INTESTATE SUCCESSION IN ROMAN LEGAL TRADITION

Sa？etak Inheritance law is divided into two forms: testate succession and intestate succession. Intestate succession is applied to situations when a person failed to make a valid will or when the will a person made was later declared legally invalid, whereby those in closest relationship to the testator are entitled to inherit. The main topic of the paper is intestate succession and its position and development in Roman law. As a starting point, we give insight into general development and the very notion of succession in Roman law and its arrangement, studied through different periods of time in history. Furthermore, the basic elements of inheritance law are elaborated, such as succession prerequisites, the consequences of succession and the legal protection of heirs. The bonorum possessio institute is also elaborated, which has led to significant changes in the context of intestate succession. In the second part of the paper, intestate succession is analyzed in detail, providing insight into changes in the order of succession and the characteristics through civil, praetorian law and Justinian law, respectively. Such analysis gives an overview of the order of succession and the relationship between the heirs. The third part of the paper builds on the previous two parts and describes contemporary law of succession and its influence on the Croatian system of succession. The answer to this question is given by the analysis of the Inheritance Act that regulates the institute of inheritance in the Republic of Croatia and determines the circle of potential intestate heirs. The last part of the paper contains the discussion on the importance of the existence of the aforementioned institute, its purpose and importance to the society and the legal system