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Heir

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My father has passed away. The notary handling the estate has only provided me with a copy of the will and informs me that he does not have the original, which is held by another notary. Is this normal?

Yes. The original of a will is kept by the notary who has custody of it, meaning the one who received it and filed it among his official records (Article 1007 of the French Civil Code). The notary you have appointed to handle the estate therefore only has a copy.
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I just found out that my father passed away 12 years ago. We no longer had any contact due to a family disagreement. Can I claim my share in the estate after so many years?

In principle, you lose the status of heir if you have not opted within the period of 10 years from the opening of the succession, from the date of death. You are then deemed to renounce this succession (article 780 al. 1 and 2 of the Civil Code) However…
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I found out that all the heirs of my tenant who died 6 months ago have decided to renounce his estate. The apartment is still furnished with furniture from my former tenant. Can I get rid of it?

No. A landlord cannot himself recover the accommodation and get rid of the furniture of his deceased tenant. When there is no known heir and if the rental contract has ended, the owner must first obtain a court decision (article 1324 of the Code of Civil Procedure). The costs of…
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Both my grandparents died in a house fire. They were married without a contract. How will their estates be settled?

If two individuals die in the same event, and each was entitled to inherit from the other, as often occurs with spouses, each estate is settled according to the order of death (Art. 725-1 C. civ.). This order can be established by any means. If it is impossible to determine…
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