Louisiana Civil Code

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CHAPTER 3 - OF THE RIGHTS OF THE STATE

Art. 902. In default of blood, adopted relations, or a spouse not judicially separated, the estate of the deceased belongs to the state. [Acts 1981, No. 919, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1982]

Arts. 903-933. [Repealed. Acts 1981, No. 919, 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1982]

 

CHAPTER 4 - COMMENCEMENT OF SUCCESSION

Art. 934. Succession occurs at the death of a person. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 935. Immediately at the death of the decedent, universal successors acquire ownership of the estate and particular successors acquire ownership of the things bequeathed to them.

Prior to the qualification of a succession representative only a universal successor may represent the decedent with respect to the heritable rights and obligations of the decedent. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 936. The possession of the decedent is transferred to his successors, whether testate or intestate, and if testate, whether particular, general, or universal legatees.

A universal successor continues the possession of the decedent with all its advantages and defects, and with no alteration in the nature of the possession.

A particular successor may commence a new possession for purposes of acquisitive prescription. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 937. The rights of a successor are transmitted to his own successors at his death, whether or not he accepted the rights, and whether or not he knew that the rights accrued to him. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 938. A. Prior to the qualification of a succession representative, a successor may exercise rights of ownership with respect to his interests in a thing of the estate as well as his interest in the estate as a whole.

B. If a successor exercises his rights of ownership after the qualification of a succession representative, the effect of that exercise is subordinate to the administration of the estate. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 556, §1, eff. June 22, 2001]

 

CHAPTER 5 - LOSS OF SUCCESSION RIGHTS

Art. 939. A successor must exist at the death of the decedent. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 940. An unborn child conceived at the death of the decedent and thereafter born alive shall be considered to exist at the death of the decedent. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 941. A successor shall be declared unworthy if he is convicted of a crime involving the intentional killing, or attempted killing, of the decedent or is judicially determined to have participated in the intentional, unjustified killing, or attempted killing, of the decedent. An action to declare a successor unworthy shall be brought in the succession proceedings of the decedent.

An executive pardon or pardon by operation of law does not affect the unworthiness of a successor. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 942. A. An action to declare a successor unworthy may be brought only by a person who would succeed in place of or in concurrence with the successor to be declared unworthy, or by one who claims through such a person.

B. When a person who may bring the action is a minor or an interdict, the court, on its own motion, or on the motion of any family member, may appoint an attorney to represent the minor or interdict for purposes of investigating and pursuing an action to declare a successor unworthy. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 824, §1]

Art. 943. A successor shall not be declared unworthy if he proves reconciliation with or forgiveness by the decedent. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 944. An action to declare a successor unworthy is subject to a liberative prescription of five years from the death of the decedent as to intestate successors and five years from the probate of the will as to testate successors. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 945. A judicial declaration that a person is unworthy has the following consequences:

(1) The successor is deprived of his right to the succession to which he had been called.

(2) If the successor has possession of any property of the decedent, he must return it, along with all fruits and products he has derived from it. He must also account for an impairment in value caused by his encumbering it or failing to preserve it as a prudent administrator.

(3) If the successor no longer has possession because of a transfer or other loss of possession due to his fault, he must account for the value of the property at the time of the transfer or other loss of possession, along with all fruits and products he has derived from it.

He must also account for any impairment in value caused by his encumbering the property or failing to preserve it as a prudent administrator before he lost possession.

(4) If the successor has alienated, encumbered, or leased the property by onerous title, and there is no fraud on the part of the other party, the validity of the transaction is not affected by the declaration of unworthiness. But if he has donated the property and it remains in the hands of the donee or the donee's successors by gratuitous title, the donation may be annulled.

(5) The successor shall not serve as an executor, trustee, attorney or other fiduciary pursuant to a designation as such in the testament or any codicils thereto. Neither shall he serve as administrator, attorney, or other fiduciary in an intestate succession. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999]

Art. 946. A. If the decedent died intestate, when a successor is declared unworthy his succession rights devolve as if he had predeceased the decedent; but if the decedent died testate, then the succession rights devolve in accordance with the provisions for testamentary accretion as if the unworthy successor had predeceased the testator.

B. When the succession rights devolve upon a child of the successor who is declared unworthy, the unworthy successor and the other parent of the child cannot claim a legal usufruct upon the property inherited by their child. [Acts 1997, No. 1421, §1, eff. July 1, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 824, §1]

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