If the testator does not leave a will, his heirs are called to the inheritance according to the degree of kinship they had with the testator. According to the Greek Civil Code, relatives are divided into classes and according to the class to which they belong they inherit the deceased, the closest relatives excluding the most distant ones. Specifically, as our experienced in inheritance matters lawyers can inform you, the classes mentioned by the law are as follows:
First Class: In the first class the intestate heirs are the descendants of the deceased. The nearest of them excludes the farthest of the same root. The descendants who are related by affinity (succession by descent) to the deceased to the deceased take the place of the descendant who is not alive at the time of the death. The children inherit in equal shares.
Second class: In the second class, the parents of the deceased are called together, the brothers and sisters, as well as children and grandchildren of brothers and sisters who have died before him. The parents and brothers inherit equally and the children or grandchildren of brothers who have died before the deceased inherit by descent. The children of the deceased’s brother who has died before him exclude the grandchildren of the same root.
Half-brothers
Half-brothers and sisters, if they are related to parents or brothers or to children or grandchildren of brothers and sisters, receive half of the share belonging to the brothers and sisters. The children or grandchildren of half-brothers and half-sisters who have died before the deceased also receive half.
Third class: The third class includes the grandparents of the deceased and, of their descendants, their children and grandchildren.
If the grandparents of both lines are alive at the time of the death, only the grandparents of both lines inherit equally. If the grandparents of the paternal or maternal line are not alive at the time of the death, the children and grandchildren of the deceased succeed in place of the deceased. If there are no children and grandchildren, the share of the deceased pass to the grandparent of the same line and, if there are none, to his children and grandchildren. If, at the time of induction, the grandparents are not living, either from the paternal or maternal line, and there are no children and grandchildren of those who have died, only the grandparents or their children and grandchildren from the other line shall inherit. Children inherit equally and exclude grandchildren of the same line. Descendants inherit by descent.
Fourth class: the fourth class includes the great-grandparents of the deceased.
The surviving spouse: The surviving spouse, as heir by intestacy, inherits with the relatives of the first class in the fourth and with the relatives of the other classes in the half of the inheritance. In addition, he receives as an “exquisite”, irrespectively of the class by which he is called, the furniture, utensils, clothing and other such household objects used either by the surviving spouse alone or by both spouses. However, if there are children of the deceased spouse, their needs shall also be taken into account, if special circumstances so require for reasons of clemency.
Fifth class: If there are no relatives of the first, second, third and fourth class, the surviving spouse is called as an intestate heir to the entire heritage.
Exclusion of the spouse: The right of inheritance as well as the right to the exemptible share of the surviving spouse shall be excluded if the deceased, having a valid ground for divorce, had brought the divorce action against his/her spouse before the court.