Analysis of the european certificate of succession through recent case–law of the EU Court of Justice

Abstract

This study focuses on the analysis of the European Certificate of Succession, created by Regulation 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012, with the aim of streamlining and facilitating transnational successions. This genuinely European instrument constitutes a harmonizing succession instrument. Through the case–law from the Luxembourg Court, this paper addresses the concept, legal nature, content, competent authorities for its issuance, the process for issuing or denying the certificate, as well as the various practical difficulties it faces and which have been the subject of various preliminary rulings. The recent Luxembourg Court decision on 23rd January 2025 in case C–187/23, the so–called Albausy case, clearly illustrates the legal framework within which the European Certificate of Succession operates.