Supreme Court rules lawsuit with improper successor party is illegal

The Supreme Court ruled that a lower court judgment is illegal if it proceeds after accepting an improper application for succession of litigation. The decision clarifies such a ruling is invalid because the legal party lacks the capacity to perform litigation acts, akin to a case where an agent fails to properly represent a client.

The high court addressed Case 2025Da220458, a dispute involving a claim to transfer ownership rights. The original defendant died after first-instance arguments concluded but before the initial judgment was announced. The plaintiff appealed and applied to correct the party designation to include the deceased's children as successors.

While the lower court recognized the children as legitimate successors, one had formally renounced their inheritance during the proceedings, and that renunciation was accepted. The Supreme Court noted that once an inheritance renunciation is accepted, the individual is deemed never to have been an heir from the start. Consequently, the application to succeed the litigation against this person was improper.

The lower court accepted the application and issued a verdict listing the person who had renounced inheritance as a formal party. The Supreme Court determined this procedural error rendered the entire judgment unlawful.