Ent bonds between father, mother and children can be severely torn in the course of a lifetime. If parents are severely disappointed in their offspring, if sons or daughters turn away, there are often deep rifts in the family, quarrels, alienation, radio silence.
At the latest when the will is drawn up, the accounts are settled – and gladly disinherited. In Germany, however, it is not at all possible to leave unloved children with nothing in the estate, as Michael Henn, specialist lawyer for inheritance law in Stuttgart and Vice President of the German Association of Lawyers, Notaries and Tax Advisors for Inheritance and Family Law (DANSEF), explains.
They are always entitled to a compulsory portion. However, this can quickly become a financial burden for preferred siblings – even if that is exactly what the parents wanted least of all. Anyone who wants to disinherit children in their will should be aware: “What is perceived as fair does not necessarily have to be legally secure,” says an expert.