Lhen the opening of a succession, it happens that an heir finds that the part to which he is entitled (the “reserve”) has been reduced by a certain amount, corresponding to a gift (a “liberality”) that the deceased did to a third party. He then only has five years to undertake a “reduction action”. of this donation, which must not exceed the “available portion” which the deceased could have.
This relatively short period was imposed by the law of 23 June 2006 reforming successions and gifts. (article 13). It was previously thirty years, which beneficiaries considered to be excessively long. By reducing the time limit for heirs to act, the legislator intended to strengthen the legal security of donations.
In principle, all the heirs of a succession are subject to the same limitation period: if the deceased died before 1er January 2007, the date of entry into force of the law, their action for reduction can be carried out within thirty years. If he is dead afterwards, their action is subject to the five-year period.
An attack on the “reserve”
Things get complicated when the notary has to settle simultaneously two estates, that of the father and that of the mother, who died respectively before and after the 1er January 2007, as in the following case. In 1986, Mr. and Mrs. X, parents of Josette and Lionel, divorced, each taking a house, worth 300,000 francs. [78 162,46 euros]. In 1987, Mr. X decided to help his daughter: he sold her house to her for the sum of… 160,000 francs, or nearly half of what it was worth. In 2005, Mrs. X donated hers to Lionel.
When the parents disappeared on March 22, 2006 and January 24, 2012, fairness seemed more or less respected. Nevertheless, Josette believes that the 2005 donation undermines her reserve, especially since her brother’s land, which has become constructible, has seen its value increase. On April 8, 2015, she asked the Nantes (Loire-Atlantique) tribunal de grande instance to order the judicial division of her mother’s estate. His action is deemed inadmissible, because it was not preceded by an amicable process (as required article 1360 of the Code of Civil Procedure).
On November 14, 2019, Josette undertakes an action to reduce the donation from which her brother benefited. Lionel replies that she is out of time, since more than five years elapsed between her summons and the death of their mother, in 2012. However, under the terms of article 921 of the Civil Code, “ the limitation period for the action for reduction is set at five years from the opening of the succession… ”
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