Marriage and partnership law: Advice on matrimonial property regimes (participation in acquired property, community of property, separation of property) and drafting of marriage contractsSupport for cohabiting couples in the legal protection and drafting of cohabitation agreements.
Estate planning and organisation: Preparation of wills, inheritance contracts in co-operation with a notary's office.
Estate settlement: Assumption of tasks as executor or representative of communities of heirs; organisation of the distribution of legacies, dissolution of households, sale of real estate, management of securities and preparation of inheritance distributions.
Adult protection: Advice on pension issues and preparation of Precautionary orders
"The good follows the blood"
The succession always starts from the testator, not from a married couple. Although spouses have a legal claim to the inheritance, they do not belong to any parentel. In the 1st parentel are the direct descendants of the deceased as well as their descendants and so on.
In the 2nd parentel we are in the tribe of the mother and father of the deceased person, so here we have brother and sister, nieces and nephews and so on. In the 3rd parentel, the grandparents' tribe is represented, i.e. aunts and uncles of the deceased person including their descendants.
If there are parties entitled to inherit in the 1st parentel, this automatically excludes the next tribe. If the deceased person leaves no direct descendants, one searches in the 2nd parentel. If the parents are also deceased, however, one would first continue to follow the blood and thus the siblings or their descendants would be entitled to inherit. If no descendants are found in this tribe either, the 3rd parentel follows via the grandparents and their descendants.
If there is no will, the succession without legal heirs ends with the third party and the entire estate goes to the state, canton or, as a rule, to the municipality of residence.
You have the option of including your own children, parents and spouse in a so-called compulsory portion in your will. This allows you to bequeath a portion as you wish.
A summary of the compulsory parts and information on the change in the law as of 1.1.2023
you will find here.
We basically know three types of wills: the handwritten will, the public will and, in emergency situations, the oral will.
However, the most common and also simplest type is the handwritten will. If the deceased person does not leave a will, intestate succession takes effect by law. The following formal requirements apply to the respective will:
Handwritten will:
It is best to deposit the will in a safe place and also inform your relatives about it. We recommend here that the will be signed by a cantonal office such as the The inheritance office is responsible for the safekeeping of the documents.
Public Will:
The public will is notarised by a notary in the presence of two witnesses. The notary also confirms that the author is capable of judgement. The costs for the notarisation vary from canton to canton, but normally amount to a few hundred francs.
Oral Will:
The oral will is a so-called emergency will for situations in which one no longer has the possibility to write another will: For example, if one's life is in danger after an accident. In order for this will to be valid, two witnesses are needed who are not beneficiaries in the will and are not related to the author.
The witnesses must immediately report the last will and testament to an official body and certify it.
In order to provide for your loved ones in the best possible way, there are, on the one hand, the will and the variants of a Marriage or inheritance contract. By concluding a marriage and inheritance contract during their lifetime, married couples can make the best possible provision for themselves. A marriage contract can be used to stipulate that the surviving spouse receives the entire inheritance, i.e. everything that was earned jointly during the marriage. This instrument alone can reduce the share going to the estate and the surviving spouse is in a better financial position. However, be careful with children who are not joint: It must always be possible to pay out at least the compulsory portion.
An additional inheritance contract, which is validated by public notarisation and with the involvement of two witnesses, can benefit the surviving person even more. It can only be revoked or amended if all the persons involved are in agreement. An inheritance contract can be concluded between the testator and one or more persons. Such an agreement is usually drawn up if persons, such as spouses, wish to become irrevocable beneficiaries or if they voluntarily waive their compulsory portion. An inheritance contract can be used to prevent heirs with a protected compulsory portion from asserting claims that they waived at the time.
Laws that are still in force today were often written based on circumstances from many decades ago. Today, however, more than 40 % of all marriages are divorced or people live in cohabitation with joint and non-joint children.
Even after the revision, which will come into force on 1 January 2023, the law is tailored to traditional families: unmarried partners or stepchildren will still not benefit from the law.
Do you have a similar situation and do not know who legally inherits or would you like to draw up an overview so that you can take the appropriate steps?
It is not uncommon for the majority of the inherited assets to come from a Real estate comes from. It becomes particularly confusing when several compulsory portions of protected heirs have to be taken into account or the relationship in the family is no longer the best.
Legal succession organises the heirs into tribes: the first tribe includes the deceased's children and their descendants. If there are no descendants, the second tribe comes into play, consisting of the parents and their descendants (i.e. siblings of the deceased or their descendants). Only if no one is alive here either does the third line inherit, which includes the grandparents and their descendants. If there are no legal heirs, the estate goes to the canton or the municipality of residence.
Although spouses and registered partners are entitled to inherit, they do not belong to a parentel.
If a person dies in Switzerland without a will or contract of inheritance, the Swiss law automatically applies. Legal succession. This is based on the parentel order, i.e. the lineage of descendants, parents or grandparents. In addition, spouses and registered partners are entitled to a legally determined share. If there are no legal heirs, the entire estate goes to the state. Even if this order provides clarity, it often does not correspond to personal wishes. It therefore makes sense to organise your own estate planning in good time with a will or inheritance contract.
The compulsory portion under Swiss inheritance law is the share of the estate to which certain close relatives have a mandatory entitlement. Only descendants, spouses or registered partners are entitled to a compulsory portion. Their compulsory portion is half of their statutory inheritance share. The deceased person is free to dispose of the remainder of the estate - the so-called free share.
There are three types of wills in Switzerland.
The most important difference between a will and an inheritance contract under Swiss inheritance law lies in their binding nature. A will is a unilateral disposition and can be revoked or amended by the testator at any time. An inheritance contract, on the other hand, is a bilateral or multilateral contract that must be officially notarised. Amendments or cancellations are only possible if all parties to the contract agree.
A two-stage solution is ideal for optimum protection. By means of a marriage contract, it can be agreed that the surviving spouse receives the entire proposal or the entire inheritance, or the matrimonial property regime can even be changed. This means that less is included in the actual estate. In addition, descendants can be entitled to a compulsory portion by means of a will, or even favouritism can be agreed by inheritance contract. This combination of matrimonial property law and inheritance law instruments is the most effective way of providing comprehensive protection for the spouse.
No, a cohabiting partner has no claim to the estate under Swiss inheritance law without a will or contract of inheritance. This means that if an unmarried person dies, the cohabiting partner does not inherit, even if the relationship has existed for many years. If you want to protect your cohabiting partner, you must actively organise this - for example by making a will, an inheritance contract or by making gifts during your lifetime.
When a property is part of an estate, complex situations often arise. As a house or flat cannot simply be divided up, the question arises as to whether the property should be sold or taken over by an heir. Heirs who do not keep the house usually have to be paid out, which often involves taking out or increasing a mortgage. Tax aspects also play a role, as inheritance or property gains tax may be payable in many cantons when inheriting a house in Switzerland. In order to avoid disputes and financial burdens, it is advisable to make clear arrangements for the inheritance of real estate during your lifetime - for example by means of an inheritance contract, a will or a lifetime division.
