~ Legal professionals, some questions/answers to assist you ~

• When the existence of a will has been established, who has to be contacted to obtain information about its content?

Information on the content of a will is communicated to the heirs by the judicial commissioner, i.e. the notary tasked with opening the will by the court settling the succession.

Foreign public authorities must use the mutual legal assistance system through the intermediary of their national Ministry of Justice.

• Who is entitled to receive the information?

The information contained in the will and/or a copy of the will itself may be sent to the heirs or foreign public authorities.

• Is there a particular procedure to be followed? If so, which one?

For the information contained in the will, or a copy of the will itself, to be communicated, the will must have been opened in accordance with Slovak law. Furthermore, foreign public authorities must observe the mutual legal assistance procedure.

• By what means can the information be sent?

For requests originating abroad, the judicial commissioner sends a certified copy of an authentic will or the original of a holographic will by post to the respective national court, which will then decide on the form in which the information will be transmitted.

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