Civil Code, Article 1056 — Acceptance Is Irrevocable

What this article means

Acceptance or repudiation, once made, is irrevocable, and cannot be impugned except when made through causes that vitiate consent, or when an unknown will appears.

'Causes that vitiate consent' refers to defects recognized generally in civil law, such as mistake, violence, intimidation, undue influence, or fraud; if any of these actually tainted the decision to accept or repudiate, the resulting act can be challenged despite the general rule of irrevocability. The 'unknown will' scenario covers a different situation: an heir who accepts or repudiates believing intestate succession governs, only for a will naming him — perhaps to a different share — to later surface. Because the factual basis for the original decision no longer holds, the law allows that decision to be revisited.

Questions about this provision

• I accepted an inheritance under pressure and now want to undo it — can I challenge the acceptance?
• My father died owing more than he owned — do the children have to pay the difference out of their own pockets?
• I already accepted an inheritance — can I change my mind and refuse it later?
• What happens to a specific item left in a will if the person named to receive it refuses to accept it?
• We all accepted the estate as intestate heirs and then a will turned up — can the acceptance be undone?

Related provisions

• Article 1055 — Called Both by Will and by Law.
• Article 1057 — Thirty Days to Signify.

Cases citing this article

• Republic of the Philippines vs. David Rey Guzman, etc., et al, G.R. No. 132964, February 18, 2000 — read the decision on LawPhil →

Compiled automatically from Supreme Court decisions published on LawPhil that expressly cite this article, most frequently cited first. A listing means the decision cites the provision — it is not a statement that the case is the leading authority, and it does not show whether a ruling has since been modified or abandoned. Always read the decision itself.