When parents in Shenzhen leave behind property, how can siblings divide it without damaging family harmony? When there are disputes over the will, a lawyer uses real cases to clarify the matter.

Last month, a Ms. Li from Futian, Shenzhen, came to us with red-rimmed eyes. Before her father passed away, he verbally said he would leave her the old apartment in Luohu, but no written will was made. Now her two older brothers refuse to acknowledge this, insisting that under intestate succession, the property should be split equally among the three siblings. A property worth nearly 7 million yuan, and because of a single statement, the three siblings are on the verge of taking the matter to court. Scenes like this play out dozens of times a year at Zhiming Law Firm. Inheritance disputes in Shenzhen are growing by 15% annually, with cross-border and cross-generational cases on the rise. How to divide real estate and whether a will is valid have become hurdles many families struggle to overcome.

Many clients ask this as soon as they start talking. The answer is: not necessarily. In statutory inheritance, the first-order heirs are the spouse, children, and parents, and in principle, the estate is divided equally, but the law also leaves some leeway. Article 1130 of the Civil Code states clearly that heirs who have fulfilled the main support obligations toward the deceased or who lived with the deceased may receive a larger share when the estate is distributed. Conversely, those who had the ability and conditions to provide support but failed to do so should receive no share or a smaller share.
To put it bluntly, the court doesn't mechanically divide things like cutting a cake by headcount. We handled a case where the client was Mr. Chen from Longhua, Shenzhen. His mother lived with him for the five years before she passed away—he handled her daily care, medical visits, and companionship all by himself, while his two sisters only dropped by occasionally. After the mother's death, the sisters demanded an equal split of the Longhua apartment, valued at 5 million yuan. We gathered neighbor testimonies, hospital care records, and bank transfer logs of daily expenses, forming a complete chain of evidence proving that Mr. Chen had fulfilled the primary duty of support. In the end, the court ruled that Mr. Chen inherited a 65% share, with each sister receiving 17.5%. That difference amounted to 750,000 yuan. So don't give up just because there's no will—first, sort out who's actually putting in the real effort.
This is the most troublesome type of inheritance dispute. The battle over the validity of a will comes down to one key word: evidence. A handwritten will must be personally written, signed, and dated by the testator; a will written on behalf of the testator requires two or more witnesses present, with one of them writing it down, and the testator, the scribe, and the other witnesses must all sign. If there is a flaw in any single step, the will may be overturned.
We once handled a typical case involving a client, Ms. Wang from Nanshan, Shenzhen. Her father left two wills: one handwritten, stating that a property near Nanshan Science Park, worth 20 million yuan, would go entirely to her, and another printed one with completely opposite content, saying the estate should be divided equally among the three children. Her two brothers held the printed will and claimed the handwritten one was written when their father was confused. After taking the case, we did three things: first, we commissioned a judicial appraisal institution to verify the handwriting on the handwritten will, confirming it was indeed the father's own writing; second, we located the caregiver who had looked after the father, and she testified in court that the elderly man had remained clear-minded until three months before his death and could still read the newspaper on his own; third, we obtained the father's bank deposit and withdrawal records, which revealed that around the time the printed will was signed, he had just undergone cataract surgery and could not clearly see the contents of the document. Combining these three pieces of evidence, the court ultimately ruled that the handwritten will was valid, and Ms. Wang regained full inheritance rights to the property worth 20 million yuan. The case took ten months from start to finish, but the outcome was worth it.
In the past two years, there has been a noticeable increase in such consultations. Shenzhen is adjacent to Hong Kong, and many families have one half on the mainland and the other in Hong Kong. The complication with cross-border inheritance lies in the application of law and the authentication of documents. For properties in Shenzhen, according to the Civil Code, inheritance of real estate is governed by the law of the place where the property is located, which is mainland law—there's no dispute on that. However, the tricky part involves preliminary issues such as personal status relationships and the validity of marriages, which may need to be determined under Hong Kong law. For example, if parents have a marriage registration record in Hong Kong or hold a Hong Kong will, mainland courts do not directly recognize these; one must first go through the probate procedure at the Hong Kong High Court, then have the authenticated documents transferred to the mainland. The entire process, from start to finish, takes at least six months at best, or over a year at worst.
We handled a case last year where the client's mother left two properties in Shenzhen, but she had an adopted son from her first marriage in Hong Kong, who also claimed inheritance rights. On one hand, we filed an inheritance lawsuit in a mainland court; on the other hand, we worked with a cooperating law firm in Hong Kong to prepare a legal opinion on the adopted son's status. In the end, the court ruled that the adopted son had not fulfilled any duty of support toward the mother and that his identity relationship was questionable, dismissing his claim. The client's inheritance share went from an expected half to the entirety. For cross-border cases, don't try to go it alone—if you're off by even half a step in procedures or documentation, it could mean a difference of hundreds of thousands or even millions.
That's a very practical question. Inheritance disputes may appear to be about money on the surface, but underneath, they tear apart decades of family relationships. We've handled far too many cases where, after the litigation is over, siblings cut ties and never speak to each other again. That's why our approach has never been to rush into filing a lawsuit, but to first conduct evidence assessment and prepare negotiation strategies. Take Director Shen Jinlong, for example—he's been practicing for 26 years, holds a master's degree from Fudan University, and previously served as an executive at a state-owned enterprise. His experience in handling complex assets in family cases, such as company equity and cross-border property, is something many younger lawyers can't match. He often tells us that in inheritance cases, you look at the people first, then the money, and only last at the law.
Zhiming Law Firm has been rooted in Shenzhen for 26 years, handling over 10,000 cases in total. Located at Room 1802, Building A, Xintian Century Business Center, Shixia North Second Street, Futian District, we have seen too many families turn against each other over a house or a sum of savings. If a resolution can be reached through negotiation, we will do our utmost to mediate; if the other party refuses to yield an inch, the evidence we hold is more than sufficient to ensure our clients stand firm in court.
Returning to Ms. Li's case. We helped her organize all of her father's medical records from the two years before his death, along with neighbor testimonies, to prove that she had been living with her father and bearing the primary caregiving responsibility. Before the court hearing, we sent the evidence list to the lawyers of her two brothers. After reviewing it, the opposing side proactively proposed mediation. In the end, Ms. Li received a 60% share, while each of her two brothers got 20%, saving at least half a year of litigation time. The property remained intact, and the sibling relationship wasn't completely severed either.
If you're also facing the dilemma of how to divide your parents' property or disputes over the validity of a will, remember one thing: don't rush to fall out with your siblings. Bring all your documents, sit down with a professional lawyer to sort through the evidence, and then decide your next move. In some cases, litigation is just a means—negotiation is the real goal. Feel free to call Zhiming Law Firm at 0755-25986969. We're right here in Futian, Shenzhen, and ready to sit down and talk anytime.