French term (edited): Rapport à la succession (dans cette phrase)

Don't know a lot about inheritance law, but my guess is that those expecting to get the inheritance (under French law it's codified, so you have to bend over double backwards to give it to anyone but your children) have to be informed that they can look forward to having less to squander if someone suddenly finds they are getting doublejointed in their old age and start doing some "calisthénique successorale".

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Note added at 28 mins (2008-01-15 11:34:19 GMT)
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Of course by making a "donation" you can legally give money to one of your rightful heirs (at least) before you snuff it. If you live a further 10 years (I think), that amount is discounted from the inheritance. If you don't, it is deducted from that portion of the whole, including that amount, that the beneficiary would normally have benefitted from.

I'm not planning to die in France. Too complicated.

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Note added at 1 hr (2008-01-15 12:43:30 GMT)
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Sorry, I was confusing with the inheritance tax on "donations". To get around the tax (now largely abolished) one could, every 10 years, "donate" up to a certain amount without inheritance tax being due on it. Those sums would be REINTEGRATED into the total inheritance at the time of death.

Puts the expression "living on borrowed time" in a different light, doesn't it!

French term (edited): Rapport à la succession (dans cette phrase)

Translating the headline phrase is easy: translating the whole sentence is more difficult.

"Convenir que le rapport à faire par le donataire à la succession du donateur s'effectuera en avancement d’hoirie."

The only thing that makes sense to me is:

"To agree that the gift shall be added back into the donor's estate by the donee for purposes of distribution."

The sentence as a whole seems tautologous, since a gift made 'en avancement d'hoirie' is by definition one that must be 'rapporter a la succession', unless I'm missing something. Perhaps someone else can find the nuance, but to me, if the gift is not 'preciputaire', 'hors part' or 'dispense de rapport', it is 'en avancement d'hoirie' and therefore must be added back into the estate (rapporter a la succession) for purposes of distribution. What would make sense would be 'Convenir que la donation sera effectuee en avancement d'hoirie de telle sorte qu'elle sera rapportee a la succession du defunt." In other words, I'm willing to think the lawyer who drafted this got mixed up. Here are the relevant definitions for those willing to grapple with this.

Cornu, "Rapport des donations": Rapport a la succession ab intestat par un coheritier qui accepte celle-ce, des donations qu'il avait recues du defunt en avancement d'hoirie (non preciputaires et sans dispense de rapport)

Cornu: "Avancement d'hoirie": liberalite faite a un heritier presomptif par anticipation sur ce qui pourra lui advenir dans la succession du donateur et comme une sort d'avance sur sa part successorale, qui, a la difference d'une donation par preciput et hors part ou avec dispense de rapport doit, lors du deces du donateur, etre rapportee en nature ou en moins prenant a la succession de ceui-ci, par l'heritier gratifie"

'Preciputaire', "dispense de rapport' and 'hors part' are all different ways of saying that the heir can keep the gift he received in advance without adding it back into the estate for purposes of distribution. (See each term in Cornu).