Short answer. No. Article 888 reserves one-half of your estate as the legitime of your legitimate children. You may give away the other half, but even that free half is charged with the shares of a surviving spouse and of any illegitimate children, so what is truly yours to give is usually less.

What the law says

The legitime of legitimate children and descendants consists of one-half of the hereditary estate of the father and of the mother.

Civil Code, Article 888 — Legitime of Legitimate Children. Read the full provision →

What the law says

The testator cannot deprive his compulsory heirs of their legitime, except in cases expressly specified by law. Neither can he impose upon the same any burden, encumbrance, condition, or substitution of any kind whatsoever.

Civil Code, Article 904 — The Legitime Cannot Be Taken Away. Read the full provision →

Half the estate is not yours to give

The rule is a fraction, not a judgment about fairness. The legitime of legitimate children and descendants consists of one-half of the hereditary estate of the father and of the mother. That half belongs to the children collectively and is divided equally among them; a will cannot reduce it, redirect it, or attach strings to it. Article 904 says as much twice over — the testator cannot deprive compulsory heirs of the legitime, and neither can he impose upon the same any burden, encumbrance, condition, or substitution of any kind whatsoever.

The free half is not entirely free

Article 888 lets you dispose of the remaining half, but adds that this is subject to the rights of illegitimate children and of the surviving spouse. Their shares come out of that same free portion. Where one legitimate child survives, the widow or widower is entitled to one-fourth of the estate; where there are two or more, the spouse takes a share equal to one child's legitime. Once those are satisfied, whatever remains is the amount your friend or your chosen charity can actually receive.

What happens if the will ignores this

The will is not simply thrown out; it is cut back. A compulsory heir left less than the legitime may demand that it be fully satisfied, and dispositions that impair the legitime are reduced on the heirs' petition insofar as they are inofficious or excessive. So a bequest of the whole estate to a friend does not disinherit the children — it survives only to the extent of the free portion.

Lifetime gifts are counted, not a way around it

Giving property away before you die does not enlarge the free portion. Article 909 charges donations made to children against their legitime and donations made to strangers against the disposable part, and reduces them where they exceed it. Practically, that means a friend who received land during your lifetime and a bequest in the will may find both added together and trimmed. If your intention is to benefit someone outside the family, work out the free portion first, in figures, and give within it.

What the Family Code changed about this

One part of the article above no longer states current law. The fractions it reserves to legitimate children and to the surviving spouse still stand, but the shares were worked out on the classification of children in use when the Civil Code took effect in 1950. The Family Code now fixes the legitime of each illegitimate child at one-half of the legitime of a legitimate child, and provides that apart from that modification the Civil Code's rules on successional rights remain in force.

Cases citing this provision

These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.