The notary draws up deeds of certification of succession, documents which, once registered in the Succession Register, have the effect of a final court decision declaring the acquisition of inheritance. The notary may draw up a deed of certification of statutory succession or one based on a will, whether made in the form of a notarial deed or in written form. The notary cannot draw up a deed of certification of succession in the case of special wills – oral, travel or military wills.
Importantly, however, for the notary to be able to draw up a deed of certification of succession, all potential heirs (both those named in the will and those whose right to the inheritance arises from statute) must be in agreement with one another. Otherwise, the heirs are left only with the other form of confirming the acquisition of inheritance – through court proceedings.
Succession protocol
The drawing up of a deed of certification of succession is preceded by the preparation of a succession protocol. The details of this process and all the formal requirements for these documents are set out in the Act on the Notarial Profession – Articles 95c and 95f. The following are attached to the succession protocol: an abridged copy of the deceased’s death certificate, copies of the civil status records of the persons entitled to inherit by statute, the draft succession protocol and protocols containing declarations of consent to the drawing up of the succession protocol in accordance with its draft, if any were prepared, as well as other documents that may affect the determination of rights to the inheritance.