It is important to consider both theoretically and practically how the rights to an inherited claim in common may be exercised. Do all co-heirs need to exercise their rights in unison? Or can an individual co-heir exercise his rights with respect to his portion of the claim independently? Article 828.3 of the ROC Civil Code states: “Unless otherwise provided by statutes, the disposition of the thing held in common and the exercise of other rights relating to the same shall be made with the consent of all the owners-in-common.” This paper intend to discuss whether the restrictions explanation of the Article language,“the exercise of other rights relating to the same”, would lead to the suggestion that co-heirs should be allowed to take independent actions with respect to their own portion of the claims in common.
This paper suggests that we:
1. disregard the restrictions explanation of “the exercise of other rights relating to the same” in ROC Civil Code Article 828.3 and allow article language to cover the exercise of the right of claims in common;
2. reference German Civil Code,enact article 1152.1:
“If a claim is part of the estate, unless otherwise the heirs have elected a person among themselves for its management.,the person obliged may perform only to all heirs jointly, and each co-heir may claim only performance to all heirs. Every co-heir may require that the person obliged deposit the thing to be surrendered for all heirs or, if it is not suitable for deposit, delivers it to a custodian to be appointed by the court”.
Under current regulations, the exercise of the right of claims-in common should require the consent of all the owners-in-common.