Administrative management and settlement of successions.

Article 104 of the 1866 Consular Regulations provides that consuls notify the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of every death of nationals occurring in their district and coming to their knowledge, and inform it of all successions opened in the district involving nationals not present locally.

The consul must, however, refrain from interference where executors or heirs (or their representatives) are present.

In the absence of heirs locally, the consul’s activity takes the form of defence and assistance of the interests of the deceased citizen and their successors.

The extensive succession archives preserved in consular fonds derive their structure from Article 111 of the aforementioned Consular Regulations, which requires that documents and correspondence relating to individual successions be collected, in original or copy, in a dedicated file bearing on the cover the name of the deceased and the succession number.

Identified as position C7 in the 1924 classification scheme.

On guardianship, see the Civil Code of 1865, articles 241 et seq.

Where both parents are dead or declared absent, or have lost parental authority as a result of a criminal conviction, guardianship is opened in respect of the minor. Appointment must be made by notarial deed or by will.
Upon opening guardianship, a family council is constituted for the entire period during which it is exercised.
Guardianship may also be exercised in respect of persons under disability and interdicted persons.