Ignorance of the will may be a valid reason for missing the deadline to accept inheritance – court
The Kherson Court of Appeal reviewed the case regarding the request to determine an additional period for submitting an application to accept the inheritance.
The plaintiff requested an extension to accept the inheritance after the death of her stepfather. She stated that she was unaware of the existence of a will made in her name because the deceased died in a temporarily occupied territory, and the documents concerning the inherited property were only handed over to her in the fall of 2025. After that, she contacted a notary but found out that the six-month period for accepting the inheritance had been missed.
The court of first instance denied the claim, considering that the plaintiff did not prove the existence of valid reasons for missing the deadline.
The appellate court applied the provisions of the Civil Code of Ukraine regarding inheritance. According to part three of Article 1272 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, the court may grant the heir an additional period to accept the inheritance if the deadline was missed for a valid reason.
The appellate court also referred to the norms of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine, stating that the court decision must be lawful and reasoned, and the court is obliged to fully and comprehensively clarify the circumstances of the case, evaluate the evidence in its entirety, and verify the legality of the first instance decision within the arguments of the appeal.
In its ruling, the appellate court also took into account the current legal conclusions of the Supreme Court regarding the application of part three of Article 1272 of the Civil Code of Ukraine. In particular, the court referred to the Supreme Court rulings dated December 30, 2024, in case No. 527/1229/24 and July 31, 2024, in case No. 127/2149/21.
A key factor in resolving the case was the legal position of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court, set out in the ruling dated June 26, 2024, in case No. 686/5757/23. The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court noted that an heir’s ignorance of the existence of a will may be recognized as a valid reason for missing the deadline to accept the inheritance; however, such a circumstance must be assessed considering the specific circumstances of the case, the principle of testamentary freedom, legal certainty, and proportionality of interference with the rights of other heirs.
The panel of judges established that the plaintiff was not a statutory heir after the death of her stepfather, did not live with him as one family at the time of the inheritance opening, knew about the existence of daughters of the deceased – heirs of the first order, but did not know about the existence of a will in her name. Moreover, the deceased lived and died in a temporarily occupied territory where the inherited property is also located, which complicated access to documents and the possibility to clarify the circumstances of inheritance.
The appellate court also requested information regarding the inheritance case and established that after the death of the deceased, no inheritance case was opened, and heirs who would accept the inheritance were absent.
Considering these circumstances, as well as the last will of the deceased expressed in the will, the court concluded that there were objective, insurmountable, and significant reasons to grant the plaintiff an additional period to accept the inheritance.
The Kherson Court of Appeal in case No. 954/3490/25 by the ruling dated June 9, 2026, canceled the default decision of the Novovorontsovka District Court of Kherson region dated April 15, 2026, and adopted a new one – to satisfy the claim. The plaintiff was granted an additional period of three months from the date the court decision enters into legal force to submit an application to accept the inheritance.
Subscribe to our Telegram channel t.me/sudua and to Google News SUD.UA, as well as to our VIBER and WhatsApp, our page on Facebook and on Instagram to stay informed about the most important events.
