You have received a letter from Cabinet Frayre & Associés, you are potentially a heir in succession. After signing an agreement with Cabinet Frayre & Associés, here are the 5 steps of estate succession procedure.
The revelation contract (also called a proof‑of‑law agreement), once accepted by the heirs or legatees, ensures that they receive a full service while bearing no financial risk whatsoever.
Cabinet Frayre undertakes the assignment at its own risk and accepts the possibility of receiving no remuneration if the process is unsuccessful or if the estate’s liabilities exceed its assets.
Remuneration is only due to Cabinet Frayre & Associés if the estate is successfully settled and is calculated on the amount actually accruing to each heir, according to their degree of kinship.
The fees stipulated in the contract offered to the heir are only collected if the inheritance process is successful.
If, however, the liabilities of the estate exceed the expected assets, Cabinet Frayre will bear all the costs incurred.
Yet, French law, for instance, allows inheritance up to the sixth degree of kinship.
Are you certain you know all the descendants of all the siblings of each of your four grandparents?
When Cabinet Frayre identifies a potential heir, they must first sign a contingency fee agreement to learn the deceased's name and the value of the inheritance. This agreement ensures the genealogist's legitimate compensation.
It protects the heir against any inheritance-related risks by guaranteeing the success of the research. The agreement clearly stipulates that no sums will be requested beyond the agreed-upon fees, and, most importantly, it completely exempts the heir from any financial risk, including in the event of inheritance liabilities.
French law organises heirs into four distinct orders, where closer relatives exclude more distant ones:
1st Order: Descendants
Children and their direct descendants (grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc.).
2nd Order: Ascendants & Privileged Collaterals
Parents, siblings (brothers and sisters), and their descendants (nieces/nephews).
3rd Order: Other Ascendants
Grandparents, great-grandparents (excluding parents already covered in Order 2).
4th Order: Other Collaterals
Uncles, aunts, first cousins, and more distant relatives.
The surviving spouse holds a special position: they inherit alongside heirs from Orders 1 and 2 but completely exclude Orders 3 and 4. [Article 743-1 Civil Code]
Each order excludes all subsequent ones. Within an order, the closest degree of kinship takes priority. However, representation allows descendants of a predeceased heir to claim their parent’s share (e.g., grandchildren inherit for a deceased child).
Direct Line (Ancestors/Descendants):
Count generations only.
Example: Grandfather → Father → Child = 2 degrees [Article 743-1 Civil Code].
Collateral Line (Common Ancestor):
Ascend to the common ancestor, then descend to the relative.
Example – First cousins:
Deceased → Mother → Maternal Grandparents → Uncle/Aunt → Cousin = 4 degrees.
Siblings: Deceased → Parents → Sibling = 2 degrees.
Legal limit: Inheritance rights stop at 6 degrees of kinship from the deceased.
This system ensures estates flow logically to closest family while protecting representation rights.
Once the heir(s) are located, Cabinet Frayre will contact them and offer a contingency fee agreement. Through this agreement, the genealogist commits to providing the heir with proof of their inheritance rights. The agreement also stipulates the genealogist's fee.
This contingency fee agreement is subject to the legislation on door-to-door sales (Article L121-23 et seq. of the French Consumer Code). A right of withdrawal is included in the agreement. By signing this agreement and subsequently delegating the estate settlement, the heir engages the Cabinet Frayre firm to represent and defend their interests.
The genealogist and heir searcher's contract protects the heir from any risk associated with the existence of an estate's liabilities.
If the genealogist, acting on behalf of the heir, accepts an insolvent estate, they alone will bear the consequences.
The heir incurs no risk.
