Short answer. A brother is two degrees away, an uncle three, and a first cousin four. Article 966 counts each generation between you and the common ancestor, then back down to the relative, as one degree. This degree-counting decides who inherits first when there are no closer relatives in line.
What the law says
In the line, as many degrees are counted as there are generations or persons, excluding the progenitor.
Civil Code, Article 966 — Counting the Degrees. Read the full provision →
What the law says
Thus, a person is two degrees removed from his brother, three from his uncle, who is the brother of his father, four from his first cousin, and so forth.
Civil Code, Article 966 — Counting the Degrees. Read the full provision →
The basic counting rule
Article 966 sets out the method before applying it: In the line, as many degrees are counted as there are generations or persons, excluding the progenitor. Each generation you move, whether up toward an ancestor or down toward a descendant, counts as one degree, but the starting person, the progenitor, is not counted. This is the same counting method used across both the direct line, meaning parents, grandparents, children, and the collateral line, meaning siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins.
The direct line: parent, grandparent, great-grandparent
For relatives directly above or below you, the article explains that the child is one degree removed from the parent, two from the grandfather, and three from the great-grandparent, with ascent made straight up to the common ancestor. This part is simple because there is only one path to count: each generation up or down is one degree, with no need to go through a shared relative first.
The collateral line: brothers, uncles, and cousins
Collateral relatives share a common ancestor but are not in each other's direct line, so counting works differently. The article specifies that in the collateral line, ascent is made to the common ancestor and then descent is made to the person with whom the computation is to be made, and gives the results directly: a person is two degrees removed from his brother, three from his uncle, who is the brother of his father, four from his first cousin, and so forth. You count up to the shared ancestor and then back down to the relative, adding both legs of the trip together.
Why the degree count matters
When someone dies without a will and without closer relatives such as children, parents, or a surviving spouse, intestate succession generally favors relatives in a nearer degree over those in a more remote one. Knowing that a brother is two degrees away, an uncle three, and a first cousin four is what lets you work out, within the collateral line, who is entitled to inherit ahead of whom when the closer categories of heirs are absent.
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.
- Ofelia Hernando Bagunu vs. Pastora Piedad, G.R. No. 140975, December 8, 2000 — read the decision on LawPhil →