The last will on paper: If the testator writes his will by hand, it is clear that it really came from him.
Image: dpa
Is a sports car good as compensation for the inheritance? Are changes to a will valid without a signature? Do heirs have to put up with everything? Explosive court rulings from inheritance law show what can go wrong after the last will.
Sfight for heritage is a popular subject that fills countless thrillers and novels. But even in real life, the last will often causes serious human and legal conflicts. A look at court files reveals oddities and abysses that no screenwriter could dream up. Here is a sample: A father offered his son a 100,000 euro sports car, the Nissan GTR X model.
There was another catch. After all, according to his father’s wishes, the 18-year-old son should only be allowed to get into the sports car if he had completed vocational training by the age of 25 – with top marks. Although everything was right in terms of horsepower – depending on the engine version, the bolide reaches a speed of a good 300 kilometers per hour – the case ended up before the Hamm Higher Regional Court, which decided in 2016. The judges judged the conditions imposed by the father to be immoral because they restricted the son’s life planning and professional freedom. The father’s justification that he only wanted to set an incentive for speedy training did not help.