Last Change:

08/26/2026

Ecuador Civil Code

Original names of the law: Código Civil Ecuador

Year: 2005

Type: Domestic law

Rights Category: Family life

Description

The Civil Code is the body of laws that regulates private legal relations between individuals, including family matters, property, obligations, contracts, inheritance, and civil liability, ensuring legal certainty and social order.

Selected provisions
Article 22 - Degrees of Consanguinity

Degrees of consanguinity between two persons are determined by the number of generations. Thus, a grandchild is in the second degree of consanguinity with a grandparent; and two first cousins are in the fourth degree of consanguinity with each other. When one of the two persons is an ascendant of the other, consanguinity is in the direct line; and when the two persons descend from a common ascendant, and one of them is not an ascendant of the other, consanguinity is in the collateral or transversal line.

"Los grados de consanguinidad entre dos personas se cuentan por el número de generaciones. Así, el nieto está en segundo grado de consanguinidad con el abuelo; y dos primos hermanos, en cuarto grado de consanguinidad entre sí. Cuando una de las dos personas es ascendiente de la otra, la consanguinidad es en línea recta; y cuando las dos personas proceden de un ascendiente común, y una de ellas no es ascendiente de la otra, la consanguinidad es en línea colateral o transversal.
"

Article 23 - Affinity

Affinity is the relationship that exists between a person who is or has been married and the blood relatives of their spouse, or between one of the parents of a child and the blood relatives of the other parent. The line and degree of affinity between two persons shall be determined by the respective line and degree of consanguinity; thus, between parents-in-law and sons- or daughters-in-law there is a direct line of affinity in the first degree, and between siblings-in-law there is a collateral line of affinity in the second degree.

Afinidad es el parentesco que existe entre una persona que está o ha estado casada y los consanguíneos de su marido o mujer, o bien, entre uno de los padres de un hijo y los consanguíneos del otro progenitor. La línea y grado de afinidad entre dos personas se determina por la línea y grado de consanguinidad respectivos; así, entre suegros y yernos hay línea recta o directa de afinidad en primer grado, y entre cuñados, línea colateral de afinidad en segundo grado.

Article 24 - Establishment of Filiation

"Filiation, and the corresponding paternity and maternity, shall be established:
a) By the fact that a person was conceived within a valid or putative marriage of their parents, or within a legally recognized stable and monogamous de facto union;
b) By voluntary recognition by the father or the mother, or both, in cases where there is no marriage between them; and,
c) By having been judicially declared the child of a specific father or mother."

Se establece la filiación, y las correspondientes paternidad y maternidad: a) Por el hecho de haber sido concebida una persona dentro del matrimonio verdadero o putativo de sus padres, o dentro de una unión de hecho, estable y monogámica reconocida legalmente; b) Por haber sido reconocida voluntariamente por el padre o la madre, o por ambos, en el caso de no existir matrimonio entre ellos; y, c) Por haber sido declarada judicialmente hijo de determinados padre o madre.

Article 599 - Right of Ownership or Property

Ownership, also known as property, is the real right over a corporeal thing that allows its holder to use and dispose of it, in accordance with the provisions of the law and with due respect for the rights of others, whether individual or collective El dominio, que se llama también propiedad, es el derecho real en una cosa corporal, para gozar y disponer de ella, conforme a las disposiciones de las leyes y respetando el derecho ajeno, sea individual o social.

Article 933 - Action for Recovery of Ownership (Reivindication Action)

The reivindication or action of ownership is that which the owner of a specific thing, of which they are not in possession, has in order for the possessor to be ordered to return it. "La reivindicación o acción de dominio es la que tiene el dueño de una cosa singular, de que no está en posesión, para que el poseedor de ella sea condenado a restituírsela.
"

Article 960 - Possessory Actions

Possessory actions are intended to preserve or recover possession of real property or real rights constituted over such property. "Las acciones posesorias tienen por objeto conservar o recuperar la posesión de bienes raíces o de derechos reales constituidos en ellos.
"

Article 993 - Types of Succession

A deceased person is succeeded either by universal title or by singular title. The title is universal when a person succeeds the deceased in all their transferable assets, rights, and obligations, or in a portion of them, such as one-half, one-third, or one-fifth. The title is singular when succession is to one or more specific assets or clearly identified items, such as a particular horse or a particular house, or to one or more unspecified items of a certain kind, such as a horse, three cows, six hundred United States dollars, or forty quintals of wheat. Se sucede a una persona difunta a título universal o a título singular. El título es universal cuando se sucede al difunto en todos sus bienes, derechos y obligaciones transmisibles, o en una cuota de ellos, como la mitad, tercio o quinto. El título es singular cuando se sucede en una o más especies o cuerpos ciertos, como tal caballo, tal casa; o en una o más especies indeterminadas de cierto género, como un caballo, tres vacas, seiscientos dólares de Estados Unidos de América, cuarenta quintales de trigo.