In Malta, testamentary succession and the drawing up of wills are regulated by the Civil Code. Our law stipulates that an inheritance is the estate of a deceased individual which is transferred either through the express disposition of the individual in the form of a will or through pre-determined modes of disposition by operation of the law according to the rules of intestacy in force at the time of the person’s death, in the case of the absence of a will.
The general rule of succession in Malta presupposes that it shall not be lawful to dispose of an inheritance, either wholly or in part, or of any sum of money or other particular subject belonging to an inheritance otherwise than by a will. It is thus of utmost importance that one is fully aware that our law is unequivocal in stating that a will as contemplated by the law, is the only instrument by which a person can make certain dispositions as to how he wants his property to devolve after his death. Any other writing, even if signed by the testator, is deemed invalid. This is fundamentally different to the position in other jurisdictions.
A will is revocable of its nature and thus, a person can revoke a will even if he had bound himself not to revoke such will. At times, however, there may be certain repercussions that one suffers if he changes a will but nevertheless the freedom to change or revoke a will remains. Knowledge of such repercussions is therefore essential in safeguarding the best interest of a testator.
While the law itself allows a person to dispose only part of his property and is not bound to dispose his entire property, the rest of which would then be devolved in terms of his heirs-at-law, the law also restricts a testator who in certain instances is not entirely free to dispose of his assets as he deems fit.
The validity of a will is subject to intrinsic conditions which must be satisfied. Interestingly, however, a will made outside Malta is also valid in Malta provided that it is made in the form prescribed by the law where the will is made.
The law of succession in Malta, amended over the lapse of time, delves beyond the concept of regulating a testator in making a will and its formalities. It in fact incorporates and regulates various notions such as intestate succession, renunciation inheritance, payments of debts and legacies, the concept of the reserved portion, testamentary executors, desertion and the benefit of inventory among others.
