INHERITANCE LAW
Compulsory share in Cologne: pursuing claims or defending against them
Either you have been passed over in a will and want to know what you are entitled to, or you have become an heir and are being asked to pay. I handle both sides as a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne: I establish what the estate contains, calculate the claim and either enforce it or defend against it. I bill for the time I actually spend.
Compulsory share in Cologne: a claim for money, not a share in the estate
Anyone excluded from the succession by a will or a contract of inheritance does not thereby become a co-heir, but does acquire a claim for money. The compulsory share amounts to half the value of the statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code) and takes the form of a payment claim against the heir or the community of heirs.
Two things follow from that, and they regularly come as a surprise: you cannot demand any individual item from the estate, no piece of jewellery, no plot of land, no say in a sale. But nor do you have to go along with a community of heirs, and you are not liable for the estate's debts.
Who is entitled to a compulsory share
Entitled are the deceased's descendants, that is, children, including adopted children and children born outside marriage. Grandchildren only take the place of a child who died before the deceased or who effectively waived their rights. The surviving spouse or registered civil partner is also entitled. The deceased's parents are entitled only where there are no descendants.
Not entitled: siblings, nieces and nephews, children-in-law, unmarried partners, stepchildren who have not been adopted. This examination always comes first, because it often disposes of half the dispute.
The share depends on the statutory succession
The calculation runs in two steps: determine the statutory share, then halve it. Two children, no surviving spouse, one child disinherited: statutory share one half, compulsory share one quarter of the value of the estate. Someone excluded by a will is counted in this calculation; someone who has withdrawn through a notarial waiver of inheritance rights is not (section 2310 German Civil Code).
For the surviving spouse the matrimonial property regime comes in as well. In the community of accrued gains, section 1371(1) increases the statutory share by a flat quarter. It can be more favourable for the spouse to disclaim the inheritance and to claim the equalisation of accrued gains alongside the compulsory share. That decision is under time pressure, because the period for disclaiming is six weeks (section 1944).
Information and valuation are claims in their own right
Without figures the share is worthless. A person entitled to a compulsory share who is not an heir can demand a schedule of the estate's assets from the heir, can demand to be present when it is drawn up, and can require an officially prepared, that is, notarial schedule of the estate (section 2314 German Civil Code).
With a notarial schedule the notary establishes the assets themselves rather than simply adopting the heir's list. Added to that is the claim to a valuation, for example by an expert report for a property. The costs fall on the estate (section 2314(2)), not on the claimant alone.
Lifetime gifts: a supplementary claim that melts away
Giving assets away before death does not automatically reduce the compulsory share. The claimant can demand that a gift be added back to the estate and claim the additional amount as a supplement to the compulsory share (section 2325 German Civil Code). If the estate is not sufficient for the supplement, the claim can be directed against the recipient of the gift (section 2329).
The value melts away: a gift made in the last year before the death is taken into account in full, one tenth less for each further year, and after ten years it is left out of account (section 2325(3)). Whether the ten-year period starts to run at all where the donor reserved a comprehensive right of residence or usufruct is one of the most frequent points of dispute.
Crediting, equalisation, deferral
On the other side there are items that reduce the claim. A benefit the deceased gave a child during their lifetime is credited against the compulsory share if the deceased so directed when making it (section 2315 German Civil Code). It cannot be done retrospectively.
Where a descendant cared for the deceased or worked in the business, that can have an effect through equalisation among descendants (section 2316). The estate's liabilities are deducted from its value, including the costs of the funeral (section 1968). Where immediate payment would force the heir into a distress sale, they can demand deferral under narrow conditions (section 2331a).
Limitation: three years, counted from the end of the year
The claim to a compulsory share becomes time-barred under the general rules after three years (section 195 German Civil Code). The period begins at the end of the year in which the claim arose and the claimant learned of the death and of the disposition excluding them (section 199(1)).
Anyone who sees the will in March 2026 has to act by the end of 2029. Without knowledge it ends after 30 years at the latest (section 199(3a)). Negotiations about the claim suspend limitation (section 203), but only while they continue. Anyone who can no longer be sure of the deadline needs a written declaration waiving the limitation defence, or has to sue.
Where money is lost in compulsory share cases
01
Waiting for information while the clock runs
The right to information and the claim for payment become time-barred separately, and correspondence about documents does not stop the clock for the main claim. The claim then still exists in law but can no longer be enforced.
02
Accepting estate values unchecked
The heir produces a schedule in which the property appears at its tax value. Anyone who accepts that is negotiating about the wrong figure. With a flat in Cologne, the difference between tax value and market value can wipe out the whole compulsory share.
03
Not securing the documents
Bank statements for the last ten years, land register extracts, transfer and gift agreements, life insurance policies with a beneficiary, company shares. If these are not requested early, they disappear. That leads to evidential problems in a case that cannot be won without figures.
04
Acknowledging or paying too soon
On the heir's side this happens out of a sense of duty or to avoid a fight: a sum is confirmed, a payment on account is transferred without reservation, or a settlement agreement is signed before liabilities, crediting and valuation have been examined. Money paid over and above what is owed practically never comes back.
05
Not investigating gifts
Both sides underestimate how often the supplementary claim under section 2325 German Civil Code makes up the real value of the case. The claimant then gives up part of their entitlement, or the heir pays on a gift that had long since melted away.
How I proceed
01
If you are pursuing a compulsory share
First I review the will, the record of its opening, the certificate of inheritance and the land register, and establish entitlement and share. Then a request for information and valuation goes to the heir with a deadline.
02
Investigating gifts, demanding a quantified payment
In parallel I work through the gifts made in the last ten years. Only once the figures stand is a quantified payment demanded. If limitation is approaching, I secure the position, if necessary by a staged action (section 254 Code of Civil Procedure).
03
If you are defending against a claim
I first examine whether the entitlement and the share are correct at all, then the assets: which liabilities reduce the estate, which lifetime gifts have to be credited, which valuation is reliable.
04
After that it is about liquidity
Most heirs have property and no cash: payment by instalments, deferral, part payment subject to reservation, and if in doubt a defence in court. Information is provided because it is owed, but completely and in a controlled way.
A typical situation
01
Two siblings, one sole heir, the family home in Cologne
The property was partly transferred to the sole heir seven years ago, with the deceased retaining a right of residence. Two questions then arise: what was the market value of the property at the date of death, and what effect does that earlier transfer have.
Office in Cologne, cases throughout Germany
Appointments take place at Jakordenstrasse 8 in 50668 Cologne, by video or by phone on request. A will is opened where the deceased last had their habitual residence (section 343(1) FamFG): for an estate in Cologne, the probate court at the Cologne Local Court is the address for the record of the opening and for the certificate of inheritance.
As a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne I run compulsory share cases for clients from Cologne and the surrounding area, from Bergisch Gladbach to Pulheim, and throughout Germany as well, wherever the court happens to sit.
YOUR QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
The compulsory share amounts to half the value of your statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code). With two children and no surviving spouse that is one quarter of the value of the estate, with three children one sixth. For a spouse the share depends on the matrimonial property regime. What counts is the value of the estate at the date of death, less its liabilities. Supplementary claims for gifts can be added, and lifetime benefits to be credited can be deducted.
The heir has to produce a complete schedule of the estate's assets (section 2314 German Civil Code). That includes accounts, securities, property and company shares, as well as the liabilities and the gifts that matter for the supplementary claim. You can require a notarial schedule of the estate; the notary then establishes the position themselves. For property and company shares there is a claim to a valuation, the cost of which is borne by the estate.
It becomes time-barred after three years, counted from the end of the year in which you learned of the death and of the disposition excluding you from the succession (sections 195 and 199(1) German Civil Code). If you learn of the will in May 2026, the period expires at the end of 2029. Serious negotiations suspend limitation (section 203); silence from the other side does not.
You should have four points examined before acknowledging anything: entitlement and share, the estate's assets including liabilities, the valuation of property and company shares, and whether the deceased made any gifts with a direction that they be credited (section 2315 German Civil Code). What you should not do: confirm a sum or pay anything on account while the figures are still unsettled.
I bill by time, at an hourly rate of 280 euros plus 19% VAT, and you receive an invoice with a detailed record of the work done. The statutory fees under the German Lawyers' Fees Act (RVG) form the minimum. Billing through legal expenses insurance is possible. As a rule the insurer only pays the statutory fees; you bear the difference to the hourly fee.
Have your compulsory share examined in Cologne
The first step is the same on both sides: review the documents and work out where the deadline stands. Bring what you have, even if it is incomplete. Appointments at Jakordenstrasse 8 in Cologne, by video or by phone.
INHERITANCE LAW
Compulsory share in Cologne: pursuing claims or defending against them
Either you have been passed over in a will and want to know what you are entitled to, or you have become an heir and are being asked to pay. I handle both sides as a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne: I establish what the estate contains, calculate the claim and either enforce it or defend against it. I bill for the time I actually spend.
Compulsory share in Cologne: a claim for money, not a share in the estate
Anyone excluded from the succession by a will or a contract of inheritance does not thereby become a co-heir, but does acquire a claim for money. The compulsory share amounts to half the value of the statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code) and takes the form of a payment claim against the heir or the community of heirs.
Two things follow from that, and they regularly come as a surprise: you cannot demand any individual item from the estate, no piece of jewellery, no plot of land, no say in a sale. But nor do you have to go along with a community of heirs, and you are not liable for the estate's debts.
Who is entitled to a compulsory share
Entitled are the deceased's descendants, that is, children, including adopted children and children born outside marriage. Grandchildren only take the place of a child who died before the deceased or who effectively waived their rights. The surviving spouse or registered civil partner is also entitled. The deceased's parents are entitled only where there are no descendants.
Not entitled: siblings, nieces and nephews, children-in-law, unmarried partners, stepchildren who have not been adopted. This examination always comes first, because it often disposes of half the dispute.
The share depends on the statutory succession
The calculation runs in two steps: determine the statutory share, then halve it. Two children, no surviving spouse, one child disinherited: statutory share one half, compulsory share one quarter of the value of the estate. Someone excluded by a will is counted in this calculation; someone who has withdrawn through a notarial waiver of inheritance rights is not (section 2310 German Civil Code).
For the surviving spouse the matrimonial property regime comes in as well. In the community of accrued gains, section 1371(1) increases the statutory share by a flat quarter. It can be more favourable for the spouse to disclaim the inheritance and to claim the equalisation of accrued gains alongside the compulsory share. That decision is under time pressure, because the period for disclaiming is six weeks (section 1944).
Information and valuation are claims in their own right
Without figures the share is worthless. A person entitled to a compulsory share who is not an heir can demand a schedule of the estate's assets from the heir, can demand to be present when it is drawn up, and can require an officially prepared, that is, notarial schedule of the estate (section 2314 German Civil Code).
With a notarial schedule the notary establishes the assets themselves rather than simply adopting the heir's list. Added to that is the claim to a valuation, for example by an expert report for a property. The costs fall on the estate (section 2314(2)), not on the claimant alone.
Lifetime gifts: a supplementary claim that melts away
Giving assets away before death does not automatically reduce the compulsory share. The claimant can demand that a gift be added back to the estate and claim the additional amount as a supplement to the compulsory share (section 2325 German Civil Code). If the estate is not sufficient for the supplement, the claim can be directed against the recipient of the gift (section 2329).
The value melts away: a gift made in the last year before the death is taken into account in full, one tenth less for each further year, and after ten years it is left out of account (section 2325(3)). Whether the ten-year period starts to run at all where the donor reserved a comprehensive right of residence or usufruct is one of the most frequent points of dispute.
Crediting, equalisation, deferral
On the other side there are items that reduce the claim. A benefit the deceased gave a child during their lifetime is credited against the compulsory share if the deceased so directed when making it (section 2315 German Civil Code). It cannot be done retrospectively.
Where a descendant cared for the deceased or worked in the business, that can have an effect through equalisation among descendants (section 2316). The estate's liabilities are deducted from its value, including the costs of the funeral (section 1968). Where immediate payment would force the heir into a distress sale, they can demand deferral under narrow conditions (section 2331a).
Limitation: three years, counted from the end of the year
The claim to a compulsory share becomes time-barred under the general rules after three years (section 195 German Civil Code). The period begins at the end of the year in which the claim arose and the claimant learned of the death and of the disposition excluding them (section 199(1)).
Anyone who sees the will in March 2026 has to act by the end of 2029. Without knowledge it ends after 30 years at the latest (section 199(3a)). Negotiations about the claim suspend limitation (section 203), but only while they continue. Anyone who can no longer be sure of the deadline needs a written declaration waiving the limitation defence, or has to sue.
Where money is lost in compulsory share cases
01
Waiting for information while the clock runs
The right to information and the claim for payment become time-barred separately, and correspondence about documents does not stop the clock for the main claim. The claim then still exists in law but can no longer be enforced.
02
Accepting estate values unchecked
The heir produces a schedule in which the property appears at its tax value. Anyone who accepts that is negotiating about the wrong figure. With a flat in Cologne, the difference between tax value and market value can wipe out the whole compulsory share.
03
Not securing the documents
Bank statements for the last ten years, land register extracts, transfer and gift agreements, life insurance policies with a beneficiary, company shares. If these are not requested early, they disappear. That leads to evidential problems in a case that cannot be won without figures.
04
Acknowledging or paying too soon
On the heir's side this happens out of a sense of duty or to avoid a fight: a sum is confirmed, a payment on account is transferred without reservation, or a settlement agreement is signed before liabilities, crediting and valuation have been examined. Money paid over and above what is owed practically never comes back.
05
Not investigating gifts
Both sides underestimate how often the supplementary claim under section 2325 German Civil Code makes up the real value of the case. The claimant then gives up part of their entitlement, or the heir pays on a gift that had long since melted away.
How I proceed
01
If you are pursuing a compulsory share
First I review the will, the record of its opening, the certificate of inheritance and the land register, and establish entitlement and share. Then a request for information and valuation goes to the heir with a deadline.
02
Investigating gifts, demanding a quantified payment
In parallel I work through the gifts made in the last ten years. Only once the figures stand is a quantified payment demanded. If limitation is approaching, I secure the position, if necessary by a staged action (section 254 Code of Civil Procedure).
03
If you are defending against a claim
I first examine whether the entitlement and the share are correct at all, then the assets: which liabilities reduce the estate, which lifetime gifts have to be credited, which valuation is reliable.
04
After that it is about liquidity
Most heirs have property and no cash: payment by instalments, deferral, part payment subject to reservation, and if in doubt a defence in court. Information is provided because it is owed, but completely and in a controlled way.
A typical situation
01
Two siblings, one sole heir, the family home in Cologne
The property was partly transferred to the sole heir seven years ago, with the deceased retaining a right of residence. Two questions then arise: what was the market value of the property at the date of death, and what effect does that earlier transfer have.
Office in Cologne, cases throughout Germany
Appointments take place at Jakordenstrasse 8 in 50668 Cologne, by video or by phone on request. A will is opened where the deceased last had their habitual residence (section 343(1) FamFG): for an estate in Cologne, the probate court at the Cologne Local Court is the address for the record of the opening and for the certificate of inheritance.
As a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne I run compulsory share cases for clients from Cologne and the surrounding area, from Bergisch Gladbach to Pulheim, and throughout Germany as well, wherever the court happens to sit.
YOUR QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
The compulsory share amounts to half the value of your statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code). With two children and no surviving spouse that is one quarter of the value of the estate, with three children one sixth. For a spouse the share depends on the matrimonial property regime. What counts is the value of the estate at the date of death, less its liabilities. Supplementary claims for gifts can be added, and lifetime benefits to be credited can be deducted.
The heir has to produce a complete schedule of the estate's assets (section 2314 German Civil Code). That includes accounts, securities, property and company shares, as well as the liabilities and the gifts that matter for the supplementary claim. You can require a notarial schedule of the estate; the notary then establishes the position themselves. For property and company shares there is a claim to a valuation, the cost of which is borne by the estate.
It becomes time-barred after three years, counted from the end of the year in which you learned of the death and of the disposition excluding you from the succession (sections 195 and 199(1) German Civil Code). If you learn of the will in May 2026, the period expires at the end of 2029. Serious negotiations suspend limitation (section 203); silence from the other side does not.
You should have four points examined before acknowledging anything: entitlement and share, the estate's assets including liabilities, the valuation of property and company shares, and whether the deceased made any gifts with a direction that they be credited (section 2315 German Civil Code). What you should not do: confirm a sum or pay anything on account while the figures are still unsettled.
I bill by time, at an hourly rate of 280 euros plus 19% VAT, and you receive an invoice with a detailed record of the work done. The statutory fees under the German Lawyers' Fees Act (RVG) form the minimum. Billing through legal expenses insurance is possible. As a rule the insurer only pays the statutory fees; you bear the difference to the hourly fee.
Have your compulsory share examined in Cologne
The first step is the same on both sides: review the documents and work out where the deadline stands. Bring what you have, even if it is incomplete. Appointments at Jakordenstrasse 8 in Cologne, by video or by phone.
INHERITANCE LAW
Compulsory share in Cologne: pursuing claims or defending against them
Either you have been passed over in a will and want to know what you are entitled to, or you have become an heir and are being asked to pay. I handle both sides as a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne: I establish what the estate contains, calculate the claim and either enforce it or defend against it. I bill for the time I actually spend.
Compulsory share in Cologne: a claim for money, not a share in the estate
Anyone excluded from the succession by a will or a contract of inheritance does not thereby become a co-heir, but does acquire a claim for money. The compulsory share amounts to half the value of the statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code) and takes the form of a payment claim against the heir or the community of heirs.
Two things follow from that, and they regularly come as a surprise: you cannot demand any individual item from the estate, no piece of jewellery, no plot of land, no say in a sale. But nor do you have to go along with a community of heirs, and you are not liable for the estate's debts.
Who is entitled to a compulsory share
Entitled are the deceased's descendants, that is, children, including adopted children and children born outside marriage. Grandchildren only take the place of a child who died before the deceased or who effectively waived their rights. The surviving spouse or registered civil partner is also entitled. The deceased's parents are entitled only where there are no descendants.
Not entitled: siblings, nieces and nephews, children-in-law, unmarried partners, stepchildren who have not been adopted. This examination always comes first, because it often disposes of half the dispute.
The share depends on the statutory succession
The calculation runs in two steps: determine the statutory share, then halve it. Two children, no surviving spouse, one child disinherited: statutory share one half, compulsory share one quarter of the value of the estate. Someone excluded by a will is counted in this calculation; someone who has withdrawn through a notarial waiver of inheritance rights is not (section 2310 German Civil Code).
For the surviving spouse the matrimonial property regime comes in as well. In the community of accrued gains, section 1371(1) increases the statutory share by a flat quarter. It can be more favourable for the spouse to disclaim the inheritance and to claim the equalisation of accrued gains alongside the compulsory share. That decision is under time pressure, because the period for disclaiming is six weeks (section 1944).
Information and valuation are claims in their own right
Without figures the share is worthless. A person entitled to a compulsory share who is not an heir can demand a schedule of the estate's assets from the heir, can demand to be present when it is drawn up, and can require an officially prepared, that is, notarial schedule of the estate (section 2314 German Civil Code).
With a notarial schedule the notary establishes the assets themselves rather than simply adopting the heir's list. Added to that is the claim to a valuation, for example by an expert report for a property. The costs fall on the estate (section 2314(2)), not on the claimant alone.
Lifetime gifts: a supplementary claim that melts away
Giving assets away before death does not automatically reduce the compulsory share. The claimant can demand that a gift be added back to the estate and claim the additional amount as a supplement to the compulsory share (section 2325 German Civil Code). If the estate is not sufficient for the supplement, the claim can be directed against the recipient of the gift (section 2329).
The value melts away: a gift made in the last year before the death is taken into account in full, one tenth less for each further year, and after ten years it is left out of account (section 2325(3)). Whether the ten-year period starts to run at all where the donor reserved a comprehensive right of residence or usufruct is one of the most frequent points of dispute.
Crediting, equalisation, deferral
On the other side there are items that reduce the claim. A benefit the deceased gave a child during their lifetime is credited against the compulsory share if the deceased so directed when making it (section 2315 German Civil Code). It cannot be done retrospectively.
Where a descendant cared for the deceased or worked in the business, that can have an effect through equalisation among descendants (section 2316). The estate's liabilities are deducted from its value, including the costs of the funeral (section 1968). Where immediate payment would force the heir into a distress sale, they can demand deferral under narrow conditions (section 2331a).
Limitation: three years, counted from the end of the year
The claim to a compulsory share becomes time-barred under the general rules after three years (section 195 German Civil Code). The period begins at the end of the year in which the claim arose and the claimant learned of the death and of the disposition excluding them (section 199(1)).
Anyone who sees the will in March 2026 has to act by the end of 2029. Without knowledge it ends after 30 years at the latest (section 199(3a)). Negotiations about the claim suspend limitation (section 203), but only while they continue. Anyone who can no longer be sure of the deadline needs a written declaration waiving the limitation defence, or has to sue.
Where money is lost in compulsory share cases
01
Waiting for information while the clock runs
The right to information and the claim for payment become time-barred separately, and correspondence about documents does not stop the clock for the main claim. The claim then still exists in law but can no longer be enforced.
02
Accepting estate values unchecked
The heir produces a schedule in which the property appears at its tax value. Anyone who accepts that is negotiating about the wrong figure. With a flat in Cologne, the difference between tax value and market value can wipe out the whole compulsory share.
03
Not securing the documents
Bank statements for the last ten years, land register extracts, transfer and gift agreements, life insurance policies with a beneficiary, company shares. If these are not requested early, they disappear. That leads to evidential problems in a case that cannot be won without figures.
04
Acknowledging or paying too soon
On the heir's side this happens out of a sense of duty or to avoid a fight: a sum is confirmed, a payment on account is transferred without reservation, or a settlement agreement is signed before liabilities, crediting and valuation have been examined. Money paid over and above what is owed practically never comes back.
05
Not investigating gifts
Both sides underestimate how often the supplementary claim under section 2325 German Civil Code makes up the real value of the case. The claimant then gives up part of their entitlement, or the heir pays on a gift that had long since melted away.
How I proceed
01
If you are pursuing a compulsory share
First I review the will, the record of its opening, the certificate of inheritance and the land register, and establish entitlement and share. Then a request for information and valuation goes to the heir with a deadline.
02
Investigating gifts, demanding a quantified payment
In parallel I work through the gifts made in the last ten years. Only once the figures stand is a quantified payment demanded. If limitation is approaching, I secure the position, if necessary by a staged action (section 254 Code of Civil Procedure).
03
If you are defending against a claim
I first examine whether the entitlement and the share are correct at all, then the assets: which liabilities reduce the estate, which lifetime gifts have to be credited, which valuation is reliable.
04
After that it is about liquidity
Most heirs have property and no cash: payment by instalments, deferral, part payment subject to reservation, and if in doubt a defence in court. Information is provided because it is owed, but completely and in a controlled way.
A typical situation
01
Two siblings, one sole heir, the family home in Cologne
The property was partly transferred to the sole heir seven years ago, with the deceased retaining a right of residence. Two questions then arise: what was the market value of the property at the date of death, and what effect does that earlier transfer have.
Office in Cologne, cases throughout Germany
Appointments take place at Jakordenstrasse 8 in 50668 Cologne, by video or by phone on request. A will is opened where the deceased last had their habitual residence (section 343(1) FamFG): for an estate in Cologne, the probate court at the Cologne Local Court is the address for the record of the opening and for the certificate of inheritance.
As a lawyer for inheritance law in Cologne I run compulsory share cases for clients from Cologne and the surrounding area, from Bergisch Gladbach to Pulheim, and throughout Germany as well, wherever the court happens to sit.
YOUR QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
The compulsory share amounts to half the value of your statutory share of the estate (section 2303 German Civil Code). With two children and no surviving spouse that is one quarter of the value of the estate, with three children one sixth. For a spouse the share depends on the matrimonial property regime. What counts is the value of the estate at the date of death, less its liabilities. Supplementary claims for gifts can be added, and lifetime benefits to be credited can be deducted.
The heir has to produce a complete schedule of the estate's assets (section 2314 German Civil Code). That includes accounts, securities, property and company shares, as well as the liabilities and the gifts that matter for the supplementary claim. You can require a notarial schedule of the estate; the notary then establishes the position themselves. For property and company shares there is a claim to a valuation, the cost of which is borne by the estate.
It becomes time-barred after three years, counted from the end of the year in which you learned of the death and of the disposition excluding you from the succession (sections 195 and 199(1) German Civil Code). If you learn of the will in May 2026, the period expires at the end of 2029. Serious negotiations suspend limitation (section 203); silence from the other side does not.
You should have four points examined before acknowledging anything: entitlement and share, the estate's assets including liabilities, the valuation of property and company shares, and whether the deceased made any gifts with a direction that they be credited (section 2315 German Civil Code). What you should not do: confirm a sum or pay anything on account while the figures are still unsettled.
I bill by time, at an hourly rate of 280 euros plus 19% VAT, and you receive an invoice with a detailed record of the work done. The statutory fees under the German Lawyers' Fees Act (RVG) form the minimum. Billing through legal expenses insurance is possible. As a rule the insurer only pays the statutory fees; you bear the difference to the hourly fee.
Have your compulsory share examined in Cologne
The first step is the same on both sides: review the documents and work out where the deadline stands. Bring what you have, even if it is incomplete. Appointments at Jakordenstrasse 8 in Cologne, by video or by phone.