When the original debtor is dead, and his heirs or legatees have accepted his succession, the executory proceeding may be brought against his heirs or legatees. If an heir or legatee is dead, incompetent, or absent, his heirs, legatees, succession, or legal representative may be made a party defendant to the executory proceeding as provided above and in Articles 2673 and 2674, as the case may be.
Art. 2672.Proceeding Against Heirs Or Legatees
Book V. Summary and Executory Proceedings · Title II. Executory Proceedings · Chapter 2. Proceeding Against Surviving Spouse, Succession, or Heir · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 2672 lets a creditor bring an executory proceeding against a deceased debtor's heirs or legatees once they have accepted the succession, and, if one of them is dead, incompetent, or absent, allows that person's own heirs, legatees, succession, or legal representative to be joined instead under Articles 2673 and 2674.
Full Text of Art. 2672
Plain-English Summary
When a debtor dies, Louisiana law transfers the deceased's rights and obligations to the people entitled to the succession: heirs, who inherit under the law when there is no valid testament covering the property, and legatees, who inherit under a testament, Louisiana's civil-law term for a will. Article 2672 lets a creditor bring executory process against those heirs or legatees once they have accepted the succession, meaning they have taken on the deceased's estate rather than renounced it.
Accepting a succession is not automatic in Louisiana; heirs and legatees have to accept before they stand in the deceased's shoes for purposes of an obligation like a mortgage. Article 2672 conditions the executory proceeding against them on that acceptance having already occurred.
The article also plans for a further layer of complication: what if one of those heirs or legatees has since died, become incompetent, or gone absent? Article 2672 does not leave the creditor stuck. That person's own heirs, legatees, succession, or legal representative may be joined as a party instead, following the more specific procedures Articles 2673 and 2674 set out for a legal representative and for an unrepresented defendant respectively.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are 'heirs' and 'legatees' under Louisiana law?
Heirs inherit under the law when there is no valid testament covering the property; legatees inherit under a testament, Louisiana's civil-law term for a will. Both can become defendants in an executory proceeding once they accept the deceased debtor's succession.
Can a creditor bring executory process against heirs before they've accepted the succession?
Article 2672 conditions the proceeding on the heirs or legatees having accepted the succession, so acceptance is the trigger for bringing them in as defendants.
What happens if an heir named as a defendant has since died?
Article 2672 allows that heir's own heirs, legatees, succession, or legal representative to be made a party instead, applying the procedures in Articles 2673 and 2674.
What if an heir is incompetent or cannot be located?
Article 2672 still allows the proceeding to continue by joining that heir's legal representative, succession, or heirs and legatees, consistent with Articles 2673 and 2674.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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