Legal Definitions - Falcidian portion

Falcidian portion

In Roman law, the falcidian portion refers to the one-fourth part of an estate that one or more instituted heirs are entitled to retain. This portion is protected from being taken away by forced heirs or other legal claims.

For example, if a person dies and leaves behind an estate worth $400,000, the falcidian portion would be $100,000. If the deceased had two children who were instituted heirs, they would be entitled to split the falcidian portion equally, receiving $50,000 each.

Another example would be if the deceased had only one child who was an instituted heir. In this case, the child would be entitled to the entire falcidian portion of $100,000.

The falcidian portion is a legal concept that ensures that instituted heirs receive a fair share of an estate. It prevents forced heirs or other legal claims from taking away more than a certain portion of the estate, which could leave the instituted heirs with very little or nothing at all. The examples illustrate how the falcidian portion works in practice and how it is divided among instituted heirs.