Partial Upholding of the Appeal against the Equalization Claim in the Inheritance Division Proceedings

Facts

In a lawsuit filed by the siblings M. [Z.], E. V.-Z., T. S.-Z., B. [Z.] and M. G.-Z., the District Court of Uri declared the brother K. [Z.] liable for equalization for a property in F. received during the lifetime of the deceased L. [Z.], at a value of CHF 300,000. The Cantonal Court of Uri upheld the first-instance decision. The defendant K. [Z.] appealed against the judgment of the Cantonal Court.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court states that the equalization must be examined within the framework of the inheritance division. Although the equalization claim can be raised in the inheritance division proceedings and often represents a partial inheritance division claim with an independent legal claim, the plaintiff must prove an interest in obtaining a declaratory judgment as a procedural requirement. Such an interest is generally lacking if a claim for performance is available, with which an enforceable judgment can be obtained.

In the present case, it cannot be assessed whether an interest in obtaining a declaratory judgment has been affirmed in accordance with federal law, as the contested decision does not contain any factual findings on the status of the inheritance division proceedings. Therefore, the matter is remitted to the lower court for a new decision, upholding the appeal.

The…