Consultancy Services We Offer

- diagnose business, accounting and management problems
- draft blueprint to ensure family wealth survives founder's mortality
- handle property transfers and suggest the most tax-efficient ways
- set up corporations, foundations, and trusts to take care of properties
- assist in structuring scholarship and endowment
- come up with marital property settlement agreement
- plan estate and draft will
- settle inheritance partition


Conflicting Wills of Spouses

Someone asked me, "I have a friend who...  

was orphaned when his parents both passed away in a tragic accident. Both parents left individual wills pertaining to who will benefit from their fortune. 

Unfortunately, both wills conflict with each other.


The father's will stated that his child would receive their entire fortune. 
The mother's will on the other hand splits the family's fortune in half: one half to her child, while the other half goes a charitable organization. 


Both wills were written at the exact same day.
To whom does the family's fortune go?


My answer is there is no conflict. Joint will is prohibited in the Philippines. Therefore the wills of the parents must be treated separately. Since they both died in the same accident, the presumption is they both died at the same time. There is no succession of a surviving spouse anymore.

The procedure is for the family fortunes to first be divided based on CPG or ACP. Then the share shall be delivered to each estate of the spouses. The estate of the father will go to his only child in accordance with his will. The estate of the mother will be divided based half for the child and the other half for the charitable organization nominated by the mother.

A party cannot will away what is not his or hers. Only her share of the conjugal assets or the absolute community of property is covered by the will made.

/RH

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