Legittime

Legittime is a term used in Italian civil law to describe the portions of a deceased person’s estate that are reserved for certain heirs, known as forced heirs. These reserved shares cannot be entirely disinherited by a will or other dispositions, and they must be recognized before any part of the estate can be freely allocated by the decedent.

The class of legittimari typically includes the deceased’s descendants and, depending on the presence and number of other heirs such as a spouse or ascendants, may also involve the spouse or other relatives. The exact size and composition of the legittima are defined by the Italian Civil Code and vary according to the number of forced heirs and the overall value of the estate. The remaining portion of the estate that is not part of the legittima is the disposable or free portion, which the testator may dispose of through a will or lifetime gifts.

If a decedent’s dispositions infringe the legittima, legittimari have legal remedies, commonly through a reduction process (riduzione) of gifts or testamentary dispositions to restore the protected share. Donations made during lifetime can also be subject to adjustment if they threaten the legittima, within statutory limits and timeframes.

Legittime function as a mechanism to protect the interests of close heirs and provide a framework for balance between individual testamentary freedom and family rights. The concept is a hallmark of Italian inheritance law and has closely related equivalents in other civil-law jurisdictions under different names.