An action to enforce an obligation is the property of the obligee which on his death is transmitted with his estate to his heirs, universal legatees, or legatees under a universal title, except as otherwise provided by law. An action to enforce an obligation is transmitted to the obligee's legatee under a particular title only when it relates to the property disposed of under the particular title. These rules apply also to a right to enforce an obligation, when no action thereon was commenced prior to the obligee's death.
Art. 426.Transmission of Action and of Right to Enforce Obligation
Title II. Actions · Chapter 1. General Dispositions · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 426 treats the right to sue on an obligation as an inheritable property right, passing at the obligee's death to heirs and universal legatees, with a particular legatee inheriting only the right to sue over the specific property left to them.
Full Text of Art. 426
Plain-English Summary
A right to enforce an obligation doesn't vanish when the person who holds it dies. Article 426 treats that right as property belonging to the obligee, and property passes at death under Louisiana's succession law like anything else the person owned.
Most heirs and legatees inherit the right along with the rest of the estate. Louisiana succession law distinguishes a universal legatee, someone left an entire estate or a share of it, and a legatee under a universal title, someone left a fraction or category of property, from a particular legatee, someone left one specific, identified item, like a named piece of land or a car. The first two groups step into the deceased obligee's shoes generally. A particular legatee's inheritance of the right to sue is narrower: it passes to them only when the lawsuit relates to the specific property they were left.
The article applies even if the obligee died before ever filing suit. The unexercised right to enforce the obligation transmits along with the eventual right to sue on it, so an heir or legatee can pursue a claim the deceased never got around to filing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a right to sue die with the person who holds it?
No. Article 426 treats it as property that passes to the deceased person's heirs and legatees under Louisiana succession law.
What's the difference between a universal legatee and a particular legatee?
A universal legatee or legatee under a universal title inherits an entire estate or a share or category of it. A particular legatee inherits one specific, identified item. Only the second group's right to sue is limited to claims tied to that specific item.
Does this apply if the deceased never filed the lawsuit?
Yes. Article 426 covers both an action already filed and a right to enforce an obligation that was never sued on before death.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the vLex (Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure, 2026 Edition). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: transmission of a lawsuit at deathuniversal legatee lawsuit rightsparticular legatee Louisiana successioninheriting a right to sue