INHERITANCE: JOINT PROPERTY OWNERSHIP TERMINATION MATTER BEFORE AN ITALIAN COURT

Which party must identify the inheritance assets and file said information with the Court?

In Italy one of the crucial aspects in successions, after the death of the owner of the property in question, is tracing the assets making up the inheritance, defined in Italian technical terms as the ‘massa ereditaria’ (inheritance mass).  If one is among the beneficiaries of the inheritance, either by legitimate succession or named in the will for a legacy, then to establish the quota due, the entire property of the deceased owner must be identified, including tangible and intangible assets, such as bank accounts, life insurance policies, investment funds, as well as real estate and any shares in companies.

It must be remembered that the ‘inheritance mass’ comprises all active and passive portions of the deceased’s estate, so also all debts must be identified as they must be subtracted from the assets.

The scenario is more complicated if there is dissent among the heirs about the correct division of the property and so the precise quotas due to each. In these cases it is essential to acquire a full knowledge of the entire inheritance, so that the relative quotas can be apportioned. It is the judge that will ultimately decide, but on the basis of the complete information, and it is up to the party who takes out the case to provide the judge with this complete picture.

If it is particularly difficult to identify all the assets and so gain a complete picture of the ‘inheritance mass’, is it possible to ask the Technical Appraiser nominated by the Judge to complete or integrate the picture?

The answer to this question is no.

The Court-appointed Surveyor (CTU) cannot be asked to identify the assets making up the inheritance because as the Supreme Court  (‘Corte di Cassazione’) has underlined several times, the surveyor’s role is to aid the judge to assess the value of those elements individuated. The consultancy does not take over the party’s burden of proof and demonstration of the assets to be shared out, and the case will not be admitted should the party attempt to delegate this burden on the surveyor (Cass. Civ. Order 23 April 2018 n. 9979).

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