The Parental System in Turkish Inheritance Law

In Turkish law, the parental system is adopted to determine the heirship of blood relatives. This system is based on lineage. In this context, a “parentel” (zümre) refers to a specific head of the parental group (stipes) and all of their descendants. Since inheritance is triggered by the death of the deceased (legator), the parental groups are determined starting from the deceased. The head of the parental group is also included in the group itself.

I. The Parentals

The legislator determines who will be an heir and their respective inheritance shares within the parental system. There are three parental groups in our legal system:

• First Parental Group: Consists of the descendants (altsoy) of the deceased. In this group, the deceased is technically the head, but since they have passed away, their heirship is out of the question. Therefore, there is no functional head in the first group. Heirs include children, grandchildren, and adopted children.
• Second Parental Group: Consists of the deceased’s parents and their common or non-common children (e.g., parents, siblings, and nieces/nephews).
• Third Parental Group: Consists of the grandparents and their descendants (e.g., uncles, aunts, and their children).

The surviving spouse inherits alongside all three parental groups. The governing principle is that the degree closest to the deceased inherits first.

II. Principles Governing the Parental System

There are five fundamental principles:

1. Priority Between Parentals: The first parental group inherits first. If no heirs exist in the first, the second group inherits, followed by the third. If no legal heirs exist, no testamentary disposition is made, and there is no spouse, the estate passes to the State.
2. Priority Within a Parental Group: An heir in a higher rank prevents the heirship of those in the rank below. For example, children of the deceased inherit before the grandchildren.
3. Principle of Equality: The estate is divided equally among the “heads of roots” (kök başları) in the first, second, and third parental groups.
4. Principle of Representation (Succession): If the head of a parental group or root predeceased the deceased, or is disqualified, or has renounced the inheritance, their descendants take their place.
5. Principle of Accretion (Horizontal Expansion): If an heir’s right to inherit is terminated and they have no descendants, their share is distributed among the other co-heirs as if that heir never existed.

III. Special Cases in the Parental System

1. Double Consanguinity

An heir may be linked to the deceased through two different lines within a parental group. In this case, the heir receives separate shares from each line.

2. Half-Blood Relatives

Half-blood kinship occurs when only the father or only the mother is common. HaIf-blood relatives only receive a share from the common parental head.

Example: If M dies without descendants, leaving a half-sibling S (common mother) and a full-sibling L (common mother and father), the estate is split between the mother’s and father’s lines. S receives 1/4 from the mother’s line, while L receives 1/4 from the mother’s line plus 1/2 (the entire father’s line), totaling 3/4 (or 6/8 vs 2/8).

3. Children Born Out of Wedlock

On the maternal side, a child born out of wedlock is a legal heir just like a child born within a marriage. On the paternal side, for equality to apply, the father must recognize the child or paternity must be established by a court decree.

4. Heirship of the Adopted Child

The adopted child is a legal heir in the first parental group of the adopter, with the same share as biological children. However, while the adopted child inherits from the adopter, the adopter cannot inherit from the adopted child.

IV. Legal Heirship of the State

If the deceased has no spouse, no legal heirs in any parental group, and no appointed heirs, the estate passes to the State. The State’s liability for the debts of the estate is limited to the value of the assets received.

V. Heirship of the Surviving Spouse

For the spouse to inherit, a valid marriage must exist at the time of death. Fiancees or de facto partners do not have legal inheritance rights.

1. Effect of Divorce

Once a divorce decree becomes final, spouses cannot inherit from each other. If a spouse dies during a pending divorce case, the heirs of the deceased may continue the lawsuit. If the surviving spouse’s fault is proven, they lose their inheritance rights.

2. Void and Voidable Marriages

In cases of absolute nullity (e.g., existing marriage, lack of mental capacity, or prohibited degrees of kinship), interested parties may file for nullity even after death. In cases of relative nullity (e.g., error, fraud, duress), a lawsuit cannot be initiated after death, but an existing one may be continued.

3. Legal Inheritance Share of the Spouse

The share varies depending on which parental group they inherit with:

• With the First Parental Group: The spouse receives 1/4
• With the Second Parental Group: The spouse receives 1/2
• With the Third Parental Group: The spouse receives 3/4
• Note: In the third parental group, the share only passes to the children of grandparents. If only the grandchildren of grandparents remain, the entire estate goes to the surviving spouse.