To understand the issues of the family pact, we must first return to the notions of hereditary reserve and available portion. The first concerns reserved heirs.
In the vast majority of cases, these are children, who cannot, under French law, be disinherited, but on the contrary must receive a minimum share in their parents' estate.
This reserve varies depending on the number of children. In the presence of one child, it corresponds to half of the assets, two-thirds for two children and three-quarters if there are three or more children.
Once the hereditary reserve has been removed from the inheritance, the remainder, the available portion, can be used by each parent as they see fit.
Too large a portion?
However, a problem arises: when preparing your inheritance, how can you evaluate the available portion in such a way that it does not encroach on the hereditary reserve?
Since in fact, if the value of a property given or bequeathed to a person exceeds this portion, the reserved heirs have every right to ask for compensation so that their reserve is reconstituted.
This operation has a somewhat barbaric name: action to reduce excessive donations. Since 1is January 2007, it is possible to eliminate this problem thanks to the family pact.
A very engaging act
The family pact (also called inheritance pact) is a notarized document authorizing the heirs to renounce their reduction action.
Through this waiver, the donor can more freely dispose of his property in favor of the people of his choice, without fearing that his decision will be called into question at the time of inheritance.
The pact can cover all or part of the heritage without reconsidering the status of the heirs.
It must be contractualized before two notaries, because it is very binding and can only be revoked in certain cases, for example if one of the heirs finds himself in a state of need which did not exist at the time of signing the pact. .
Specific interests
The family pact must therefore be handled with care, but it is of interest in certain very specific cases.
Let's imagine the case of the transfer of a business for which none of the heirs has an intention to take over.
Here, the act of renunciation can promote its future as long as all the heirs agree on the identity of the buyer.
It can also make it possible to favor a person in a precarious situation, benefit a half-brother or half-sister within a blended family, or even, for an heir, their own children.
Because the pact, if it is called “family” concerns each heir specifically.
