Civil Code, Article 962 — The Nearest Relative Excludes the More Distant

What this article means

In every inheritance, the relative nearest in degree excludes the more distant ones, saving the right of representation. Relatives of the same degree inherit in equal shares.

This article states the master rule for intestate succession among relatives: proximity of degree, not the sheer number of relatives in a class, decides who inherits, with the right of representation standing as the one recognized exception that lets a more distant relative step into a nearer relative’s place. The article itself flags that the “equal shares” rule is not absolute — it is qualified by a separate rule distinguishing full-blood from half-blood relatives, and by another rule governing how a division splits between the paternal and maternal lines, both addressed in the specific articles this text cross-references rather than restated here.

Questions about this provision

• In intestate succession, does a closer relative shut out a more distant one?
• My father died without leaving a will — who does the law say inherits from him?

Related provisions

• Article 961 — Who the Law Calls.
• Article 963 — How Proximity Is Measured.

Cases citing this article

• Pascasio Uriarte, et al. vs. Court of Appeals, et al, G.R. No. 116775, January 22, 1998 — read the decision on LawPhil →
• Ingrid V. Hilario vs. Thelma Miranda and Irenea Belloc, G.R. No. 196499, November 28, 2018 — read the decision on LawPhil →
• Ofelia Hernando Bagunu vs. Pastora Piedad, G.R. No. 140975, December 8, 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.