Civil Code, Article 393 — Proving Existence to Claim

What this article means

Anyone claiming a right that belongs to a person whose existence is not recognized must prove that person was living at the time his existence was necessary to acquire the right. The burden falls on the claimant.

The rule addresses a narrow evidentiary problem: when a right depends on a person being alive at a specific moment — for instance, a right that would pass to that person only if he or she was living when it accrued — the law does not presume survival. Instead, it places the burden squarely on whoever asserts the right to prove, affirmatively, that the person was alive at the relevant time. The mere absence of proof that the person had died is not enough to establish the claim; the claimant must produce evidence of life, not simply an absence of evidence of death.

Questions about this provision

• If I want to claim property that would have belonged to a missing person, who must prove that the person was still alive at the time they needed to be?

Related provisions

• Article 392 — If the Absentee Returns.
• Article 395 — Petition for Inheritance Preserved.

Cases interpreting this article

• Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.