ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif

English translation: heir ... having accepted (their inheritance) under benefit of inventory

14:28 Sep 14, 2022

French to English translations [PRO]
Law/Patents - Law (general)

French term or phrase: ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif

A disagreement between heirs over the settlement of an estate which has ended with a court case.

This is from Civil Code 843 para. 1:

"tout héritier, même ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif, venant à une succession, doit rapporter à ses cohéritiers tout ce qu’il a reçu du défunt, par donations entre vifs, directement ou indirectement"

I find this translation online (translated by Georges ROUHETTE, Professor of Law, with the assistance of Dr Anne ROUHETTE-BERTON, Assistant Professor of English) :
"Every heir, even beneficiary, coming into a succession, shall return to his coheirs everything he has received from the deceased, by gift inter vivos, directly or indirectly;"

"Even beneficiary"? Can this really be a credible translation for "même ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif"? Can anyone either explain why it might be? Or offer an alternative translation?

Mpoma KudoZ activity Questions: 1027 (4 open) (91 closed without grading) Answers: 385 United Kingdom
Local time: 10:20

English translation:heir ... having accepted (their inheritance) under benefit of inventory

Explanation:
there is an implied part, left out for the usual reason - being blindingly obvious for those familiar with the subject matter:

héritier ... ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif net

"tout héritier, même ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif, venant à une succession, doit rapporter à ses cohéritiers tout ce qu’il a reçu du défunt, par donations entre vifs, directement ou indirectement"
=
every heir, even those who have accepted (their inheritance) under benefit of inventory, ... , must / is under the obligation ....

No need for "descriptive translations" - there is a perfectly good translation in the IATE - no reason not to use it.

If it's in the IATE, the target audience should know what it's supposed to mean.

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Note added at 2 days 21 hrs (2022-09-17 12:12:31 GMT) Post-grading
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You have to see this concept in context, i.e. within the timeline of events after someone's death.

A potential heir can be put in the position of having to "accept to inherit" BEFORE anyone knows for sure WHAT is there to be inherited. What looks like a substantial estate might be reduced to "negative value / only debts" once all creditors make themselves known.

So being able to declare "I accept to inherit, but ONLY if there a positive net value to the estate" (= accepter à concurrence de l’actif net) is definitely a "benefit" for the heir not risking to blindly accept nothing but debts.

IOW there is a sound logic behind "under benefit of inventory" as translation for "à concurrence de"

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Note added at 3 days 24 mins (2022-09-17 14:52:16 GMT) Post-grading
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Les options successorales qui s’offrent à l’héritier
La loi a donc prévu trois options successorales :

l'acceptation pure et simple,
l'acceptation à concurrence de l'actif net (anciennement « sous bénéfice d'inventaire »)
la renonciation.

https://www.heritage-succession.com/article-acceptation-a-co...

Pourquoi et comment accepter un héritage à concurrence de l'actif net ou sous bénéfice d'inventaire. Comment choisir entre l'acceptation pure et simple d'une succession et l'acceptation sous réserve d'inventaire. Délais et conséquences des options.

https://droit-finances.commentcamarche.com/patrimoine/guide-...

Selected response from:

Daryo
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:20

Grading comment

Thanks, in the end I think I used this. Quite a weird expression... nothing new there. I assume you're also right about the omission of "net", though the other possibility is substandard drafting.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

after accepting no debts greater than the estate benefits

Francois Boye

having accepted (their inheritance/ 'an assent') to the extent of the assets (only)

Adrian MM.

4 -2

heir ... having accepted (their inheritance) under benefit of inventory

Daryo

Summary of reference entries provided

Explanation on French government website

Peter Shortall

Discussion entries: 3

Answers

3 hrs confidence:

having accepted (their inheritance/ 'an assent') to the extent of the assets (only)

Explanation:
> understood IMO : 'with benefit of inventory', so up to the net value of the assets available and with no hit for any liabilities that are, effectively, disclaimed: www.proz.com/kudoz/french-to-english/law-general/5949386-de...

I - with the 'benefit' of working with professionally negligent Probate Solicitors in the City of London ('forgot to take the new Will round to the dying testator, did we and cost that would-be student beneficiary GBP 1 million?') - will work my way backwards to the other linked 'hotch-pottable' etc. questions.

BTW, héritier can be a person entitled, especially on intestacy. Cut to the UK Administration of Estates Act (AEA) 1925. Assen or probate conveyance is to such person who thereby receives the inheritance or rightful portion.

Example sentence(s):

s. 35 (3) AEA 1925 Nothing in this section affects the right of a *person entitled* to the charge to obtain payment or satisfaction thereof either out of the other assets of the deceased or otherwise.
Assent : The act, by the personal representative of a deceased person's estate, of transferring a legacy, or all or part of the residuary estate, to a beneficiary.

Reference: http://www.proz.com/kudoz/french-to-english/law-general/3338...
Reference: http://www.proz.com/kudoz/french-to-spanish/law-general/2059...

Adrian MM.
Austria
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 359

1 day 2 hrs confidence:

after accepting no debts greater than the estate benefits

Explanation:
Les héritiers ne sont tenus des dettes de la succession que dans la limite de l'actif successoral. Ils ne peuvent donc pas hériter de plus de dettes que de bénéfices. Cette disposition est réglée par les articles 793 à 810 du Code civil.

L'acceptation à concurrence de l'actif net empêche toute renonciation à la succession1.

L'acceptation doit être faite devant un Tribunal de grande instance2.

Source: Wikipedia

Francois Boye
United States
Local time: 05:20
Native speaker of:

French
PRO pts in category: 104

1 day 22 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): -2

héritier ... ayant accepté à concurrence de l’actif

heir ... having accepted (their inheritance) under benefit of inventory

Daryo
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:20
Native speaker of:

Serbian,

French
PRO pts in category: 196

Grading comment

Thanks, in the end I think I used this. Quite a weird expression... nothing new there. I assume you're also right about the omission of "net", though the other possibility is substandard drafting.

Reference comments

9 hrs peer agreement (net): +1

Reference: Explanation on French government website

Reference information:
Most examples of the phrase I can find - including this one from a French government website - add the word net after l'actif. This explanation tallies with Adrian's interpretation:

Acceptation à concurrence de l'actif net

L'acceptation à concurrence de l'actif net signifie que vous ne payez pas les dettes qui dépassent la valeur des biens du défunt.

Vous recevez votre part d'héritage sans avoir à payer les dettes qui dépasseraient la valeur de l'héritage. Vos biens personnels sont donc protégés.
https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F1199

même ayant accepté = even if (s)he has accepted

See also this explanation, which gives some useful information about an heir's options as to whether to accept an inheritance (since it can include liabilities/debts as well as assets):

L’OPTION SUCCESSORALE : L’ACCEPTATION A CONCURRENCE DE L’ACTIF NET

L’article 768 du Code Civil accorde à l’héritier une option entre trois partis : soit accepter purement et simplement la succession, soit renoncer à la succession, soit accepter à concurrence de l’actif net.

La décision d’opter pour l’acceptation ou la renonciation dépendra de la consistance de l’actif et du passif successoral. Cependant dans certains cas, il n’est pas aisé de savoir avec exactitude si la succession sera bénéficiaire ou déficitaire car l’étendue des engagements du défunt n’est pas aisément déterminable. Dans cette hypothèse, l’acceptation à concurrence de l’actif net sera l’option pour l’héritier et permettra d’éviter la confusion de ses biens personnels avec ceux de la succession. Il ne s’agit pas d’une option conditionnelle. Il s’agit d’une véritable acceptation qui confirme le successible dans sa qualité d’héritier.
https://chambre-gironde.notaires.fr/2021/07/26/loption-succe...

Peter Shortall
United Kingdom
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 16

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