Short answer. The property regime is dissolved and liquidated, and the offending spouse forfeits any share in the net profits it earned. That spouse is also disqualified from inheriting from the innocent spouse by intestate succession, and any provision in the innocent spouse's will in their favour is revoked by law.

What the law says

The absolute community or the conjugal partnership shall be dissolved and liquidated but the offending spouse shall have no right to any share of the net profits earned by the absolute community or the conjugal partnership, which shall be forfeited in accordance with the provisions of Article 43(2)

Family Code, Article 63 — Effects of the Decree of Legal Separation. Read the full provision →

The property regime ends even though the marriage does not

Article 63 of the Family Code sets out what a decree of legal separation actually does, and the first thing to understand is what it does not do: the spouses may live apart, but the marriage bonds shall not be severed. What ends is the economic partnership. The absolute community or the conjugal partnership shall be dissolved and liquidated, which means the regime is closed out, the assets and obligations are settled, and the spouses stop accumulating property together from that point.

Forfeiture falls on the net profits, not on everything

The article then imposes a penalty on the spouse who gave cause: that spouse shall have no right to any share of the net profits earned by the absolute community or the conjugal partnership. The wording repays attention, because it is narrower than people expect. What is forfeited is the share in net profits, not the spouse's own capital or exclusive property, and the forfeiture is worked out in accordance with Article 43(2) of the Code rather than left to the court's sense of fairness. Everything therefore depends on the liquidation figures — which is why the accounting stage of a legal separation case is rarely a formality.

Inheritance rights are cut off in both directions of a will

The decree also reaches succession. The offending spouse shall be disqualified from inheriting from the innocent spouse by intestate succession, so if the innocent spouse dies without a will, that spouse takes nothing as a surviving spouse. And where a will already exists, provisions in favor of the offending spouse made in the will of the innocent spouse shall be revoked by operation of law — no codicil, no new will and no court application is needed to bring that about. The innocent spouse's estate plan, in other words, is adjusted by the decree itself.

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.