I. Legal Framework and Core Concepts

Philippine succession law is primarily governed by the Civil Code provisions on Succession (Book III), as modified in key parts by the Family Code, jurisprudence, and special laws. Inheritance rights of children revolve around three foundational ideas:

Compulsory heirs and legitimes Certain heirs are protected by law and cannot be totally disinherited without a legally recognized cause and proper form. These are compulsory heirs, and the protected portion of the estate reserved for them is the legitime.
Legitimacy status and the “ratio” rule The law distinguishes between legitimate and illegitimate children for purposes of legitimes. The classic rule: an illegitimate child’s legitime is one-half of the legitime of a legitimate child (in comparable settings).
The structure of the estate The estate is divided conceptually into:
- Legitime (reserved by law for compulsory heirs), and
- Free portion (the remainder, which the decedent may dispose of by will within legal limits).

Succession may be:

Testate (by will),
Intestate (no will, invalid will, or will does not cover entire estate), or
Mixed (partly by will, partly by intestacy).

II. Who Are “Legitimate” and “Illegitimate” Children in Succession

A. Legitimate children

A child is generally legitimate if conceived or born during a valid marriage of the parents, or otherwise deemed legitimate under the Family Code rules on legitimacy and legitimation.

Effect in succession: Legitimate children are primary compulsory heirs and usually exclude more remote descendants in the direct line (representation may apply).

B. Illegitimate children

An illegitimate child is one conceived and born outside a valid marriage, unless later legitimated or otherwise granted legitimate status under law.

Effect in succession: Illegitimate children are also compulsory heirs, but their legitime is reduced relative to legitimate children.

C. Legitimation and adoption (important status changers)

Legitimation If the parents were not disqualified from marrying each other at the time of the child’s conception and later validly marry, the child may be legitimated, thereby acquiring rights of a legitimate child for succession purposes.
Adoption A legally adopted child is generally treated as a legitimate child of the adopter for succession, with reciprocal rights between adopter and adoptee, subject to the specific adoption law and jurisprudence in force.

These status changes matter because succession rights flow from the legally recognized parent-child relationship at the time of death.

III. Compulsory Heir Status of Children

Both legitimate and illegitimate children are compulsory heirs of their parent. This means:

They are entitled to their legitime.
They can only be excluded by disinheritance for a lawful cause, made in a will, and in the manner required by law.
Lifetime transfers (donations) may be brought back into account through collation (generally for compulsory heirs), and may be reduced if they impair legitimes (reduction/inoficiosity).

IV. The Legitimes of Legitimate and Illegitimate Children

A. General ratio: the “one-half” principle

In many common configurations, each illegitimate child is entitled to a legitime equal to one-half of the share of each legitimate child, measured against the legitime allocation in the same context.

This does not mean an illegitimate child always receives half of what a legitimate child actually gets in the final distribution (because the free portion can be used to increase some shares), but it governs minimum protected shares.

B. Typical configurations (high-yield patterns)

1) Only legitimate children; no spouse; no parents

Legitimate children generally take the estate in equal shares, subject to standard rules on representation and predecease.

2) Only illegitimate children; no spouse; no parents

Illegitimate children inherit as compulsory heirs. In intestacy, they share among themselves.

3) Legitimate and illegitimate children together (no surviving spouse; no other compulsory heirs)

Legitimate children are entitled to their legitime.
Illegitimate children are entitled to one-half of the legitimate child’s legitime each (as a minimum), applied across the legitime computation.

The estate division will typically be computed by:

Fixing the legitime pool (because children are compulsory heirs), then
Apportioning within the legitime pool using the legitimate:illegitimate ratio rules, and
Adding any allocations from the free portion (by will, if any).

4) Surviving spouse present + children

The surviving spouse is usually also a compulsory heir. The spouse’s legitime depends on whether there are legitimate children, illegitimate children, or both. Children remain compulsory heirs with protected minimum shares, and the spouse’s protected share must also be satisfied.

Because the spouse’s legitime interacts with children’s legitimes, the computations become configuration-specific. The key points that remain constant:

Legitimate children maintain their protected shares.
Illegitimate children maintain their protected shares at reduced ratio.
The spouse’s legitime cannot be impaired by donations or testamentary dispositions.
The free portion shrinks as compulsory heirs increase or their legitimes enlarge.

C. Representation and predecease

If a child (legitimate or illegitimate) predeceases the decedent, that child’s descendants may inherit by right of representation in situations allowed by law. Representation is a major mechanism by which grandchildren step into the place of a deceased child.

Representation rules can affect the “per stirpes” distribution and thereby change relative amounts, but it does not eliminate the principle that compulsory heirs (including descendants who represent) cannot be deprived of their legitimes.

V. Intestate Succession: How Children Inherit When There Is No Will

Intestate succession follows the Civil Code order of succession rules. For children:

Children and descendants are preferred Legitimate children and descendants inherit in the direct descending line. They generally exclude ascendants (parents/grandparents), except in special configurations and subject to recognized rules.
Illegitimate children also inherit from their parent Illegitimate children inherit from their parent, but the manner and proportions must be reconciled with the presence of legitimate children and/or a surviving spouse.
Mixtures of legitimate and illegitimate children In intestacy, when both legitimate and illegitimate children survive, distribution reflects the reduced share of illegitimate children relative to legitimate children in the protected scheme recognized by law.
No discrimination within each class Within the class of legitimate children, shares are equal (subject to representation). Within the class of illegitimate children, shares are equal (subject to representation).

VI. Testate Succession: What a Will Can and Cannot Do

A will cannot defeat legitimes. The decedent may:

Allocate the free portion as desired (subject to formalities and public policy limits),
Impose certain conditions, substitutions, or trusts only if they do not impair legitimes or violate law, morals, good customs, public order, or public policy.

A. Instituting heirs and giving legacies/devices

A testator may:

Institute heirs (universal or fractional successors), and/or
Make legacies (personal property gifts) and devices (real property gifts).

But if these dispositions impair compulsory heirs’ legitimes, they are subject to reduction.

B. Preterition (omission)

If a compulsory heir in the direct line (such as a child) is totally omitted from the will without valid disinheritance, the institution of heirs may be affected under the Civil Code rules on preterition. The usual effect is to protect the compulsory heir’s rights and adjust testamentary dispositions accordingly.

C. Disinheritance of children

Children (legitimate or illegitimate) may be disinherited only if:

The cause is legal,
The disinheritance is made expressly in a valid will,
The cause is stated in the will, and
The cause can be proved if contested.

Improper disinheritance can fail, restoring the child’s legitime rights (and potentially affecting related testamentary provisions).

VII. Donations, Lifetime Transfers, and Their Impact on Children’s Inheritance

A. Collation

Collation is the process by which certain lifetime donations or advancements are brought into the mass of the estate for purposes of computing legitimes and equitable distribution among compulsory heirs.

In practice:

If the parent gave substantial property to one child during life, that gift may be “charged” against that child’s share, depending on the rules applicable to the donation and heir status.
Collation is especially relevant among legitimate children; its application to illegitimate children can be configuration- and jurisprudence-sensitive depending on the nature of the donation and the heirs involved, but the overriding policy remains that legitimes must not be impaired.

B. Reduction of inofficious donations

Even if a donation is valid as a contract, it may be reduced if it impairs legitimes. This is crucial when:

A parent donates most assets to one favored child or to a third party, leaving other children (especially illegitimate children with already reduced shares) with diminished or zero inheritance.

C. Simulation and fraud on legitimes

Transfers disguised as sales but intended as donations may be attacked as simulated or as impairing legitimes. Courts look to intent, consideration, possession, and surrounding circumstances.

VIII. Property Regimes, Conjugal/Community Property, and the “Estate” Children Inherit

A frequent source of confusion is that heirs inherit only from the decedent’s estate, not from property belonging to the surviving spouse.

Under the Family Code property regimes:

In Absolute Community of Property (ACP) or Conjugal Partnership of Gains (CPG), the first step is typically to determine:
1. What portion belongs to the surviving spouse, and
2. What portion belongs to the decedent and forms the estate.

Only the decedent’s share is subject to succession. Children (legitimate and illegitimate) inherit from that share, alongside other compulsory heirs.

IX. Establishing Filiation: The Gateway to Inheritance Rights

Inheritance rights depend on proving the parent-child relationship (filiation). Legitimate children often have filiation established by birth records and marital presumptions. Illegitimate children may need to establish filiation through recognized means.

A. Common modes of proving filiation

Civil registry documents (birth certificate) indicating the parent,
Recognition (voluntary acknowledgment),
Judicial action to establish filiation when not voluntarily recognized,
Other evidence allowed by procedural and substantive law in filiation cases.

Without legally recognized filiation, inheritance rights cannot be enforced.

B. Timing and procedural effects

Filiation disputes may be litigated in estate proceedings. The resolution determines who qualifies as heirs and what shares apply.

X. Partition, Settlement, and Remedies When Rights Are Violated

A. Judicial vs. extrajudicial settlement

Extrajudicial settlement is allowed when heirs are all of age, there are no debts (or they are settled), and all heirs agree.
Judicial settlement is used when there are disputes, minors, unknown heirs, debts, complex assets, or contested filiation.

Illegitimate children are often disadvantaged in informal settlements due to non-disclosure; legal remedies exist.

B. Remedies of an omitted or shortchanged child

A legitimate or illegitimate child may pursue:

Action to recover legitime (compulsory heir’s share),
Annulment or rescission of partition for lesion/defect (when applicable),
Reduction of inofficious testamentary dispositions or donations,
Petition for letters of administration and participation in estate proceedings,
Action to establish filiation, if needed first,
Claims against fraudulent conveyances intended to defeat legitimes.

C. Estate taxes and practical settlement issues

Estate settlement is also shaped by tax compliance and property titling realities. While taxes do not determine heirship, unpaid obligations can delay distributions and complicate partitions.

XI. Frequent Misconceptions (Corrected)

“Illegitimate children cannot inherit.” False. Illegitimate children are compulsory heirs of their parent and have protected inheritance rights.
“A will can totally exclude an illegitimate child.” Not if the child is a compulsory heir and there is no valid disinheritance for a lawful cause in proper form.
“The surviving spouse can give away everything and displace children.” Not from the decedent’s estate. Legitimes limit dispositions, and the surviving spouse’s share depends on property regime and succession rules.
“Putting property in another person’s name avoids inheritance rules.” Not reliably. Simulated or inofficious transfers, and transfers intended to defeat legitimes, can be challenged.

XII. Practical Guide to Computing Shares (Conceptual Workflow)

Because the exact fractions depend on which compulsory heirs survive, the safest method is a structured computation:

Identify the decedent’s net estate Determine what assets belong to the decedent (especially under ACP/CPG), subtract obligations chargeable to the estate, and account for properties subject to collation rules.
Identify all heirs and their statuses
- Legitimate children? Illegitimate children?
- Surviving spouse? Ascendants? Other heirs by representation?
Determine legitimes Compute the reserved portions for compulsory heirs based on the applicable configuration.
Apply testamentary dispositions (if any) Give effect to the will only insofar as it does not impair legitimes; reduce dispositions if needed.
Partition and distribute Implement shares by agreement or by court order, ensuring titles and registries reflect the partition.

XIII. Key Takeaways

Both legitimate and illegitimate children are compulsory heirs of their parent in Philippine succession law.
The law protects children through legitimes, limiting what a parent can dispose of by will or by lifetime donations.
Illegitimate children generally receive a legitime that is one-half of the legitime of a legitimate child in comparable settings, but actual final distributions can vary depending on the presence of other compulsory heirs and the use of the free portion.
Filiation is foundational: without legally recognized parent-child relationship, inheritance rights cannot be enforced.
Wills, donations, and transfers are all subject to reduction if they impair legitimes; omissions and invalid disinheritance can be corrected through estate proceedings and related actions.