Facts
The parties to the dispute are the legal heirs of M., who passed away on 21 January 1993 without leaving a testamentary disposition. In 1996, A. signed a "debt acknowledgement and declaration of inheritance transfer" in favour of the Social Welfare Office of the City of Zurich. In 1999, this office requested the District Court of Sargans to participate in the inheritance partition in accordance with Art. 609 CC, as it had failed to find a solution with A. The District Court then concluded an inheritance partition contract with A.'s mother, B., according to which A. would receive CHF 25,000 in exchange for the transfer of her inheritance share to the mother. A. subsequently contested the validity of this transfer and the partition contract. She filed an action for inheritance partition against her mother and her nine siblings, but the District Court ruled that she lacked standing to sue. This decision was upheld on appeal by the Cantonal Court of St. Gallen.Considerations
According to case law, the task of the authority under Art. 609 para. 1 CC is limited to intervening in the partition, without being able to undertake or manage it itself. Nevertheless, its legal position is that of the debtor heir, and not that of the creditor. In this capacity, it must be able to…