According to the law, if the parents die and leave an inheritance, and the children choose to inherit as heirs, the children must fulfill the obligation to repay the debts owed by the parents, of course, only to the actual value of the inheritance. But if the parents' estate is insolvent, how will the minor children live? A few days ago, the Jing'an Court heard such a case. On December 2, 2021, Li borrowed 2 million yuan from Qian on the grounds of difficulties in capital turnover of the project, and agreed to return it one month later. After expiration, Li returned 150,000 yuan. In May 2022, Li committed suicide due to debt. After Li's death, the plaintiff Qian and 10 other creditors sued the Jing'an Court, demanding that Li's wife, son and parents jointly repay the debts within the scope of inheriting Li's estate. During the trial, the four defendants all admitted that Li still owed the plaintiff Qian a loan principal of 1.85 million yuan.
The court ascertained that Li had a property in his name, and the market value of the property was about 14 million yuan after deducting the outstanding bank loans. The total amount of claims in this case and 10 other cases exceeded 15 million yuan. Li's son, Li Xiaomou, is 9 years old and is in elementary school. Li's wife, Wang, has an average monthly income of less than 10,000 yuan.
Wang expressed his renunciation of inheriting Li's estate, while Li Xiaomou requested to reserve the necessary share of the estate for Li Xiaomou within the scope of Li's estate on the grounds that he was a minor, lacked the ability to work, and his mother Wang's monthly income was not high.
Can Wang's income cover his son Li Xiaomou's study and living expenses? Li Xiaomou is still 9 years away from adulthood, and if he only relies on his mother Wang's income, his future learning and living environment will plummet, which is not conducive to Li Xiaomou's healthy growth. Moreover, Wang's income is unstable and there is a risk of unemployment. After the only property under Li's name was auctioned, Wang's mother and son would have no house to live in and could only rent a house, while the cost of renting a house in Shanghai was higher, plus living expenses, education expenses and other expenses, Wang's income was obviously not enough to support Li Xiaomou's life as an adult.
If the picture is reserved for Li Xiaomou's legacy, how much is it reasonable to keep? Li Xiaomou requested half of the per capita consumption expenditure of urban permanent residents in Shanghai in 2022, that is, 24,05550 yuan is calculated as a share of the estate reserved for Li Xiaomou for 9 years. The presiding judge considered that reserving the necessary share of the estate for Li Xiaomou would affect the repayment rate of the creditor's claim, and if the creditor's claim could not be fully repaid in the later stage, he would inevitably be dissatisfied with reserving the necessary share of the estate for Li Xiaomou.
To this end, the presiding judge truthfully informed the plaintiff Qian of the debts of the remaining 10 cases in which Li was involved, the value of the estate in Li's name, and the current situation of Wang's mother and son, and explained to him the principle of maximizing the interests of minors and the relevant provisions of the rules for retaining shares. After explaining the law and communicating, the plaintiff Qian expressed deep sympathy for Li Xiaomou and said that he would respect and enforce the court's judgment in accordance with the law.
After trial, the Jing'an court held that Li Xiao was a minor, and his mother Wang's income was not high, and that a certain share of Li's estate should be retained within the scope of Li's estate as a living guarantee before he became an adult. Accordingly, after the judgment was made to reserve the necessary share of the estate of 160,000 yuan for the defendant Li Xiaomou within the scope of Li's estate, the four defendants jointly returned the loan principal of 1.85 million yuan to the plaintiff Qian within the scope of inheriting Li's estate and paid the plaintiff Qian liquidated damages. After the verdict, neither party appealed.
In order to put the judgment in place, during the enforcement stage, the undertaking judge communicated with the enforcement judge in a timely manner to ensure that 160,000 yuan was reserved for Li Xiaomou within the scope of Li's estate.
Sheng Yuying, judge of the Jing'an Court's Juvenile and Family Cases Comprehensive Trial Division, saidAccording to Article 1159 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, when dividing the estate, the decedent shall reserve the necessary inheritance for the heirs who lack the ability to work and have no livelihood before the debts are repaid. This case is the first time since the implementation of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China that the Jing'an Court has applied the rule of mandatory retention in a dispute over the repayment of debts of the decedent.
In this case, after Li's death, the creditor's rights held by Li's creditors could not be fully repaid, and Li Xiaomou claimed that he was a minor and requested that the necessary share of the estate be reserved for him within the scope of Li's estate. The case involves both the interests of minors and creditors, how can both parties get the results they want? How to balance and take into account the interests of both parties? Proceeding from the maximization of the minor's interests and the priority of the individual's right to survival, the presiding judge applied the rule of mandatory share in the case of disputes over the settlement of debts of the decedent when one of the minor's parents dies and the other party's income is insufficient to support the minor's life before he or she becomes an adult. At the same time, after patiently explaining the law and communicating with the creditors, the undertaking judge obtained the creditors' approval of Li Xiaomou's claims. After the judgment, both parties accepted the judgment and dismissed the lawsuit.