Erbfolge#
Succession, Line of, prescribes the legal devolution of estates, in default of any testamentary provision ( Testament, Inheritance, Contract of) made by the deceased. Legal heirs include relatives and the spouse. The law of intestate succession concerning relatives is based on the parentelic system, with closer relatives excluding more distantly related persons. The primary parentelic group includes the descendants of the deceased person, the second group is the deceased´s parents and their descendants and the third the deceased´s grandparents and their descendants. The great-grandparents of the deceased person are the limit of succession. If the legal heirs waive the inheritance or if there are no legal heirs at all, the inheritance goes to the state.
Literature#
H. Koziol and R. Welser, Grundriss des buergerlichen Rechts vol. 2, 91991.