Worthy to Inherit — Who May Succeed

Digne d'hériter — Qui peut succéder

Diy pou Eritye — Ki Moun Ki Ka Siksede

Source: Code Henry

Lesson Content

Articles 392–396 — Qualifications and Disqualifications for Inheritance

Not everyone is entitled to inherit. The Code Henry establishes both the minimum requirements for inheriting and the grounds on which a person may be excluded as unworthy — a concept that connects inheritance law to moral accountability.

Article 392 — You Must Exist

To inherit, you must exist at the moment the succession opens. Therefore, two categories are incapable of inheriting: those not yet conceived, and children born alive who cannot survive.

Article 393 — Grounds for Unworthiness

Three acts render a person unworthy to inherit:

Being convicted of killing or attempting to kill the deceased
Having brought a capital accusation against the deceased that was judged to be calumnious (false)
Being a major heir who, knowing of the deceased's murder, failed to report it to justice

Article 394 — Exemptions from the Duty to Report

The duty to report a murder does not apply to: the murderer's ascendants or descendants, in-laws at the same degrees, spouse, siblings, uncles or aunts, nephews or nieces. This exemption recognizes the impossible moral position of being forced to denounce a close family member.

Article 395 — Consequences of Unworthiness

An heir excluded for unworthiness who has already collected fruits or revenues from the succession must return them.

Article 396 — Children of the Unworthy

The children of an unworthy heir are not excluded for their parent's fault — provided they inherit on their own right, not through representation. However, the unworthy parent may not claim the usufruct that law normally grants parents over their children's property.

Why This Matters

These articles reveal a legal system that tied inheritance to moral conduct. Killing the person whose property you would inherit — or failing to report their murder — permanently disqualified you from the succession. But the Code was careful not to punish children for their parents' crimes, a principle that resonated deeply in a society where the sins of colonial fathers had been visited upon generations of enslaved children.

Articles 392–396 — Qualités requises et indignité successorale

Article 392 :

Pour succéder, il faut exister à l'instant de l'ouverture. Sont incapables : ceux non encore conçus et l'enfant né vivant mais ne pouvant vivre.

Article 393 :

Sont indignes de succéder : celui condamné pour meurtre ou tentative sur le défunt ; celui ayant porté une accusation capitale calomnieuse ; l'héritier majeur qui n'a pas dénoncé le meurtre du défunt.

Article 394 :

L'obligation de dénonciation ne s'applique pas aux ascendants, descendants, alliés, époux, frères, sœurs, oncles, tantes, neveux ou nièces du meurtrier.

Article 395 :

L'héritier exclu doit restituer les fruits perçus.

Article 396 :

Les enfants de l'indigne ne sont pas exclus pour la faute de leur père, s'ils succèdent de leur chef. Mais le père indigne ne peut réclamer l'usufruit sur les biens de ses enfants.

Atik 392–396 — Kalite ki Egzije ak Endiyite Siksesoral

Atik 392 :

Pou siksede, fòk ou egziste nan moman siksesyon an ouvri. Enkapab : sa ki poko konsevwa ak timoun ki fèt vivan men pa ka viv.

Atik 393 :

Endiy pou siksede : moun ki kondane pou touye oswa eseye touye defin an ; moun ki pote akizasyon kapital kalomnyez ; eritye majè ki pa denonse asasina defin an.

Atik 394 :

Obligasyon denonsyasyon pa aplike pou asan, desan, alye, konjwen, frè, sè, tonton, tant, neve oswa nyès asasen an.

Atik 395 :

Eritye ki eskli dwe remèt fwi li te pèsevwa.

Atik 396 :

Pitit moun ki endiy pa eskli pou fòt papa yo, si yo siksede pa pwòp dwa yo. Men papa ki endiy pa ka reklame izifui sou byen pitit li.

Quiz

1. Which of the following renders a person unworthy to inherit under Article 393? Lequel des éléments suivants rend une personne indigne de succéder selon l'article 393 ? Kilès nan sa ki annapre yo ki fè yon moun endiy pou eritye dapre Atik 393 ?

Being absent from the kingdom for more than five years Être absent du royaume pendant plus de cinq ans Absan nan wayòm nan pou plis pase senk an Being convicted of killing or attempting to kill the deceased Être condamné pour avoir donné ou tenté de donner la mort au défunt Kondane pou touye oswa eseye touye defin an Owing money to the deceased Devoir de l'argent au défunt Dwe lajan defin an Being under the age of twenty-one Avoir moins de vingt-et-un ans Gen mwens pase venteyen an

2. Under Article 396, what happens to the children of an unworthy heir? Selon l'article 396, qu'advient-il des enfants d'un héritier indigne ? Dapre Atik 396, ki sa k pase ak pitit yon eritye ki endiy ?

They are also excluded from the succession Ils sont également exclus de la succession Yo eskli tou nan siksesyon an They are not excluded for their parent's fault, if they inherit on their own right Ils ne sont pas exclus pour la faute de leur père, s'ils succèdent de leur chef Yo pa eskli pou fòt paran yo, si yo eritye pa pwòp dwa yo They inherit only half of what they would normally receive Ils n'héritent que de la moitié de ce qu'ils recevraient normalement Yo eritye sèlman mwatye sa yo ta nòmalman resevwa They must petition the King for special permission Ils doivent demander une permission spéciale au Roi Yo dwe mande Wa a pèmisyon espesyal

3. Why does Article 394 exempt close family members of a murderer from the duty to report? Pourquoi l'article 394 exempte-t-il les proches parents d'un meurtrier du devoir de dénonciation ? Poukisa Atik 394 egzante manm fanmi pwòch yon asasen de devwa denonsyasyon ?

Because family members cannot testify in court Parce que les membres de la famille ne peuvent pas témoigner en justice Paske manm fanmi pa ka temwaye nan tribinal Because it recognizes the impossible moral position of denouncing a close relative Parce qu'il reconnaît la position morale impossible de dénoncer un proche parent Paske li rekonèt pozisyon moral enposib pou denonse yon paran pwòch Because only the King can punish murderers Parce que seul le Roi peut punir les meurtriers Paske se sèlman Wa a ki ka pini asasen Because murder is not a crime under the Code Henry Parce que le meurtre n'est pas un crime sous le Code Henry Paske asasina pa yon krim anba Kòd Henry a

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