the rented house (77.45 square meters) shall be inherited by the two plaintiffs and three defendants, each inheriting one-fifth; 2. The one-fourth interest in the house added to the pond (purchased by the descendants of the four major families of the clan and jointly owned by them) shall be equally divided among the two plaintiffs and three defendants, each inheriting one-fifth; 3. The defendant shall distribute a total of 26,089.88 yuan in rent and interest to the two plaintiffs within ten days from the date when this judgment takes legal effect; 4. The defendant shall compensate the two plaintiffs for reasonable expenses for tomb sweeping and transportation, amounting to 6,189.58 yuan, within ten days from the date when this judgment takes legal effect from the remaining rent and interest.

Dowah Lawyer Analysis

In the absence of a will or when the will is unclear, all the deceased's estate shall be inherited in accordance with the statutory manner. In this case, the deceased had no will or the will failed to distribute part of the estate, and the relevant estate should be inherited in accordance with the statutory manner. As the first-degree heirs, the two plaintiffs and three defendants should inherit the deceased's estate in accordance with the law.