Free practitioner guide
Protect the Pflichtteil exposure, keep the substance intact
6 strategies to reduce the Pflichtteil burden, a Berliner Testament (reciprocal will between spouses, § 2269 BGB) with penalty clauses, BGH case law on the Niessbrauch (usufruct, § 1030 BGB) and 3 worked examples — compact, with every paragraph reference, no jargon.
This guide is for you if you are building or transferring family wealth — and want to make sure that Pflichtteil claims do not break the substance. Whether real estate, company shares or liquid assets.
What to expect
8 parts, every one rooted in practice
A preview of the guide. The full version with every strategy, every penalty clause and every sample calculation ships as a PDF.
Who holds a Pflichtteil claim
Descendants, the spouse, parents — and which close family members the German Civil Code excludes despite the family tie.
Calculating the Pflichtteil
Table covering every family constellation, plus a worked example: 1 million EUR estate, two children, one disinherited.
Pflichtteilsergänzung — the underestimated trap
§ 2325 BGB: Schenkungen (lifetime gifts) of the past 10 years are counted under a sliding-scale rule.
Niessbrauch suspends the 10-year clock
Why a reserved Niessbrauch (usufruct) triggers Federal Court of Justice (BGH) rulings — and how to structure it correctly.
6 strategies to reduce the Pflichtteil
Pflichtteilsverzicht, Schenkung, time-limited Niessbrauch, penalty clauses, Familienstiftung, change of matrimonial regime.
Drafting a Berliner Testament correctly
Pflichtteilsstrafklausel, Jastrowsche Klausel, remarriage clause — three variants compared.
3 sample calculations
Concrete cases at 500,000, 2 million and 8 million EUR — with and without a planning strategy.
The 4 most common mistakes
What regularly costs families six-figure amounts — and why each one is avoidable.
From the guide
What many overlook about the Niessbrauch
A donor who transfers real estate with a reserved Niessbrauch and dies shortly afterwards often assumes the 10-year clock has run out. The BGH has held repeatedly: as long as the donor retains the usufruct, the asset has not been economically released — the clock does not start running.
Consequence: Pflichtteilsberechtigte (claimants of the statutory minimum share) can demand the full value of the gift as if it had taken place yesterday. The guide shows how to avoid the trap.
Legal basis: BGH judgment of 27 April 1994 — IV ZR 132/93; BGH XII ZB 415/15
From practice
Practical, for testators, heirs and Pflichtteil claimants
Florian Enders is Steuerberater (German tax adviser, regulated under StBerG) at tietze enders und Partner mbB in Liederbach. Focus areas: succession of wealth, Pflichtteil structuring, Erbschaftsteuer (German inheritance tax) and Schenkungsteuer (German gift tax). The guide draws on real client files — names are anonymised throughout.
Planning a concrete structure? Clarify your situation in a free initial consultation: Book a meeting