REGULATIONS ON INHERITANCE, COMPENSATION FOR OUTSIDE-CONTRACTUAL DAMAGES, OWNERSHIP RIGHTS TO LOST LIVESTOCK, PROPERTY WARRANTY AND SOME COMMON CIVIL CONTRACTS UNDER THE 2015 CIVIL CODE

REGULATIONS ON INHERITANCE, COMPENSATION FOR OUTSIDE-CONTRACTUAL DAMAGES, OWNERSHIP RIGHTS TO LOST LIVESTOCK, PROPERTY WARRANTY AND SOME COMMON CIVIL CONTRACTS UNDER THE 2015 CIVIL CODE
 

Objective of the document: This section provides some current legal provisions related to individual rights under the 2015 Civil Code. Specifically: Regulations on inheritance; regulations on compensation for non-contractual damages, ownership of lost livestock; property warranty; some common civil contracts such as contracts for sale and borrowing of property ; Regulations on marriage and family such as marriage, divorce, early marriage, illegal marriage, rights and obligations of husband and wife ; Provisions of land law in civil matters (such as rights and obligations of land users, land support policies for certain subjects, land disputes, participation of legal aid in resolving civil land disputes); Regulations of the law on complaints and denunciations such as the rights and obligations of complainants and denouncers; procedures, order and authority to resolve complaints and denunciations .

 

1. Civil law regulations on inheritance

Inheritance is understood as the transfer of property from a deceased person to a living person . The property left behind by the deceased is called legacy.
“Inheritance rights are the right to leave one's property to others after death, to receive inheritance according to a will or according to the law” [1].

1.1.General provisions on inheritance

a. The right to leave inheritance and the right to inherit of an individual[2]
   Individuals have the right to:
- Make a will [3]to dispose of one's assets; leave one's assets to legal heirs;
- Inheritance by will or by law. b. The heir
     It can be understood that an heir is a person who receives an inheritance according to a will or according to the provisions of law.
     The individual heir must [4]:
- Is a person alive at the time of inheritance opening.
- Or born and alive after the time of inheritance opening but conceived before the death of the testator.
          *Note: The time of opening the inheritance [5]is the time when the property owner dies (the time when the property owner dies can be understood as determined by the death certificate issued by the competent authority). In case the Court declares a person dead, the time of opening the inheritance is the date the Court determines the date of death of the person declared dead [6].
c. People not entitled to inheritance
     The following cases are not entitled to inheritance [7]:
- A person convicted of intentionally infringing upon the life or health of the person leaving the inheritance, or of seriously mistreating or torturing the person leaving the inheritance, or of seriously infringing upon the honor or dignity of that person;
- A person who seriously violates the obligation to support the person leaving the inheritance;
- A person convicted of intentionally infringing upon the life of another heir in order to receive part or all of the inheritance to which that heir is entitled;
- A person who deceives, coerces or prevents the testator from making a will; forges a will, alters a will, destroys a will, or conceals a will in order to receive part or all of the inheritance against the testator's wishes.
          * Note: The above cases are still entitled to inherit, if the person leaving the inheritance knew the act. the behavior of those people but still let them inherit according to the will.
d. Refusal to accept inheritance[8]

• An heir has the right to refuse to receive an inheritance, except in cases where the refusal is aimed at avoiding the performance of his or her property obligations to others.
• The refusal to accept the inheritance must be made in writing and sent to the estate administrator, other heirs, and the person assigned to divide the inheritance for information.
• The refusal to accept the inheritance must be expressed before the time of division of the inheritance.

e. Inheritance statute of limitations
     The statute of limitations for inheritance is a period prescribed by civil law, at the end of which legal consequences arise for the subjects related to the inheritance legal relationship.
     The statute of limitations for inheritance is prescribed as follows [9]:
F30 years for real estate ( such as land, houses, construction works attached to land, etc.) from the time of inheritance opening;
F10 years for movable assets (for example: money, valuable papers, books, pens, televisions, refrigerators, etc. that can be moved mechanically), from the time of inheritance opening.
After this period, the inheritance belongs to the heir currently managing the inheritance. In case there is no heir currently managing the inheritance, the inheritance will be resolved as follows:

The estate has a bona fide possessor.		Heritage without a bona fide possessor
For estates that are movable	For real estate heritage
The property belongs to the possessor after 10 years of bona fide, continuous, and open possession.	The property belongs to the possessor after 30 years of bona fide, continuous, and open possession.	Heritage belongs to the State if there is no one possessing it in good faith, continuously, and openly for 10 years for movable property and 30 years for real estate.

         
- The statute of limitations for an heir to request confirmation of his or her inheritance rights or to reject another person's inheritance rights is 10 years from the time the inheritance opens.
- The statute of limitations for requiring an heir to perform obligations regarding the deceased's property is 03 years from the time of inheritance opening. f. Forms of inheritance
          Forms of inheritance include : Inheritance by law and inheritance by will.

1.2. Inheritance by will

a. Form of will
There are 2 forms of inheritance by will [10]:

• Put into writing
• If it is not possible to make a written will, an oral will can be made.

Written wills include the following four types [11]:

1. A written will without witnesses;
2. Written will witnessed (See item d of subsection 4.1.2 on Testamentary Inheritance);
3. Notarized written will [12];
4. Certified written will [13].

Note: A will is only required to be notarized or authenticated if it is the will of a physically disabled person or an illiterate person [14].
b. In case of oral will
In case a person's life is threatened by death and he/she cannot make a written will, he/she can make an oral will. After 03 months from the time of the oral will, if the testator is still alive, lucid and clear-minded, the oral will is automatically revoked.[15] An oral will must satisfy [16]the following conditions to be legally valid:
An oral will is considered legal if the oral testator expresses his or her last will in front of at least two witnesses and immediately after the oral testator expresses his or her last will, the witnesses record it, sign or fingerprint it. Within 05 working days from the date the oral testator expresses his or her last will, the will must be notarized or certified by a competent authority to confirm the signature or fingerprint of the witness.
c. Legality of wills
A will is legal when it meets the following conditions [17]:
- The testator is of sound mind and lucidity when making the will; is not deceived, threatened or coerced;
- The content of the will does not violate the prohibitions of the law, is not contrary to social ethics; the form of the will does not violate the provisions of the law.
* Note: The will of a person from 15 years old to under 18 years old must be made in writing and must have the consent of the father, mother or guardian.
The will of a physically handicapped person or an illiterate person must be made in writing by a witness and notarized or authenticated .
d. Who can witness the making of a will?[18]
Anyone can be a witness to the making of a will, except the following:
- The heir by will or by law of the testator;
- People with property rights and obligations related to the content of the will;
- Minors, people without civil capacity, people with difficulty in cognition and behavior control.
e. Can a will be amended, supplemented, replaced or revoked?[19]
- The testator can amend, supplement, replace or cancel the will at any time.
- In case the testator supplements the will, the established will and the supplement have equal legal effect; if a part of the established will and the supplement contradict each other, only the supplement has legal effect.
- If the testator replaces the will with a new will, the previous will is revoked. f. The heir does not depend on the content of the will.
The following persons have the right to inherit, regardless of the will, except in cases where they refuse to receive the inheritance or are not entitled to inherit [20]as stated in sub-section c, section 1.1 of the section "Civil law provisions on inheritance":
 

Heirs regardless of the contents of the will:
Minors, fathers, mothers, wives, husbands	Minors who are unable to work

 

1.3.Inheritance by law

a. Cases of inheritance by law
          The deceased's assets will be divided according to the law in the following cases [21]:
(i). No will;
(ii). Invalid will;
(iii). The testamentary heirs die before or at the same time as the testator; the agency or organization entitled to inherit under the will no longer exists at the time of inheritance opening;
(iv). Persons designated as heirs under a will who are not entitled to inherit or who refuse to inherit.
* Note: In some cases, the deceased leaves a will, but some of the inheritance is divided according to the will, and some of the inheritance is divided according to the law. Specifically as follows:
- The part of the estate not disposed of in the will;
- The part of the inheritance related to the part of the will that has no legal effect;
- The part of the inheritance related to the person who inherits according to the will but they do not have the right to inherit, refuse to receive the inheritance, die before or die at the same time as the testator; related to the agency or organization that is entitled to inherit according to the will, but no longer exists at the time of inheritance opening.
b. Legal heir
     Legal heirs are divided into the following 3 inheritance lines [22]:
- First order of inheritance includes: wife, husband, biological father, biological mother, adoptive father, adoptive mother, biological children, and adopted children of the deceased;
- Second-order heirs include: paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, maternal grandmother, full brothers, full sisters of the deceased; grandchildren of the deceased where the deceased is the paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, or maternal grandmother;
- Third-order heirs include: paternal and maternal great-grandparents of the deceased; paternal and maternal uncles and aunts of the deceased; nieces and nephews of whom the deceased is the paternal and maternal uncle or aunt; great-grandchildren of whom the deceased is the paternal and maternal great-grandparents.
     Heirs of the same rank receive equal shares of the inheritance, and those in the next rank of heirs are only entitled to inherit if there is no one in the previous rank of heirs due to death, lack of inheritance rights, disinheritance, or refusal to receive the inheritance.
 

2. Provisions of civil law on compensation for non-contractual damages in some cases

Currently, Vietnamese law does not specifically define what is compensation for damages outside of a contract. However, it can be understood that compensation for damages outside of a contract is the responsibility to compensate not arising from contractual relationships. According to the provisions of the law, anyone who commits an illegal act that infringes upon the life, health, honor, dignity, reputation, property, or legal rights of another person and causes damage must compensate.

1. Compensation for damage caused by stimulant users[23]

- A person who, due to drinking alcohol or using other stimulants, becomes unable to perceive and control his behavior, causing damage to another person, must compensate.
- When a person intentionally uses alcohol or other stimulants to cause another person to lose the ability to perceive and control their behavior, causing damage, they must compensate the damaged person. 2.2. On compensation for damages caused by people under 15 years old or people lacking civil capacity
- If a person under fifteen years of age causes damage and his or her parents are still alive, the parents must compensate for the entire damage. If the parents' assets are not enough to compensate and the minor who caused the damage has his or her own assets, that asset will be used to compensate for the remaining amount. If a person between fifteen and eighteen years of age causes damage, he or she must compensate with his or her own assets. If he or she does not have enough assets to compensate, the parents must compensate with their own assets [24].
- However, in case a person under 15 years of age causes damage while under the direct supervision of the school, the school must compensate for the damage.[25]
- If a minor, a person without civil act capacity, or a person with difficulty in cognition or controlling his/her behavior causes damage and has a guardian, the guardian may use the property of the person under guardianship to compensate; if the person under guardianship has no property or does not have enough property to compensate, the guardian must compensate with his/her own property; if the guardian proves that he/she is not at fault in the guardianship, he/she does not have to use his/her own property to compensate.[26]
- In case a person who has lost civil capacity causes damage to another person during the time the hospital or other legal entity is directly managing the hospital or other legal entity, the hospital or other legal entity must compensate for the damage that occurs [27]. Schools, hospitals, or other legal entities do not have to compensate if they can prove that they were not at fault in management; in this case, the parents or guardians of a person under fifteen years of age or a person who has lost civil capacity must compensate.[28]
 

1. Compensation for damage caused by animals[29]

Currently, the civil code does not specifically define what an animal is, but it can be understood that an animal is an animal that has been domesticated, raised, controlled or lives in the same environment as humans, for example, buffalo, cows, chickens, dogs, etc.
- The owner of an animal must compensate for damage caused by the animal to another person; if the person suffering the damage is entirely at fault in causing the animal to cause damage to him, the owner does not have to compensate.
- In case a third person is completely at fault for causing an animal to cause damage to another person, the third person must compensate for the damage; if the third person and the owner are both at fault, they must jointly compensate for the damage.
- In case of illegal possession or use of animals causing damage, the illegal possessor or user must compensate.
- In case of livestock being allowed to roam freely according to custom and causing damage, the owner of that livestock must compensate according to custom but must not violate the law or social ethics.

1. Compensation for damage caused by trees

Owners, possessors and managers must compensate for damage caused by trees.[30]

3. Some other legal provisions to note

3.1.Establishing ownership of lost livestock

The establishment of ownership of lost livestock [31]is as follows:
- The person who captures a lost livestock must keep it and immediately notify the People's Committee of the commune where he/she resides to publicly notify the owner to receive it back. After 06 months from the date of public announcement or after 01 year for livestock that are allowed to roam freely according to custom, the ownership of the livestock and the number of livestock born during the period of keeping the livestock shall belong to the person who captured the livestock.
- In case the owner receives back the lost livestock, he must pay the fee for keeping the livestock and other expenses to the person who caught the livestock. During the time of keeping the lost livestock, if the livestock gives birth, the person who caught the livestock is entitled to half of the livestock born or 50% of the value of the livestock born and must compensate for damages if there is intentional fault in causing the livestock to die.

 

3.2.About warranty obligations and warranty claims

Warranty can be understood as a guarantee that the machine sold or repaired will operate well for a certain period of time.
During the warranty period, if the buyer discovers a defect in the purchased item, he has the right to request the seller to repair it free of charge, reduce the price, exchange the defective item for another item, or return the item and get a refund.[32]
The seller is obliged to guarantee the goods sold by him for a certain period of time, called the warranty period, if the warranty is agreed upon by the parties or stipulated by law. The warranty period is calculated from the time the buyer is obliged to accept the goods.[33]

1. About property sale and purchase contracts

A property sale contract is an agreement between parties under which the seller transfers ownership of the property to the buyer and the buyer pays the seller.
Contracts for the sale and purchase of houses and the sale and purchase of houses for other purposes are performed in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code, the Housing Law and other relevant laws.

1. Term of performance of sales contract[34]

- The time limit for performing the sales contract is agreed upon by the parties. The seller must deliver the property to the buyer within the agreed time limit; the seller may only deliver the property before or after the deadline if the buyer agrees.
- When the parties do not agree on a time limit for delivery of the property, the buyer has the right to request the seller to deliver the property and the seller also has the right to request the buyer to receive the property at any time, but must notify each other a reasonable time in advance.
- The buyer shall pay the purchase price according to the agreed time. If the payment time is not specified or is not clearly specified, the buyer must pay immediately upon receiving the purchased property or receiving the documents certifying the ownership of the property.
In this case, Ms. H's intention to extend the contract performance period must be agreed by the buyer, Ms. M.

2. Method of asset delivery[35]

- The property is delivered in a manner agreed upon by the parties; if there is no agreement, the property is delivered by the seller in one go directly to the buyer.
- In case, according to the agreement, the seller delivers the property to the buyer in many times but the seller fails to perform his obligations properly on a certain time, the buyer can cancel the part of the contract related to that violation and request compensation for damages.

3.4.About the asset loan contract

A property loan contract is an agreement between the parties, according to which the lender delivers property to the borrower; when the repayment term comes, the borrower must return to the lender property of the same type in the correct quantity and quality and must only pay interest if there is an agreement or if the law so provides.[36]
a. Ownership of the loaned asset
The borrower becomes the owner of the loaned property from the time of receiving the property.[37]
b. Lender's obligations
The lender has the following obligations [38]:
- Deliver the assets to the borrower in full, with the correct quality and quantity at the agreed time and place.
- Compensate the borrower for damages if the lender knows that the property is not of guaranteed quality but does not notify the borrower, except in the case where the borrower knows but still accepts the property.
- The borrower shall not be required to return the property before the due date, except in the case of a term loan contract as prescribed in Article 470 of the 2015 Civil Code.
c. The borrower's obligation to repay the debt
The borrower is obliged to repay the debt [39]as follows:
- If the loaned property is money, the borrower must repay the full amount when due; if the property is an object, the borrower must return an object of the same type, quantity, and quality, unless otherwise agreed.
- In case the borrower cannot return the item, he can pay in cash the value of the borrowed item at the place and time of repayment, if agreed by the lender.
- The place of repayment is the place of residence or head office of the lender, unless otherwise agreed.
- In case of an interest-free loan, if the borrower fails to repay or does not repay in full when due, the lender has the right to request payment of interest at a rate equal to 50% of the maximum interest rate (the maximum interest rate is 20%/year) of the loan on the overdue amount corresponding to the overdue period, unless otherwise agreed or otherwise provided by law.
- In case of interest-bearing loans, if the borrower fails to repay or does not repay in full when due, the borrower must pay interest as follows:
+ Interest on the principal according to the interest rate agreed in the contract corresponding to the loan term that has not been paid by the due date; in case of late payment, interest must also be paid at an interest rate equal to 50% of the maximum interest rate (the maximum interest rate is 20%/year).
+ Interest on overdue principal is equal to 150% of the loan interest rate according to the contract corresponding to the late payment period, unless otherwise agreed.
d. Use of borrowed assets
The parties may agree that the borrowed property must be used for the intended purpose of the loan. The lender has the right to inspect the use of the property and has the right to reclaim the borrowed property before the due date if, after being reminded, the borrower still uses the property for the wrong purpose.[40]

3.5.About them, hui, bieu, phuong[41]

- Associations, rotating savings and credit associations, and guilds (hereinafter referred to as "ho") are forms of property transactions according to custom based on an agreement between a group of people who gather together to determine the number of people, time, amount of money or other assets, contribution and collection methods, and the rights and obligations of the members.
- The organization of mutual assistance among the people is carried out in accordance with the provisions of law.
- In case the organization is profitable, the interest rate must comply with the provisions of this Code.
- It is strictly forbidden to organize them in the form of usury.

3.6.About the asset loan contract

A property loan contract is an agreement between parties, according to which the lender delivers property to the borrower for use for a period of time without having to pay, and the borrower must return the property when the loan period expires or the purpose of the loan has been achieved.[42] a. Subject of the loan contract
Any non-consumable asset can be the subject of a loan contract.[44]
b. Obligations of the borrower
The borrower has the [45]following obligations:
- Preserve and maintain borrowed property, do not arbitrarily change the condition of the property; if the property is damaged normally, it must be repaired.
- Not to be re-lent to others without the consent of the lender.
- Return borrowed property on time; if there is no agreement on the time limit for returning the property, the borrower must return the property immediately after the purpose of the loan has been achieved.
- Compensation for damages, if lost or damaged borrowed property.
- The borrower bears the risk of the borrowed property during the period of delay.
c. Rights of the borrower
The borrower has the [46]following rights:
- Use borrowed assets in accordance with their intended use and agreed purpose.
- Require the lender to pay reasonable costs of repairing or increasing the value of the borrowed property, if agreed.
d. Obligations of the property lender
The property lender has the [47]following obligations:
- Provide necessary information about the use of the property and its defects, if any.
- Pay the borrower for repair costs and costs of increasing the value of the property, if agreed.
- Compensate the borrower for damages if the borrower knows the property is defective but does not notify the borrower, resulting in damage to the borrower, except for defects that the borrower knows or should know.
e. Rights of the property lender
The property lender has the [48]following rights:
- Reclaim the property immediately after the borrower has achieved its purpose if there is no agreement on the borrowing period; if the lender has a sudden and urgent need to use the lent property, it can reclaim the property even if the borrower has not achieved its purpose, but must give reasonable notice in advance.
- Reclaim the property when the borrower does not use it for the right purpose, use, or in the right way as agreed, or re-lends it to another person without the lender's consent.
- Claim for damages to property caused by the borrower.