The former player’s death sparked a legal battle between her parents and her widower; understand what the law says in cases like this
Since the death of the former volleyball player Walewska Oliveira, the athlete’s parents are at odds with her widower, the entrepreneur Ricardo Alexandre Mendes. In addition to the disagreements and daily unpleasantness, the three face each other in court to resolve the division of the inheritance left by Walewska. In the meantime, Mendes even asked his in-laws for rent to live in the apartment left to him by his daughter.
After all, who has the right to inherit a person who has died and has no children? OR Earth I spoke to lawyers specializing in family law and inheritance law to understand what the law says.
When a childless person dies, his inheritance stops going to his descendants and goes to his ancestors. “The possibility that everything goes to the husband is if the deceased had neither descendants nor ascendants, that is, neither parents nor living children,” explains lawyer Larissa Muhana.
Larissa specifies that there is an order of succession provided for by law, divided as follows:
• If the person has children and is married, the inheritance must be divided between descendants and spouse;
• If you have no children and are married, the inheritance must be divided between your parents and your spouse;
• If you have no children or living parents and are married, the inheritance goes to your spouse;
• Last in line of succession are the brothers, in case of absence of all the previous ones;
• And if there are no collateral relatives (brother, uncle, cousin, nephew), then the inheritance goes to the state.
Lawyer Patrick Luiz Ambrósio adds that these other family members, who according to the law would not be entitled to inheritance, can become heirs if they are included by the person in his will.
How does the division between parents and widower happen?
The division of the inheritance between the parents and the spouse of the deceased will depend on the property regime under which the marriage was established. In the case of former player Walewska, she and Ricardo Mendes would have a partial community of property, which is the most common regime in Brazil.
«In this case the assets acquired after the marriage will be divided in two. 50% actually belonged to the deceased, so it goes to the estate. And 50% belonged to the surviving spouse, so it goes entirely to him. But no it goes like an inheritance, it goes like a sharecropping. It’s as if those possessions had always belonged to him,” explains Larissa Muhana.
Lawyer Patrick Luiz Ambrósio adds that, in this regime, the partner also disputes the assets that belonged to the spouse before the marriage. “The surviving spouse will not have the right to share private assets, but will be an heir in competition with his ascendants or descendants”, he specifies.
• Total community of goods: In this regime, the living spouse receives half of all assets left by the deceased, including those acquired before the marriage. The other half will have to be divided between him and the other heirs.
• Total separation of assets: the living spouse will be part of the inheritance, but will compete for it together with the other heirs.
• Stable union: according to Ambrósio, in cases of stable unions, the same rule applies as for the partial community of goods.…Read more by Rose
