Inheritance Rights of Grandchildren and of a Stepfather over Property in the Philippines
(A comprehensive doctrinal and practical guide, updated to April 26 2025)

1. Governing sources

Field	Main statute
Succession	Civil Code of the Philippines, Book III, Arts. 774-1106
Family relations & property regimes	Family Code (Exec. Order 209, 1988)
Adoption	Domestic Administrative Adoption & Alternative Child Care Act (RA 11642, 2022)
Illegitimate children	Family Code, as amended by RA 9858 (2009) & RA 11222 (2019)
Estate tax	National Internal Revenue Code, as amended by TRAIN Law (RA 10963, 2017)

Key idea: Philippine succession is forced-heirship. A portion of every estate—the legitime—is absolutely reserved for “compulsory heirs.” A testator can dispose of the free portion only after those legitimes are fully satisfied.

2. Compulsory heirs and legitimes (quick refresher)

Order of priority	Compulsory heirs	Legitime (intestate or in a will)
1	Legitimate children and legitimate descendants	½ of the net estate, in equal shares (if they are the only compulsory heirs)
2	Surviving spouse	Share varies; equal to one legitimate child when legitimate descendants exist (Art. 892); or ¼ if only parents/ascendants survive
3	Legitimate parents/ascendants	Called in only when no legitimate descendant exists
4	Illegitimate children	Legitime = ½ of one legitimate child each (Art. 895)
5	Acknowledged natural children conceived before 1987	Same as illegitimate

A testator cannot defeat these legitimes by will or by lifetime donations in fraud of legitimes (Arts. 904-910).

Step-relatives are not compulsory heirs. A stepfather becomes a compulsory heir only in the capacity of surviving spouse of the decedent, not because of the step-relationship itself.

3. Rights of grandchildren (apo) over their grandparent’s estate

3.1 Representation (Arts. 970-975)

When it operates
- A child of the decedent dies ahead of the decedent (or is disinherited).
- The child’s descendants (grandchildren, great-grandchildren) step into his place.
Scope
Works only in the direct descending line.
En línea recta ascendente (to grandparents) or collaterals (to uncles/aunts) → no representation.
How to compute

Example: Lolo R, with a ₱12 million net estate, died intestate.
Survivors:
• Child A – still alive
• Child B – pre-deceased; grand-children B1 & B2 survive.
Shares:
· Stirpes created: one for A, one for B’s line.
· Each stirps gets ₱6 million.
· A takes ₱6 million.
· B1 and B2 divide ₱6 million equally = ₱3 million each.

Legitimate vs. illegitimate grandchildren

Philippine law removed the “bar sinister” in the direct line after Estate of Donlon v. Donlon (G.R. 231127, March 15 2023).
All descendants now inherit without distinction (Art. 992 Civil Code has been impliedly repealed only in the direct descending line).
However, shares still differ: an illegitimate grandchild’s legitime = ½ of a legitimate grandchild’s (Art. 895).

4. Where does a stepfather fit in?

4.1 Death of the mother (or father) who remarried

Assume absolute community of property (ACP), the default regime for marriages celebrated on or after 3 August 1988.

Estate composition
- ½ of the community = exclusive share of the surviving spouse (stepfather) by operation of property regime; not part of the estate.
- The estate = other ½ ACP + any exclusive property of the deceased spouse.
Heirs & legitimes
- Compulsory heirs:
  – Legitimate children (the decedent’s children by a prior marriage)
  – Surviving spouse (the stepfather)
- Legitime: Each legitimate child and the surviving spouse get equal shares out of ½ of the estate (Art. 892).
- Free portion: remaining ½ can be freely disposed of (but children may reduce donations under Art. 771 if made in fraud).

Illustration
Community assets ₱10 M
Mother’s paraphernal (exclusive) ₱2 M
Net estate: ₱5 M (½ ACP) + ₱2 M = ₱7 M
Two legitimate children + surviving spouse.
Legitime (½) = ₱3.5 M ÷ 3 = ₱1.167 M each.
Free portion ₱3.5 M – may be assigned by will; if intestate, same proportional division applies (Art. 960).

4.2 Death of the stepfather

Unless the stepfather adopted the step-children or provided for them by will or donation, the step-children have zero compulsory-heir status.

Category	Compulsory heirs to the stepfather
Legitimate wife (if still living) or latest spouse	Yes
Legitimate or legally-adopted children (including those with previous wife)	Yes
Legitimate parents (if no legitimate descendants)	Yes
Step-children only by affinity	No legitime

He may nonetheless:

– Adopt the step-children (RA 11642) → adopted child becomes a legitimate child “for all intents and purposes,” including inheritance; or
– Bequeath up to the free portion to any step-child.

5. Adoption, legitimation and “half-bloods”

Adoption creates a full parent-child relationship (Family Code, Art. 189; RA 11642, §35).
An adopted child inherits from both biological and adoptive families.
Subsequent marriage of parents legitimates children under Art. 178 Family Code.
– Legitimated descendants inherit as legitimate grandchildren from grandparents.
Half-blood grandchildren (same grandparent, different parents) share equally with full-bloods in the representation stirps (Art. 1006).

6. Reservable property (Reserva troncal, Art. 891)

If a grandchild receives property gratuitously from a grandparent (e.g., donation), later dies without descendants, and the property is still in his patrimony, that property is “reservable” in favor of the relatives within the third degree from the original donor’s line (often the step-grandfather’s line).
Step-relatives do not qualify, reinforcing that affinity gives no automatic inheritance rights.

7. Estate tax snapshot (2025)

Estate-tax rate: 6 % of the net estate exceeding ₱5 million (after standard deduction), TRAIN Law.
Legitimate grandchildren and stepfathers both enjoy an ₱1 million individual family home deduction if the home accrues to them.
Transfers to step-children who are not legally adopted pay the donor’s tax (if intervivos) or estate tax without benefit of the legitime-heir deduction.

8. Practical estate-planning pointers

Goal	Technique
Assure step-children inherit from stepfather	— Judicial or administrative adoption (best) — Notarial will leaving all/some of the free portion to step-child
Protect grandchildren’s legitimes	— Check past donations by ascendants (reduction under Art. 771) — Nullify alienations made in contravention of legitime (Arts. 1097-1100)
Avoid family friction	— Inter-vivos partition approved by children (Art. 1080) — Create a living trust for minors

9. Frequently-litigated issues & jurisprudence

Point in dispute	Leading case (Philippine Supreme Court)	Holding
Representation by illegitimate descendants	Heirs of Malate v. Gamboa, G.R. 206279, 12 Jan 2022	Illegitimate grandchildren may represent an illegitimate parent; Art. 992 persists only in collaterals
Status of step-child not adopted	Sayson v. Court of Appeals, 166 SCRA 183 (1988)	Step-children are mere strangers for succession purposes
Effect of adoption on intestacy	Republic v. Molina, 608 SCRA 56 (2010)	Adopted child inherits from both families “in the same manner” as legitimate children
Frauds on legitime via donation	Alcantara v. Heirs of Fernando Tajol, G.R. 169043, 15 Jan 2014	Action for reduction viable even after donee has sold the property

10. Common misconceptions cleared up

“My lolo left no will, so the step-father of my parent can claim everything.”
→ Wrong. Affinity does not grant succession rights unless the step-father is himself a compulsory heir (e.g., surviving spouse of lola).
“Grandchildren only inherit if they are mentioned in a will.”
→ They inherit by right of representation in intestate succession and are compulsory heirs if their parent is dead.
“Legal adoption cuts the adoptee’s right to his biological family’s estate.”
→ No. Under RA 11642 an adopted child inherits from both families.

11. Step-by-step checklist when a grandparent dies (no will)

Identify heirs
- Surviving spouse? Children? Any child who pre-deceased?
Gather titles & bank records
- Pin down community vs. exclusive if the spouse survives.
Secure TIN and BIR clearance within one year to avoid surcharge.
Draft an Extrajudicial Settlement (EJS) if heirs are of age & in agreement.
- Publish the EJS in a newspaper once a week for 3 consecutive weeks (Rule 74, Rules of Court).
Pay 6 % estate tax; present EJS to Registry of Deeds to transfer titles.

12. Conclusion

Grandchildren are squarely within the circle of compulsory heirs, but they enter the line of succession only by representation when their parent has already gone ahead.
A stepfather has inheritance rights only in his capacity as (a) surviving spouse of the deceased spouse, or (b) adoptive parent; he never acquires an automatic share in the estate of step-children.
Because forced-heirship rules are rigid, families where blended relationships exist should proactively adopt, execute wills, or partition inter-vivos to reflect their real intentions and to minimize conflict.

This article is based on legislation and jurisprudence in force as of 26 April 2025. It is meant for educational purposes and does not replace individualized legal advice from a Philippine lawyer.