Dear visitors,
As an attorney, I have come a across a number of issues during my share of practice from which I would outline as the perfect loopholes of our imperfect laws.
Today I’d like to call your attention to one of them which I believe many of my colleagues have come across, as well as citizens who have had to deal with inherritance registration.
You probably know that there is no unified inherritance database in Armenia, which results in turning “inherritance relationship” subject into “artificial relationship” subject. This was inherritance is passed without the knowledge of the details of the last will document. What happens as a result of that?
As a result after finding out about the inherritance, stakeholder begins to dispute in court the inherritance certificate, where citizens are obliged to participate. And notaries only need to present one simple mediation on starting the case without their participation which is normally satisfied by courts. One more challange comes across: surviving court sessions and court expenditures.
Isn’t it time to make another step towards civilization and creation of unified inherritance database, where inherriatnce-related information will be inserted. Nevertheless, it is important to pay attention that in any case it is necessary to keep the confidentiality of the last will, i. e. Insert it without references to content.
And this database should be accessible for joining by any notary, in cases when death notification is receaved, when relatives are to find out the content of it. Thus, upon presenting the death registration, the relative will receive the content of the inherritance or the news of its absence. This system fully eliminates risks to secrecy of inherritance.
It is high time Armenia begins to think about joining the European Union’s Convention on the Establishment of a Scheme of Registration of Inherritance of 16.05.1972, thefirst article of which says: “Signatory States undertake to establish, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, a scheme of registration of inherritances, with a view to facilitating, after the death of the testator, the discovery of the existence of the inherritance”.
And this is not enough – citizens are forced to follow the rules of the notaries, who are happy to “yield” any inherritance case to their colleagues at the Kentron notary office on Baghramyan street. It seems like a monopoly that leads to all inherritance cases ending up at that notary office. I am glad to announce that according to RA Ministry of Justice decision of 11.09.2008, all notaries are authorized to deal with inherritance.
