The Legislative Yuan amended the inheritance rights regulations. Experts recommend that remarried people make a will in advance to prevent inheritance disputes.

Modern people have a high chance of remarriage, and the distribution of property after birth is even more important. (File photo)

The special inheritance rights of brothers and sisters derived from unmarried and unborn children were formally revised and approved in the Legislative Yuan on the third reading. In the future, the inheritance rights of brothers and sisters can be passed on to anyone through a valid will, and there is no need to consider the issue of special inheritance. However, in the absence of a valid will, inheritance rights still exist, and brothers and sisters still have inheritance rights, which further highlights the importance of a valid will.

In addition, experts also remind that if there is a divorce and remarriage, a valid will is also needed to avoid the crisis of a family inheritance dispute.

Zheng Wenzai, director of the Zhengye Land Politicians United Office, said that there was a famous case recently where the father had two marriages. The first marriage had a boy and a girl, and the second marriage did not produce children. The father passed away a few days ago, and his spouse and the boy and girl born to his previous wife became the legal heirs.

But here comes the problem. My father’s inheritance includes the land in the south inherited from the family, and the houses bought during the first and second marriages. After the divorce, the spouse from the first marriage no longer has the right to inherit, so how should these inheritances be distributed? Among them, the son and daughter believe that the ancestral property inherited from the father should not be "dissipated", which has become the biggest controversy in the inheritance.

Fortunately, before his death, my father entrusted us to make a notarized will in advance, which clearly stated that the ancestral property in his name and the house acquired from the first and second marriages were inherited equally by the heirs with 1/3 share. According to this notarized will, the inheritance registration of the real estate was completed.

Zheng Wenzai said that if his father had not established this notarized will, this case might have become a litigation case if the heirs insisted on their own opinions. This case also highlights the importance of a valid will.

According to statistics from the Ministry of the Interior, Taiwan's divorce rate ranks second in Asia, with about 52,000 to 53,000 couples divorcing every year. The resulting complexity of inheritance is definitely more troublesome than imagined. Zheng Wenzai said that in this case, when my father was still alive, there was a bridge to communicate with each other. When my father passed away, the bridge was broken, and the original family became two families. Not only were they not related by blood, but they also had to distribute the father's inheritance. This requires a high degree of wisdom.

In the reality of high divorce rates, first marriage, second marriage or even third marriage, when inheritance occurs, how should the ancestral property, first marriage property, second marriage property or third marriage property be distributed? When there is no blood relationship between the heirs, how do sons and daughters face their "little mother"? An effective will is a good way to avoid family disputes.

Zheng Wenzai reminded people who have remarried to remember to make a valid will before their death and properly plan their property to avoid property disputes between the surviving spouse and children.