9 MAI 2007. - An Act to amend various provisions relating to the absence and judicial declaration of death (1)

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
CHAPTER I^er. - General provision
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.
CHAPTER II. - Amendments to the Civil Code
Art. 2. The title of chapter 1, title IV, of the Civil Code is replaced by the following title: "Chapter I^er- From the absence."
Art. 3. It is included in Book I, Title IV, Chapter I, of the same Code, a first section, including Articles 112 to 117, entitled as follows:
“Section I^re- Presumption of absence."
Art. 4. Section 112 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 112. § 1^er. When a person has ceased to appear in the place of his or her home or residence for more than three months without having heard from him or her for at least three months, and that there is uncertainty as to his or her life or death, the court of first instance may, at the request of any interested person or Crown counsel, find the presumption of absence.
§ 2. A certified true copy of the decision recognizing the presumption of absence shall be notified by the clerk to the justice of the peace of the last domicile in Belgium of the person alleged to have been absent, or, if the person had never had a domicile in Belgium, to the justice of the peace of 1^re canton of Brussels. The competent local justice of the peace shall proceed in accordance with Article 113.
§ 3. The Public Prosecutor ' s Office is responsible for ensuring the interests of persons suspected of being absent. It is understood on all requests that concern them. »
Art. 5. Section 113 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 113. § 1^er. When the court of first instance finds that there is a presumption of absence and that the person presumed to be absent did not give power to a general agent to manage his property, the justice of the peace shall appoint a court administrator, by reason of order, taking into account the nature and composition of the property to be managed.
The order of the justice of the peace is notified by the clerk to the administrator under judicial fold within three days of the pronouncement. The judicial administrator shall notify in writing within eight days of his or her designation if he or she accepts it.
In the absence of the acceptance provided for in the preceding paragraph, the justice of the peace shall designate another judicial administrator on its own.
After acceptance by the judicial administrator, a copy of the order appointing him is forwarded to the Crown Prosecutor.
§ 2. By a reasoned order, the justice of the peace may, at any time, either on his or her own motion or at the request of any interested person, the Crown Prosecutor or the judicial administrator, terminate his or her mandate, alter the powers entrusted to him or replace him.
For this purpose, the justice of the peace may hear any person whom he considers fit to inform.
§ 3. Any decision to appoint a judicial administrator, the substitute, ending his or her mandate or amending his or her powers, shall, at the diligence of the clerk, be published by extract to the Belgian Monitor and in two newspapers broadcast in the judicial district of the last domicile in Belgium of the alleged absentee or, if he or she has never had a domicile in Belgium, of the judicial district of Brussels as well as in a daily newspaper to be broadcast nationally in the language of the proceedings.
The publication must be made within fifteen days of the pronouncement; officials to whom the omission or delay would be attributable may be held liable to the persons concerned if it is proven that the delay or omission results from a collusion.
At the same time, the decision is notified by the clerk's care in the town of the last home of the absentee in order to be recorded in the register of the population. »
Art. 6. Section 114 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 114. § 1^er. At least one month after accepting his appointment, the judicial administrator prepares a report on the heritage situation of the alleged absentee and forwards it to the justice of the peace.
The judicial administrator reports annually to the justice of the peace by submitting a written report including at least the following:
1° the name, first name and domicile or residence of the judicial administrator;
2° the name, first name and last known domicile of the alleged absentee;
3° a summary of income and expenditure for the past period and a summary of the state of the heritage managed at the beginning and end of this period.
If the judge considers it necessary, the justice of the peace may require the judicial administrator of the guarantees, either at the time of his appointment or during the course of his or her mandate.
§ 2. Written reports submitted pursuant to § 1^er, shall be kept in the registry of the justice of the peace in a file on behalf of the person alleged to be absent.
The file also contains:
1° a copy of the judgment of the court of first instance finding the presumption of absence;
2° a copy of the order appointing a judicial administrator;
3° a copy of all orders made under this chapter;
4° the correspondence of the justice of the peace concerning the judicial administration.
An inventory of the documents that have the date of their deposit is attached to the file.
§ 3. By reason of decision, the justice of the peace may allocate to the judicial administrator, after the latter has given the report referred to in § 1^eran amount not exceeding three per cent of the income of the property of the alleged absentee, plus the amount of the expenses incurred, duly controlled by the justice of the peace. However, he may, upon presentation of motivated states, allocate compensation according to the exceptional duties performed.
The judicial administrator may not receive, apart from the remuneration referred to in paragraph 1^er, no reward or any benefit, of any kind or of any kind, in relation to the exercise of the judicial administrator's mandate. »
Art. 7. In the same Code, the title "Chapter II. - Declaration of absence" is deleted.
Art. 8. Section 115 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 115. § 1^er. The judicial administrator is responsible for managing the property of the alleged absentee in good family father. He may be assisted in his management by one or more persons acting under his or her responsibility.
§ 2. The judicial administrator may act only through a special authorization of the justice of the peace when his interests are in opposition to those of the alleged absentee. This authorization is granted by a reasoned order, upon request of the judicial administrator. Sections 1026 to 1034 of the Judicial Code apply.
§ 3. In the absence of an indication in the order referred to in section 113, the judicial administrator shall represent the person presumed to be absent in all legal acts and proceedings, as an applicant or as a defendant, unless the spouse of the alleged absentee is authorized to act alone in accordance with section 220, § 2, or article 1420.
The judicial administrator may act only with a special authorization from the justice of the peace to:
1° to represent the person presumed to be absent in court as an applicant in proceedings and acts other than those:
rental contracts;
- relating to occupation without title or right;
- relating to social legislation in favour of the person alleged to be absent;
- on the constitution of a civil party;
- provided for in articles 1187, paragraph 2, 1193 bis, and 1225 of the Judicial Code;
2° to dispose of the furniture and buildings of the alleged absentee;
3° borrowing and consenting mortgage as well as allowing the cancellation of a mortgage registration, with or without a quittance, and the transcription of a seizure-execution order without payment;
4° acquire a real estate claim;
5° to give up a succession or a universal or universal legacy or to accept it, which can only be done under the benefit of an inventory;
6° accepting a donation or bequest in a particular way;
7° conclude a lease on a farm or a commercial lease, as well as renew a commercial lease and enter a lease for more than nine years;
8° transfer or enter into an arbitration agreement;
9° buy a building property.
The justice of the peace is seized by a unilateral request. He surrounds all relevant information; it may collect the notice of any person that it considers fit to inform, without prejudice to articles 1186 and 1193bis of the Judicial Code, of the sale of buildings.
Sections 1026 to 1034 of the Judicial Code apply.
The trade of the person presumed to be absent is continued by his or her judicial administrator, if the justice of the peace deems it useful and under the conditions it determines. Management may be entrusted to a special administrator under the supervision of the judicial administrator. The special administrator is appointed by the commercial court at the request of the justice of the peace.
§ 4. Without prejudice to the existing marital regime, if any, between the alleged absentee and the judicial administrator, the funds and assets of the alleged absentee are completely and clearly separated from the personal property of the administrator. The bank assets of the alleged absent are registered on its own name. »
Art. 9. Section 116 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
Art. 116. If the alleged absentee is called for a division or succession, he shall be represented by the designated judicial administrator in accordance with section 113.
If there is no designated administrator and if the alleged absentee has not given power to a general agent to manage his property, the justice of the peace may, either on his or her own motion or at the request of any interested person or the Crown Prosecutor, appoint a notary to represent him.
Any sharing in which an alleged absentee is interested is made in accordance with Article 1225 of the Judicial Code. »
Art. 10. Section 117 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 117. § 1^er. If the presumed absentee is reappeared, he may file a third opposition against the judgment by which the court of first instance found the presumption of absence.
If the alleged absentee appears or gives news during the period of presumption of absence, the justice of the peace shall terminate by a reasoned order, either ex officio or at the request of the alleged absentee, the Crown Prosecutor or any interested person, the mandate of the judicial administrator.
The alleged absentee shall cover property managed or acquired on his behalf during the presumption period of absence. The acts regularly performed by the judicial administrator or the notary referred to in Article 116, paragraph 2, shall be enforceable, except in the case of fraud.
§ 2. If the alleged absentee is declared absent, if he has died or if his death is declared judicially, the justice of the peace shall terminate by a reasoned order, either ex officio or at the request of the Crown Prosecutor or any interested person, the warrant of the judicial administrator.
§ 3. Without prejudice to the application of sections 1358 to 1369 of the Judicial Code, the judicial administrator shall file within thirty days of the order ending his or her mandate, his final report to the Peace Justice Registry.
If the alleged absentee was married on the day of his disappearance and is declared absent or if his death is declared judicially, the judicial administrator shall draw up an inventory of all movable and immovable property that is part of the common heritage of the alleged absentee and his spouse, and shall deposit it within the time limit referred to in paragraph 1^erat the Peace Justice Registry.
If the alleged absentee was a legal cohabitant on the day of his disappearance and is declared absent or if his death is declared judicially, the judicial administrator shall prepare an inventory of all furniture and immovables deemed in indivision under section 1478, and shall deposit it within the time limit referred to in paragraph 1^erat the Peace Justice Registry. The same applies when, after the finding of presumption of absence, the legal cohabitant of the alleged absentee terminates legal cohabitation in accordance with Article 1476, § 2, paragraph 2. The Civil Registry Officer shall inform the judicial administrator of the decision to terminate the legal cohabitation.
The final report and, where applicable, the inventory are attached to the file referred to in Article 114, §2. »
Art. 11. It is inserted in Book I, Title IV, Chapter I, of the same Code, after Article 117, a section II, including Articles 118 to 124, entitled as follows:
"Section II. - Declaration of absence »
Art. 12. Section 118 of the same Code, as amended by the Act of 15 December 1949, is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 118. § 1^er. When five years have elapsed since the judgment which found the presumption of absence, or seven years since the last news received from the absentee, the absence may be declared by the court of first instance at the request of any interested person or the Crown Prosecutor.
§ 2. A certified true copy of the judgment declaring the absence is, if any, notified by the clerk to the justice of the peace referred to in Article 112, § 2. »
Art. 13. Section 119 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 119. The application under Article 118 is, at the diligence of the clerk, published by extract to the Belgian Monitor, in two daily newspapers broadcast in the judicial district of the last domicile in Belgium of the absentee or, if the latter has never had a domicile in Belgium, in the judicial district of Brussels as well as in a daily newspaper with national diffusion in the language of the proceedings.
The court may order all measures that it considers useful to ensure the publicity of this request. »
Art. 14. In the same Code, the titles "Chapter III. - Effects of absence" and "Section 1^er. - Effects of absence in respect of the property that the Absent had on the day of his disappearance" are removed.
Art. 15. Section 120 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 120. The Court of First Instance shall render a judgment of declaration of absence only one year after the last publication provided for in Article 119, paragraph 1^er.
The judgment of declaration of absence shall be published by extract in accordance with the terms set out in Article 119, within the time limit set by the court. »
Art. 16. Section 121 of the Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 121. § 1^er. The device of the declarative decision of absence contains the statements provided for in Article 79; where applicable, it finds the impossibility of mentioning some of them.
At the request of the King's Prosecutor, the device of the declarative decision of absence cast as a force of evidence is transcribed on the current registers of the civil status of the place of the last domicile in Belgium of the absent. If this one has never had one, the transcript is in Brussels.
§ 2. The declarative decision of absence cast as a force of evidence is the act of civil status.
It produces all the effects of death on the date of its transcript.
This act may be corrected in accordance with Article 101 of this Code and Articles 1383 to 1385 of the Judicial Code, in particular in the event of proof that the person declared absent is alive. »
Art. 17. Section 122 of the Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 122. If the absentee is reappeared, he may make third opposition to the declarative judgment of absence made by the court of first instance; the application of Article 121, § 2, paragraph 3.
If the existence of the absent is proved after the day when the declarative decision of absence is cast into force of the judged thing, it is applied to article 121, § 2, paragraph 3. »
Art. 18. Section 123 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 123. The correctional judgment pronounced on the basis of Article 122 is published by extract, in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in Article 119 and within the time limit set by the court. »
Art. 19. Section 124 of the Code, replaced by the Act of 14 July 1976, is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 124. In the event of the reappearance of the absent or proof of his existence, the judgment of rectification allows the absent to recover his property and those that he should have collected during his absence in the state where they are located and the price of those who would have been alienated as well as the property eventually acquired in employment.
Her marriage and marital regime remain dissolved. Without prejudice to the application of articles 1205 to 1224 of the Judicial Code, the Absent finds its share of the property of the common heritage in the state in which they are located, and that of the price of those who have been alienated, on the basis of the inventory established in accordance with Article 117, § 3, paragraph 2.
If he was a legal cohabitant, the Absent regains its share of the property deemed to be indivision in the state in which they are located, and that of the price of those allegedly alienated, on the basis of the inventory established in accordance with Article 117, § 3, paragraph 3.
It is put to an end the measures taken with regard to minor children. »
Art. 20. It is inserted in Book I, Title IV, Chapter I of the same Code, after Article 124, a Section III, including Article 125, entitled as follows:
"Section III. - Effects of absence or presumption of absence on minor children."
Art. 21. Section 125 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 125. If there are minor children, a certified true copy of any decision made under articles 112, 113, 117, 118 and 122 shall be notified by the Registrar to the competent local justice of the peace. The latter shall proceed in accordance with the rules of guardianship. »
Art. 22. It is inserted in Book I, Title IV, of the same Code, a Chapter II, comprising articles 126 to 135, entitled as follows:
“Chapter II. - Judicial declaration of death."
Art. 23. Section 126 of the Code, as amended by the Act of 14 July 1976, is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 126. In the absence of a death certificate, the Court of First Instance may, at the request of any interested person or the Crown Prosecutor, acting on its own motion or at the invitation of the Minister of Justice, declare the death of any person who has disappeared in circumstances that may endanger his or her life, where his or her body has not been found or has been identified, and that his or her death may be considered certain in the circumstances. »
Art. 24. Section 127 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 127. Without prejudice to the application of article 1226 of the Judicial Code, the King's Prosecutor may file a request for a declaration of death of several persons by a single request and the court may, in that case, decide by a single judgment. »
Art. 25. Section 128 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 128. If the disappeared person is called to a division or succession, the court shall, in accordance with section 19 of the Judicial Code, appoint the notary to represent his interests, until the pronouncement of death is pronounced. »
Art. 26. Section 129 of the Code is replaced by the following provision:
“Art. 129. The court may prescribe that the application will be referred to the Belgian Monitor. In such a case, the court shall determine the time limit in which it will overseorate the application after the publication. »
Art. 27. Section 130 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 130. Within fifteen days of the judgment, the clerk shall notify the parties of the judgment by judicial fold. The appeal period is two months from the date of this notification. The appeal is filed by request to the court of appeal. He must be denounced by exploiting a bailiff or by registered letter within eight days of the receipt of the request to the court office which rendered the decision under attack. The clerk refers to the appeal on the margins of the decision under appeal. The rules for the first instance apply to the level of appeal.
The decision is notified by the Registrar of the Court of Appeal in accordance with the provisions for the first instance. The deadline for filing is one month from the date of this notification.
The time limit to be filled in cassation and the appeal against the death order are suspensive. »
Art. 28. Section 131 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 131. The declarative judicial decision of death sets the date of death, taking into account presumptions derived from the circumstances of the case and, if not, on the day of the disappearance. This date must never be indeterminate.
The system of the declarative judicial decision of death contains the statements provided for in Article 79; where applicable, it finds the impossibility of mentioning some of them. »
Art. 29. Section 132 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 132. At the request of the King's Prosecutor, the mechanism of the declarative judicial decision of death and forcible casting is transcribed on the current registers of the civil status of the place of the last residence in Belgium of the deceased. If this one has never had one, the transcript is in Brussels.
In the event of a collective judgment, the transcript is made in accordance with paragraph 1^er, by extracts on the records.
Mention of the transcript is made at the register tables of the year of death. »
Art. 30. Section 133 of the Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 133. The declarative judicial decision of death cast as a force of evidence is the act of the civil status.
It produces its effects on the day of the death it declares.
The act of this decision may be corrected in accordance with section 101 of this Code and sections 1383 to 1385 of the Judicial Code, in particular in the event of evidence that the deceased person is alive.
Judgments and judgments rejecting a claim for death do not impede the subsequent admissibility of a similar application, based on the discovery of new evidence. »
Art. 31. Section 134 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 134. If the person whose death has been declared to have been reappeared, it is enforced in sections 123 and 124. »
Art. 32. In the same Code, the title "Section 2. - Effects of absence in relation to any rights that may count to the absent" is deleted.
Art. 33. Section 135 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 135. The Chief Clerks of Courts and Courts shall immediately inform the Minister of Foreign Affairs of any judicial proceedings under this chapter. »
Art. 34. Sections 136 to 139 of the same Code and section 142, as amended by the Act of 29 April 2001, are repealed.
Art. 35. In Chapter III of the same Code, the following amendments are made:
A. The title "Section 3. - Effects of absence in relation to marriage are removed;
B. The title "Section 4 - Effects of absence in relation to children" is removed.
Art. 36. 1° In section 214, paragraph 2, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 14 July 1976, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "presumed absent".
2° In Article 220, § 1^er, from the same Code, replaced by the law of 14 July 1976, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "proposed absent".
3° In section 316 of the same Code, replaced by the Act of March 31, 1987, the words "of a declarative judgment of absence" are replaced by the words "of a decision recognizing the presumption of absence".
4° In section 348-2 of the same Code, inserted by the Act of 24 April 2003, the words "declared absent" are replaced by the words "proposed absent".
5° In article 348-3, paragraph 1^er, from the same Code, inserted by the Act of 24 April 2003, the words "declared absent" are replaced by the words "proposed absent".
6° In article 348-5, paragraph 1^er, of the same Code, inserted by the Act of 24 April 2003, the words "declared absent" are replaced by the words "proposed absent".
7° In article 348-6, paragraph 2, of the same Code, inserted by the Act of 24 April 2003, the words "declared absent" are replaced by the words "proposed absent".
8° In section 348-7 of the same Code, inserted by the Act of 24 April 2003, the words "declared absent" are replaced by the words "presumed absent".
9° In article 375, paragraph 1^er, from the same Code, replaced by the Act of March 31, 1987, the word "not present" is replaced by the words "presumed absent".
10° Section 817, paragraph 2, of the same Code is repealed.
11° In section 1031, paragraph 1^er, in the same Code, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "presumed absent".
12° In article 1676, paragraph 2, of the same Code, as amended by the Act of 13 February 2003, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "proposed absent".
13° In article 16, III, of Book III, Title VIII, Chapter II, section IIbis, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 30 April 1951 and amended by the Act of 13 February 2003, the words "absent" are replaced by the words "presumed absent".
14° Article 75, paragraph 2; of Book III; Title XVIII, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 16 December 1851, is repealed.
15° In section 840 of the same Code, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "presumed absent."
CHAPTER III. - Amendments to the Judicial Code
Art. 37. In section 598, paragraph 1^er, 1°, of the Judicial Code, replaced by the law of 18 July 1991, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "presumed absent".
Art. 38. In section 764, paragraph 1^er, 2°, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 3 August 1992, the words "to the sending in possession of the property of an absentee" are replaced by the words "to the presumption or declaration of absence and to the judicial declaration of death".
Art. 39. In article 1151, 2°, of the same Code, the word "missed" is replaced by the words "presumed absent".
Art. 40. In article 1186, paragraph 1^er, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 29 April 2001 and amended by the Act of 3 May 2003, the words "to alleged absent persons" are inserted between the words "to minors" and the words "to bans".
Art. 41. In article 1187, paragraph 1^er, of the same Code, replaced by the law of April 29, 2001, the words "of the presumed absent" are inserted between the words "to minors" and the words "forbidden persons".
Art. 42. In article 1187, paragraph 2, of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 29 April 2001, the words "presumed absent" are inserted between the word "minor" and the word "prohibited".
Art. 43. Section 1188 of the same Code is repealed.
Art. 44. In section 1225 of the same Code, replaced by the Act of 18 July 1991, the words "and absent" are replaced by the words "and missing persons, referred to in section 128 of the Civil Code, and presumed absent."
Art. 45. The title of Chapter VII, Part IV, Book IV, of the same Code, is replaced by the following title:
“Chapter VII. - Presumption and declaration of absence and judicial declaration of death."
Art. 46. Section 1226 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 1226. § 1^er. Applications based on sections 112, 118, 126 and 127 of the Civil Code are filed by request, supporting documents.
Sections 1026 to 1034 apply, subject to the following provisions, to section 112 of the Civil Code, and sections 118 to 135 of the same Code.
§ 2. The request contains no invalidity:
1° the indication of day, month and year;
2° the name, first name, occupation and domicile of the applicant and the degree of kinship or the nature of the relationship between the applicant and the missing or presumed person absent;
3° the object and summary indication of the reasons for the application;
4° the name, first name, residence or domicile of the disappeared or presumed missing person and, where applicable, of the spouse, the cohabitant, and of the parents and allies to the successive degree of the disappeared or presumed missing person;
5° the appointment of the judge who must know it.
When the application is based on Article 126 of the Civil Code, the application shall contain, as soon as nullity is concerned, the name, first name and domicile of the notary responsible for representing the interests of the disappeared person in any transaction of division or succession that may affect him or her until the judgment is pronounced.
The petition is signed by the complainant, by his notary or his lawyer. If the missing person or presumed missing person had a home in Belgium, the request is accompanied by a certificate of domicile of the latter not dating more than fifteen days.
The request also mentions, to the extent possible, the place and date of birth of the disappeared or presumed missing person, as well as the nature and composition of the property to be managed.
If the request is incomplete, the judge invites the appellant to complete it within a time limit that he or she sets.
§ 3. The King's Attorney collects any useful information, if any, from the spouse, the cohabitant, and parents and allies to the fourth degree of the missing or presumed person absent.
When the disappearance occurred abroad, it may also require the assistance of the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs and Belgian diplomatic and consular agents abroad. They shall provide him with all the information and copies of documents that he deems useful for the further investigation.
The court rules, the public department before it is heard.
§ 4. The clerk further informs, by judicial fold, members of the family mentioned in the request for the introduction of the family.
Persons summoned by judicial fold become by this summons parties to the case, unless they oppose the hearing. The clerk shall notify the parties in the judicial fold.
They may appear in person at the hearing and ask to be heard. They may also communicate their observations to the judge in writing before the day of the hearing. »
Art. 47. Section 1227 of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"Art. 1227. § 1^er. Without prejudice to the provisions of the Civil Code authorizing the ex officio seizure of the judge, applications based on sections 113 to 117 of the Civil Code are filed by request, supporting documents.
Articles 1026 to 1034 are applicable, subject to the following provisions.
§ 2. The request shall contain the information provided for in article 1226, § 2, paragraph 1^er. It also contains, barely invalid, the name, first name, and domicile of the judicial administrator.
The petition is signed by the complainant, by his notary or his lawyer.
The request also mentions, to the extent possible, the place and date of birth of the alleged missing person, as well as the nature and composition of the property to be managed.
If the request is incomplete, the judge invites the complainant to complete it within eight days.
§ 3. The Crown Prosecutor shall collect all relevant information from the judicial administrator and, where appropriate, from the spouse, the cohabitant, and from the parents and allies to the fourth degree of the disappeared or presumed missing person.
The court rules, the public department before it is heard.
§ 4. The clerk further informs, by judicial fold, the judicial administrator and the members of the family mentioned in the request, of the introduction of the request.
Persons summoned by judicial fold become by this summons parties to the case, unless they oppose the hearing. The clerk shall notify the parties in the judicial fold.
They may appear in person at the hearing and ask to be heard. They may also communicate their observations to the judge in writing before the day of the hearing. »
CHAPTER IV. - Amendments to the Criminal Code
Art. 48. In section 31, 5°, of the Criminal Code, replaced by the Act of April 29, 2001, the words ", a judicial administrator of the property of a presumed absent" are inserted between the words "judicial council" and the words "or provisional administrator".
CHAPTER V. - Amendments to the Code of Succession Rights
Art. 49. Section 3 of the Code of Succession Rights is repealed.
Art. 50. Section 40, paragraph 2, of the same Code is replaced by the following provision:
"In the event of a judicial declaration of death, the time limit begins to run as soon as the judgment is cast into force of a judgment. »
CHAPTER VI
Amendments to the Private International Law Code
Art. 51. In section 41, paragraph 1^er, from the law bearing the Code of Private International Law of 16 July 2004, the words "by the law of the State of which the person was a citizen upon his disappearance" are replaced by the words "by the law of the State of which the person was a citizen at the time of his disappearance or, where that right does not know such an institution, by the law of the State in whose territory the person usually resided during his disappearance. »
CHAPTER VII. - Amendment of the Act of 8 August 1983
organizing a national register of natural persons
Art. 52. Article 3, paragraph 1^er, 6°, of the Act of 8 August 1983 organizing a national register of natural persons, replace the words "the place and date of death; by the words "the place and date of death or, in the event of a declaration of absence, the date of the transcript of the declarative decision of absence; "
CHAPTER VIII. - Abrogatory provision
Art. 53. The Act of 28 July 1921 on the validation of civil status acts, the correction of acts of death during the war and the judicial declaration of death, and the Act of 20 August 1948 on declarations of death and presumption of death and the transcript and administrative correction of certain acts of death, are repealed.
CHAPTER IX. - Transitional provisions
Art. 54. This Act applies in respect of persons who, prior to their entry into force, have disappeared or ceased to appear in place of their domicile or residence without their news.
Art. 55. When it has been decided in accordance with former sections 112 and 113 of the Civil Code, the prescribed measures may be amended, as appropriate, in the forms and conditions provided for in articles 112 to 117 new to the Code.
Art. 56. Where the application for declaration of absence has been submitted prior to the coming into force of this Act, the application will be investigated and judged by the old law; the judgment of declaration of absence will produce the effects attached to this law.
Art. 57. Any notice of absence made before the coming into force of this Act or after the coming into force of this Act, pursuant to section 49, shall, at the expiry of a five-year period from the date of its publication, produce the effects that this Act attaches to it.
Art. 58. The provisions of this Act relating to the judicial declaration of death shall apply to the proceedings under way, including those prosecuted in accordance with the Act of 28 July 1921 on the validation of civil status acts, the correction of acts of death during the war and the judicial declaration of death, and the Act of 20 August 1948 on declarations of death and presumption of death and the transcription and administrative correction of certain acts of death.
Promulgate this law, order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels, 9 May 2007.
ALBERT
By the King:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
____
Note
(1) Regular session 2003-2004.
House of Representatives:
Documents. - Bill of MM. Borginon, Marinower and Mrs. Taelman, 51-0614 - No. 001. - Amendments, 51-0614 - No. 002. - Opinion of the State Council, 51-0614 - No. 003. - Amendments, 51-0614 - n^bones 004 to 007. - Report, 51-0614 - No. 008. - Text adopted by the commission (art. 77 of the Constitution), 51-0614 - No. 009. - Text adopted by the commission (art. 78 of the Constitution), 51-0614 - No. 010. - Text adopted in plenary and transmitted to the Senate (Article 78 of the Constitution), 51-0614 - No. 011.
See also: full report: July 6, 2006.
Regular session 2006-2007.
Senate:
Documents. - Project referred to by the Senate, 3-1792 - No. 1. - Amendments, 3-1792 - n^bones 2 to 4. - Report, 3-1792 - No. 5. - Text adopted by the commission, 3-1792 - No. 6. - Text amended by the Senate and referred to the House of Representatives, 3-1792 - No. 7.
See also: Anals of the Senate: March 8, 2007.
House of Representatives:
Documents. - Draft amended by the Senate, 51-0614 - No. 012. - Report, 51-0614 - No. 013. - Text corrected by commission, 51-0614 - No. 014. - Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, 51-0614 - No. 015.
See also: full report: 24 and 25 April 2007.