Also known as: hereditas · haereditates · inheritance · hereditament
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An estate or inheritance that passes by operation of law to heirs upon the death of the owner.
Harold Hunt persuaded his elderly aunt to execute a new will excluding his cousin Hugo Hart by falsely claiming Hugo had stolen family funds. After the aunt died, Hugo discovered the deception and sued Harold for the value of the haereditas he would have received under the prior will. The court held Harold liable because his fraud intentionally prevented Hugo from receiving the inheritance he otherwise would have obtained.
Hector Huerta and his sister Harper Hill both claimed shares of their uncle's intestate estate. Although Hector shared only one grandparent with the decedent while Harper shared two, the court awarded them equal shares of the haereditas because the statute directs that an heir inherits without regard to how many common ancestors in the same generation the heir shares with the decedent.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Heidi Henderson gave birth to a son out of wedlock and died intestate. The son sought to inherit the haereditas but the state required that paternity be established during the father's lifetime. The court upheld the denial of the claim because the requirement substantially relates to the state's interest in orderly disposition of property by reducing fraud and uncertainty in inheritance claims.
Hana Huang, as personal representative, filed a closing statement asserting that she had paid all claims, taxes, and expenses and distributed the remaining assets of the haereditas to the entitled persons. Because the statement complied with the statutory requirements, the court approved closure of the estate and terminated her appointment one year later.
Highland Farms sought to deny inheritance rights to a nonmarital child of a deceased partner. The court applied intermediate scrutiny and struck down the absolute bar on the child's claim to the haereditas because the classification based on birth status was not substantially related to an important governmental interest in preventing fraudulent claims.
Horizon Dynamics, a student organization, was denied access to university funds available to other groups because its publication addressed religious topics. The court held that once the university created a limited public forum for student speech, it could not exclude groups based on the religious viewpoint of their message concerning the haereditas of ideas.
Liability arises when a person intentionally uses fraud, duress, or other tortious means to prevent another from receiving an inheritance or gift from a third person that the other would otherwise have received. The injured party may recover the value of the lost inheritance or gift.
Supporting sources
No. Under the Uniform Probate Code, an heir inherits without regard to how many common ancestors in the same generation the heir shares with the decedent. Shares are determined by degree of relationship, not by counting shared ancestors.
Supporting sources
Yes. A state may impose this requirement because it is substantially related to the important governmental interest in the orderly and efficient disposition of property at death by reducing fraud and uncertainty in inheritance claims.
Supporting sources
The statement must confirm that all presented claims, administrative expenses, and taxes have been paid or otherwise disposed of, that assets have been distributed to entitled persons, and that any remaining undischarged claims are either subject to distributee agreement or covered by other arrangements.
Supporting sources
…only the potentiality of life. Similarly, unborn children have been recognized as acquiring rights or interests by way of inheritance or other devolution of property, and have been represented by guardians ad litem. [^maj-66] Perfection of the interests involved, again, has generally been contingent upon live birth. In…