The effects of the statute of limitations of the inheritance petition related to the inheritance right of the unrecognized child

Abstract

Chapter VII of Book V, composed of articles 1824 to 1828, was added to the current Civil Code as a way of filling the gap in the repealed legislation, the Brazilian Civil Code of 2002 expressly provided for the inheritance petition. Through this amendment, the legislator favored the recognition of the inheritance right of the deprived heir and, consequently, the restitution of the inheritance, in whole or in part, of whoever has it as an heir or without title. However, despite this important change in the Codex, the legislator was silent as to the statute of limitations to be adopted for proposing it. Thus, it was up to the STF to position itself on the subject, editing such an understanding through Precedent 149. This lengthy history of the regulation of such an important succession institute proves the difficulty that the legislator has in addressing all the intricacies of succession relationships. Even if legislative changes are proposed, the omissions need to be analyzed and corrected by the Federal Supreme Court, a fact that generates doctrinal understandings and discussions that certainly improve the legislation and its application.