Short answer. Both groups inherit, but on different footing. The surviving children inherit in their own right, while the descendants of a child who predeceased the parent inherit by right of representation, standing in that deceased child's place rather than inheriting independently.
What the law says
Should children of the deceased and descendants of other children who are dead, survive, the former shall inherit in their own right, and the latter by right of representation.
Civil Code, Article 981 — Children and Grandchildren Together. Read the full provision →
Two groups, two different legal bases for inheriting
This article addresses exactly the mixed situation you describe: some children of the deceased are still living, while others have already died but left descendants of their own. The rule is that the former shall inherit in their own right, and the latter by right of representation. The surviving children do not need any special legal mechanism to inherit — their claim comes directly from being children of the deceased. The grandchildren, by contrast, inherit through a different legal route entirely: representation.
What "in their own right" means for the surviving children
A surviving child's claim to the estate is direct and personal. It does not depend on anyone else, is not filtered through a parent's share, and is not affected by the fact that a sibling died before the parent. Each surviving child stands in the estate as an heir in their own capacity, independent of what happened to their deceased sibling's line.
What "by right of representation" means for the grandchildren
The descendants of a child who died before the parent do not inherit in their own personal capacity the way a surviving child does. Instead, this article places them in the estate by right of representation — they step into the position their deceased parent would have occupied, rather than being treated as a wholly separate line of heirs alongside the surviving children. This is what allows a deceased child's line to still participate in the estate at all, rather than being cut out entirely because that child did not survive the parent.
Why the distinction matters even though both groups inherit
Both surviving children and the descendants of a deceased child end up inheriting from the same estate, but the basis for each group's share is different, and that distinction can matter for how the estate is actually computed and divided. Because the exact numerical apportionment among representing grandchildren, and how it relates to what a surviving child receives, depends on other provisions working alongside this article, anyone splitting an estate across both groups should have the full set of applicable succession rules reviewed together rather than relying on this article in isolation.
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.
- The Roman Catholic Bishop of Tuguegarao vs. Florentina Prudencio, et al, G.R. No. 187942, September 7, 2016 — read the decision on LawPhil →