In short
When someone accepts an inheritance, intuition says everything becomes one single pile: their things and the decedent’s, their debts and the estate’s. The Code says the opposite, and says it in two directions. Article 1590 opens like this: the confusion of patrimonies does not occur to the prejudice of the heir nor of those who have rights over the caudal relicto. Note that it protects both sides. It is not only a shield for the heir against the dead person’s creditors; it is also a shield for those with rights over the inheritance against the heir’s own troubles. The second paragraph of the same article lands the idea on a concrete and frequent case: the acceptance of the inheritance does not produce the extinction of the rights and credits of the heir against the inheritance, nor of those of the inheritance against the heir. If the decedent owed you money, accepting the inheritance does not erase that debt; and if you owed the decedent, that is not erased either. This should not be confused with the confusion of rights of Book Four, which does extinguish an obligation when creditor and debtor meet in the same person: Article 1590 says precisely that this meeting does not happen here. Article 1591 gives the practical tool. The heir may oppose the attachment of goods of their patrimony based on credits against the inheritance. That opposition must contain an inventory of the relict goods received, and the creditor may challenge that inventory in the same proceeding, not in a separate one. The Code does not say before which court it is filed, nor in what form, nor within what time, nor what it costs, nor what happens if the creditor’s challenge succeeds. This guide does not fill that in for it.
What is it?
They are Articles 1590 and 1591 of the Civil Code of 2020: the rule that patrimonies are not confused on inheriting, and the heir’s opposition to the attachment of their own goods.
Who can do it?
Whoever accepted an inheritance and sees their own goods at risk over the decedent’s debts, and whoever holds a credit against the inheritance or against the heir.
Requirements
- The confusion of patrimonies does not occur to the prejudice of the heir nor of those who have rights over the caudal relicto.Verified against the official source
- Acceptance of the inheritance does not extinguish the heir’s rights and credits against the inheritance, nor those of the inheritance against the heir.Verified against the official source
- The heir may oppose the attachment of goods of their patrimony based on credits against the inheritance.Verified against the official source
- The opposition must contain an inventory of the relict goods received, which the creditor may challenge in the same proceeding.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: The patrimonies do not mix
Article 1590, first paragraph: the confusion of patrimonies does not occur to the prejudice of the heir nor of those who have rights over the caudal relicto.
Step 2: The protection runs both ways
The article names two groups: the heir, and those who have rights over the caudal relicto. It is not a one-sided shield.
Step 3: If the decedent owed you
Second paragraph: acceptance of the inheritance does not produce the extinction of the heir’s rights and credits against the inheritance. Accepting does not erase what you were owed.
Step 4: And if you owed the decedent
The same paragraph: nor those of the inheritance against the heir. The heir’s debt towards the inheritance is not extinguished by accepting either.
Step 5: It is not the confusion of rights of Book Four
That one extinguishes an obligation when creditor and debtor meet in one same person. Article 1590 says that in an inheritance that meeting does not occur.
Step 6: If your own goods are attached
Article 1591: the heir may oppose the attachment of goods of their patrimony based on credits against the inheritance.
Step 7: The opposition carries an inventory
The same article: the opposition must contain an inventory of the relict goods received. The Code says “must”, not “may”.
Step 8: The creditor may dispute that inventory
Closing of 1591: the creditor may challenge it in the same proceeding. No separate lawsuit is needed for that.
Step 9: What these articles do not say
They do not say before which court or in what form the opposition is filed, nor within what time, nor what it costs, nor what the inventory must look like, nor what happens if the challenge succeeds.
Where to do it
Article 1591 places the opposition inside an attachment proceeding, but the Code does not say here before which court it is filed, in what form or at what fee. This guide does not assume it. Article 1590 describes no procedure: it states a rule.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
If a creditor of the decedent went after your personal goods, Article 1591 lets you oppose that attachment, but with a content requirement: the opposition must carry an inventory of the relict goods you received, and the creditor may challenge it in the same proceeding. If you are told accepting the inheritance erased what the decedent owed you, the second paragraph of Article 1590 says the opposite, and it works the other way too: what you owed the decedent is still alive. Do not confuse this with the confusion of rights of Book Four, which does extinguish obligations when creditor and debtor coincide. The general cap of what an heir answers for is in Article 1587, with its own guide. These two articles do not say before which court, nor in what form, nor within what time, nor what it costs. MiPRFácil does not represent anyone in court and gives no legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Believing that on accepting the inheritance everything becomes one patrimony: Article 1590 says the confusion does not occur.
- Thinking the protection is only for the heir: the article also names those with rights over the caudal relicto.
- Writing off a credit against the decedent on inheriting: accepting does not extinguish it.
- Assuming the heir’s debt towards the inheritance disappears on accepting: it does not either.
- Confusing this with the confusion of rights of Book Four, which does extinguish the obligation.
- Filing the Article 1591 opposition without the inventory: the article says it must contain one.
- Believing the creditor must open a separate lawsuit to dispute the inventory: they challenge it in the same proceeding.
- Using Article 1591 against any attachment: it is for one based on credits against the inheritance.
Frequently asked questions
Does accepting the inheritance mix my goods with the decedent’s?
Article 1590 says the confusion of patrimonies does not occur to the prejudice of the heir nor of those who have rights over the caudal relicto.
The decedent owed me money. Do I lose that credit on inheriting?
Article 1590 says acceptance of the inheritance does not produce the extinction of the heir’s rights and credits against the inheritance, nor those of the inheritance against the heir.
Can I stop an attachment of my goods over estate debts?
Article 1591 says the heir may oppose the attachment of goods of their patrimony based on credits against the inheritance, and that the opposition must contain an inventory of the relict goods received.
Can the creditor dispute my inventory?
Yes. Article 1591 says the creditor may challenge it in the same proceeding.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
September 11, 2026
MiPRFácil is an independent informational website and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the Government of Puerto Rico or any government agency.
MiPRFácil does not submit applications on your behalf.
Was this guide helpful?
Did you find out-of-date information?
An heir answers only up to the value of what they receive, with two exceptions
Article 1587 of the Civil Code of 2020 sets that cap. Article 1588 breaks it if you pay unmatured debts with estate goods or damage them by your fault.
The funeral, the inventory and the executor’s pay come out of the estate
Article 1589 of the Civil Code of 2020 lists six hereditary charges, and the sixth leaves the list open: the other expenses of an analogous nature.
When the one who collects and the one who owes become the same person
The obligation is extinguished together with its securities. But the heir’s own debts are not merged with the estate’s.
What cannot be attached from you: the Civil Code list
Eleven subsections with dollar caps: $10,000 in household goods, $10,000 in trade equipment, the work vehicle and three quarters of wages.
If the court sets you a term and you do not answer, the inheritance is taken as accepted
Article 1578 of the Civil Code of 2020 lets any interested person request that term 30 days after the delación, and silence does not repudiate: it accepts.
An inheritance can be debts alone: the Code says so in those words
Article 1552 says the inheritance comprises rights and obligations even where obligations exceed rights, or where there are only obligations.