I wasn't summoned to the probate hearing
What to do if you weren't notified of a probate hearing you believe you have the right to take part in.
What to do
The probate proceeding is opened by the court of its own motion as soon as it receives the death certificate extract, and its conduct is, as a rule, entrusted to a notary public. Based on information obtained from relatives and other knowledgeable persons, the notary draws up the smrtovnica (the record of the deceased's estate and heirs), which lists, among other things, the persons who might be summoned to inherit. If that information was incomplete, someone who genuinely has a right to inherit may end up not being summoned to the hearing at all.
The first and most important step is to establish what stage the proceeding is at. While the probate proceeding is still ongoing, it is enough to contact the competent notary public or court and ask to be included - the court, or the notary, is obliged to include in the proceeding anyone who turns out to potentially have a right to inherit. If, however, you learn of the proceeding only after the inheritance decision has already become final, the situation is different: the probate court will not reconsider that estate again, even if you would otherwise meet the conditions for restitutio in integrum or reopening of proceedings under the rules of civil procedure. In that case, the law directs you to assert your right by a lawsuit against the heirs to whom the property has already been awarded - seeking a court declaration of your status as an heir and an order for delivery of the corresponding part of the estate.
The good news is that the right to claim the estate, as such, does not become time-barred by law. That does not mean time is irrelevant: while you wait, the heirs to whom the property was awarded can dispose of it, and third parties can acquire rights that are harder to challenge later. Because of this, it is better to act as soon as you learn that someone has died and that a probate proceeding exists or has already taken place, rather than putting off the collection of evidence.
When to consult a lawyer
It's worth consulting a lawyer as soon as you suspect that a probate proceeding exists, or has already concluded, without your participation - first of all, to quickly establish what stage the proceeding is at, since that directly determines whether a simple request to be included is enough or a lawsuit in civil litigation is necessary. A lawyer is especially needed when assessing the strength of the evidence of the family relationship or of a will in your favor, when the heirs to whom the estate has already been awarded have started disposing of the property (sale, cadastral registration, mortgaging it), or when the rules on adverse possession and good-faith acquisition come into play, which can weaken your position over time. In these situations, speed and the correct choice of legal route (being included in the proceeding versus filing a lawsuit) often determine the outcome.
Sources
- Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement (Tarifa o nagradama i naknadama troškova za rad advokata, Sl. glasnik RS No. 43/2023), Items 13 and 15
- Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement, consolidated text (Sl. glasnik RS Nos. 43/2023 and 56/2025) (paragraf.rs)
- Law on Inheritance (Zakon o nasleđivanju), Art. 221
- Law on Court Fees (Zakon o sudskim taksama), Art. 25
What to do
- Contact the notary public or court that conducted (or is conducting) the probate proceeding and, by inspecting the case file, check what stage the proceeding is at and whether an inheritance decision has already been issued.
- If the proceeding has not yet concluded, immediately file a written request to be included as a party and summoned to the hearing, together with evidence of your status as an heir (e.g., a birth/marriage certificate proving the family relationship, or a will in your favor).
- If the decision has already become final, keep in mind that the probate court will not reopen it, even if you would otherwise meet the conditions for reopening proceedings under the rules of civil procedure - the Law on Non-Contentious Proceedings (Zakon o vanparničnom postupku, Art. 130, para. 1, and Art. 131) expressly directs a person who did not take part in the proceeding to assert their right to inherit in civil litigation.
- Prepare evidence of your right to inherit and, if relevant, of why you weren't summoned (for example, that the smrtovnica - the notary's record of the deceased's estate and heirs - did not contain accurate information about the circle of relatives; the notary public draws up the smrtovnica based on information obtained from relatives and other persons, Zakon o vanparničnom postupku, Art. 93).
- Discuss with a lawyer filing a lawsuit against the heirs to whom the estate was awarded, seeking a declaration of your right to inherit and delivery of the corresponding portion of the estate.
What it costs
The court fee for a lawsuit seeking a declaration of the right to inherit and delivery of property is calculated based on the value of the disputed portion of the estate (Zakon o sudskim taksama, the Law on Court Fees, Art. 25). If you can still be included as a party in the probate proceeding, the additional cost is, as a rule, limited to the usual costs of the probate proceeding.
Basis for the attorney fee: Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement (Tarifa o nagradama i naknadama troškova za rad advokata), Item 13 (claim in an assessable matter, based on the value of the disputed part of the estate) and Item 15 (representation at a hearing)
FAQ
Can I request that the probate proceeding be reopened because I wasn't summoned?
Not within the probate proceeding itself. The Law on Non-Contentious Proceedings (Zakon o vanparničnom postupku, Art. 131) expressly provides that the proceeding for settling the estate will not be reopened even where the conditions for reopening proceedings under the rules of civil procedure would otherwise be met - a person who believes they have a right to inherit but did not take part in the proceeding asserts that right by a lawsuit in civil litigation (Art. 130, para. 1).
Do I lose the right to inherit if several years pass?
As a general rule, the heir's right to claim the estate itself does not become time-barred (Zakon o nasleđivanju, the Inheritance Law, Art. 221, para. 1). The law expressly preserves the rules on adverse possession (održaj) and acquisition from a non-owner (Art. 221, para. 2), so a long delay can make actually exercising the right more difficult, or in some cases impossible, even though it is not formally time-barred.
Who is responsible for me not being summoned to the hearing?
The notary public draws up the smrtovnica and the circle of persons to be summoned based on information obtained from the deceased's relatives and other persons who can provide information (Zakon o vanparničnom postupku, Art. 93). If that information was incomplete or inaccurate, it does not change the mechanism of your legal protection - it still comes down to being included in a proceeding that hasn't yet concluded, or to a lawsuit if the decision has already become final.
What if I only learned of the death after the estate had already been divided and sold?
That is a separate and more complex situation that depends on whether third parties acquired the property in good faith and under conditions that protect them from a later challenge (Art. 221(2) of the Law on Inheritance expressly preserves the rules on adverse possession, acquisition from a non-owner and the limitation of claims). Have a lawyer review the specific circumstances before assessing whether, and to what extent, exercising the right is still possible.