LA Bar Wills Trusts and Estates 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under Louisiana law, which persons qualify as forced heirs?
- Any child of the decedent regardless of age
- Children under 24 years old and children of any age who are permanently incapacitated (Correct answer)
- Spouses and children equally
- Children under 18 years of age only
Correct answer: Children under 24 years old and children of any age who are permanently incapacitated
Louisiana forced heirship applies to children under 24 at the parent's death and to children of any age who are permanently incapacitated.
Question 2: What fraction of the estate constitutes the legitime when a decedent leaves exactly one forced heir?
- One-half
- One-fourth (Correct answer)
- One-third
- Three-fourths
Correct answer: One-fourth
The legitime for one forced heir is one-fourth of the decedent's estate under Louisiana Civil Code Article 1495.
Question 3: When a decedent leaves two or more forced heirs, what is the total legitime?
- One-third of the estate
- One-fourth of the estate
- One-half of the estate (Correct answer)
- Two-thirds of the estate
Correct answer: One-half of the estate
When there are two or more forced heirs, the collective legitime is one-half of the estate.
Question 4: Which of the following is a recognized 'just cause' for disinheritance of a forced heir under Louisiana law?
- The child married without the testator's consent
- The child struck or attempted to strike the testator (Correct answer)
- The child chose a different profession than the testator desired
- The child was absent from the testator's deathbed
Correct answer: The child struck or attempted to strike the testator
Striking or attempting to strike a parent is one of the enumerated just causes for disinheritance under Louisiana Civil Code Article 1621.
Question 5: When donations exceed the disposable portion and impinge on the legitime, which category of donation is reduced first?
- Inter vivos donations, from oldest to most recent
- Testamentary dispositions (donations mortis causa) (Correct answer)
- All donations are reduced proportionally at the same time
- The donation with the highest monetary value is reduced first
Correct answer: Testamentary dispositions (donations mortis causa)
Under Louisiana law, testamentary dispositions (donations mortis causa) are reduced before inter vivos donations when the legitime is impinged upon.
Question 6: A testator has two forced heirs but wishes to leave the maximum amount to a charity. What is the most the testator can donate to the charity?
- Nothing — the entire estate must go to forced heirs when there are two or more
- One-quarter of the estate
- One-half of the estate (Correct answer)
- Three-quarters of the estate
Correct answer: One-half of the estate
With two or more forced heirs the legitime is one-half, leaving one-half as the freely disposable portion available for charitable donation.
Question 7: In Louisiana succession law, 'collation' by a forced heir refers to:
- The heir's right to reject the succession without personal liability
- Returning gifts received from the decedent to the hereditary mass before computing shares (Correct answer)
- The court's calculation of the total estate value for tax purposes
- Combining community and separate property for purposes of forced heir distribution
Correct answer: Returning gifts received from the decedent to the hereditary mass before computing shares
Collation obligates certain heirs to return inter vivos donations received from the decedent to the hereditary mass to ensure equitable distribution among co-heirs.
LA Bar Wills Trusts and Estates 2
Under Louisiana law, which persons qualify as forced heirs?