Property Division...need some help

Sounds to me that this is a big enough deal that you shouldn't just settle on asking for Sr. Guzman's advice. You should hire them for the job.
Too many things can go wrong and if someone has influence on the lawyer or pays him off properly, the deal could go real sour for the other beneficiaries.
If this piece of property has any substantial value, I strongly recommend you get the Guzmans to handle the deal.

Mr. Guzman has posted this many times so I'll give you this to start with.

http://www.dr1.com/forums/428730-post4.html

Here's a good thread to read http://www.dr1.com/forums/legal/70217-dominican-inheritance-law.html


You cannot disinherit children no matter what.

I am no lawyer and thus the following is only an opinion and not legal advise:

1. The land belongs to whom the OP calls the father in law. There is also the mention of the mother in law, so, the land may effectively belong to both under common law marriage(?).
2. From what I understand, in this country children from previous marriages retain full inheritance rights, independently from them visiting much, or not. Yet, resolving the point "1" may affect their rights as the father in law may be survived by the mother in law (which may have previous children of her own, to further complicate the case?).
3. However, your father in law (the owner of the land in question) is alive, thus inheritance is not an issue just yet.
4. Some kids may want or wish to separate and receive what ever, as long the old man still has a heart beat, it would seem up to HIS discretion to do with his property as he (and maybe, his current wife) sees fit.
5. The process for giving away or selling part or parts of the property, may include what is called "deslinde / delindar", a land court process which will eventually generate new titles for each new defined part.

... J-D.

sangria said:

just to be clear...
as much as i would like them to disinherit the bad seeds that isn't anyone's intention.

the intent is to have the land split fairly now in life so that each child has an equal share of property and that my mother in law keeps the main house/family business.

they are worried if it doesn't happen now while he is still alive, it will turn into a big fight and are worried my mother in law would lose the house/colmado/bar/rental houses which is their livelyhood (everyone seems to want this part of the land because it is on a corner & most desirable).

my questions are about the options they have and what are the costs/taxes/process that would be involved in property division.

Click to expand...

Let me be blunt on this (being a father with property and kids from two marriages) and the son of a family with a father that is under the same situation:

The father is still alive... He could decide to sell everything tomorrow if he liked and give sh*t to everyone involved in the tugging...

Now, having made that clear enough:

Your father can (himself like a dictator) make the partitioning of the property however he likes and legally have the property titled to each son(d) as such.

Now, he wants to do so with full happiness in the family for the outcome, impossible!

There's always going to be one that thinks the other was getting the nicer piece of the pie.

Forget pleasing everyone!

He should sit down and partition according to his will only. He can show the partition to the kids and let them deal with the outcome as they see fit.

For example he can make a rudimentary map of how the plots will be partitioned and place the names of the people within the resulting plots.

In the case of the one with the biz already present in one of the plots, the actual decision is simple: Leave it to that person in possession of the structures there now!

No lawyer or court in the DR will touch any challenge to a division of plots from a living owner, no matter what!!!!

Tell him to get any lawyer (one that can speak Spanish so he could understand all) so that he can do this sooner...

My siblings were one day arguing about who got what when my father sat in the middle of it and started to point to windows and doors, he started to provide each one with a window and door (knob included) to take as their given plot! Everybody calmed down soon after, as it was clear who the property belonged to!!! LOL!!!

My dad divided the properties as he wanted and nobody dared say peep during or after to him... Oh! We argued and complained to hell among us, but dad never heard a word!!!!


The costs and taxes are not easy to ascertain as each particular property differs from city, usage, placement, titled land, community land, etc...

A lawyer can provide actual facts on that regards!!!

Sangria, what your father-in-law should do is called a "partici?n de ascendiente" (Articles 1075 to 1080 of the Civil Code), which would permit him to distribute his assets among his heirs while alive. A "partici?n de ascendiente" is subject to the same formalities as a will.

By the way, don't be surprised if when you mention the term to some lawyers that they won't even know what you are talking about. These are the same lawyers who in cases like yours will proceed to execute bogus --and illegal-- property sales which may be voided later.

No, 15% is NOT correct. It should be around 3%.