Short answer. Yes. Article 1081 of the Civil Code expressly allows a person to give someone who is not an heir — called a mandatary — the power to make the partition after death. The partition power alone can be delegated; the mandatary does not become an heir and has no share in the estate.
What the law says
A person may, by an act inter vivos or mortis causa, intrust the mere power to make the partition after his death to any person who is not one of the co-heirs.
Civil Code, Article 1081 — Entrusting the Power to Partition. Read the full provision →
What the Civil Code allows
Article 1081 gives your father a choice: he can divide the estate himself in his will, or he can hand that task to someone he trusts. The person he appoints does not have to be a family member or one of the heirs. A lawyer, an accountant, a long-time family friend — anyone can be named. The article calls this person the mandatary, and the power given is the mere power to make the partition — not ownership, not a share, just the authority to carry out the division.
How the appointment is made
The authority can be granted either by an act inter vivos (a document executed during your father's lifetime, such as a special power of attorney) or mortis causa (in the will itself). Either form is valid. If your father names someone in his will, that appointment takes effect at his death and the mandatary carries out the partition according to whatever instructions the will contains.
Special protection when minor heirs are involved
If any of the co-heirs is a minor or is under guardianship, the mandatary must take two additional steps: notify the co-heirs, the creditors, and any legatees or devisees, and then make an inventory of the estate's property. This safeguard exists because a minor cannot protect their own interests in the partition process. The inventory requirement ensures transparency and gives the guardian or court a record to check against.
What the mandatary cannot do
The power is limited to making the partition. The mandatary carries out the division — they do not decide who inherits or how much. Those shares are fixed by law and by the will. If the mandatary acts outside the scope of the partition power, or fails to observe the inventory requirement when minors are involved, their actions may be challenged. The heirs retain all their legal rights to the shares the law or the will gives them. A mandatary who acts in bad faith, exceeds the authority given, or fails to account for estate property can face legal liability to the heirs affected. The power to partition does not include the power to determine which specific items go to which heir arbitrarily — if the will or the rules on partition do not give that discretion, the mandatary must divide equally or as directed.