Civil Court Jurisdiction over Estate of Property Registered as Coffee LandCompetencia civil en sucesión de finca registrada como terreno de café

Document Review Supreme Court of Justice SECOND CHAMBER Res: 2026-001385 SECOND CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. San José, at ten hours five minutes on the twenty-third of April of two thousand twenty-six.

Jurisdictional dispute (competencia) arising in the probate proceeding (proceso sucesorio) of [Nombre 001], initiated before the Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José by [Nombre 002], national identity document [Valor 001].

CONSIDERING:

I.- [Nombre 002] initiated the opening of the estate of [Nombre 001] before the Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José. As the sole hereditary asset, she identified the property (finca) of the province of San José with registration number (matrícula) [Valor 002] (image 1). The Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José, by resolution issued at ten hours seven minutes on the thirty-first of October of two thousand twenty-five, ordered: "The claim(s) set forth in this proceeding in relation to the facts described in the complaint or initial petition are as follows: That the estate of [Nombre 001] be declared open, and upon review, it is noted that the sole inventoried asset is the property of the San José partition with registration number [Valor 002], described in the registry as coffee-growing land. From this it follows that the legal subject matter of the proceeding is governed by Agrarian Law, which has courts with jurisdiction over such matters, in accordance with Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Code of Agrarian Procedure. Consequently, this court declares itself to lack jurisdiction over the matter and orders its transfer to the Agrarian Court of the Second Judicial Circuit of San José, which shall continue handling the matter through its conclusion" (image 40). The petitioner filed a motion for reconsideration with an appeal in the alternative (recurso de revocatoria con apelación en subsidio) against that decision, arguing: "I disagree with the declaration of lack of jurisdiction issued by this Collegiate Court, since I consider that, although the registered nature of the sole asset constituting the hereditary estate, the property of the San José partition [Valor 002], is coffee-growing land, that classification dates back to 1975, when three lots were subdivided from the parent parcel (finca madre) [Valor 003], which at that time was owned by the decedent's grandfather, [Nombre 006]. Since 1990, when the property was registered in the decedent's name, [Nombre 001], no changes have been made to the property's registry entry, so its registered nature has not changed, even though in its current state the land is entirely built upon and there are no traces of any coffee plantation" (image 43). The Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José, by resolution issued at eleven hours twenty-one minutes on the eleventh of November of two thousand twenty-five, denied the motion for reconsideration, stating: "Having analyzed the arguments of the moving party, this court does not find them persuasive, since the registry certificate for the San José property with registration number [Valor 002] shows that its nature is coffee-growing land. Although the petitioner states that in its current state the land is entirely built upon and there are no traces of any coffee plantation, no evidence has been submitted showing that the actual nature of the land differs from what is recorded in the Public Registry. Accordingly, based on the registry information, the sole asset of the hereditary estate has an agrarian character. Pursuant to Article 2 of the new Code of Agrarian Procedure, cited above, since jurisdiction over probate proceedings involving real property rights (derechos reales) over real estate of an agrarian nature falls within the competence of the agrarian courts, this proceeding must be resolved by the Agrarian Jurisdiction" (image 45). The petitioner submitted another filing, titled "appeal," in which she argued: "I request that this matter remain before the civil courts, as this is a proceeding of a strictly civil nature with no connection whatsoever to agrarian activity. My husband, [Nombre 001], who worked as a messenger, was the registered owner of the property in the San José partition with cadastral registration number [Valor 002], located in San Juan de Dios de Desamparados, with an area of six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. The property has been owned since 1990. [Nombre 003] and I were married in 1983, and when he acquired that property, the house was built where we established our home. The property is even subject to the family home protection regime (régimen de habitación familiar). Although in the 1970s, when the cadastral survey was conducted, the entire parent parcel was dedicated to the planting and production of coffee, when it was subdivided by the decedent's grandfather, Mr. [Nombre 006], the purpose was for my late husband and his brothers and other family members to build their homes for themselves and their families to live in. The parent parcel [Valor 003], with an area of one thousand nine hundred five square meters and fifty-two square decimeters, gave rise to three child parcels: [Valor 006] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 004]), [Valor 004] and [Valor 005] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 005]). Each property has an area of approximately six hundred square meters. The lot originally assigned to my late husband, [Valor 002], had a residential house built on it where we had our home and where our children grew up. Since the death of my husband [Nombre 003] in 2004, I had to provide for my young children on my own, and therefore small commercial premises were built on the property, whose rental income, together with my personal efforts, allowed me to support and educate my children. The entire parent parcel has been fully subdivided and built upon; coffee cultivation disappeared from the physical and current reality of the property long ago. It is not acceptable to rely solely on the criterion that, according to the National Registry, the property is classified as coffee-growing land, in order to characterize the current situation of a parcel on which there are no longer any coffee plantations or agricultural or livestock activities, located along a main road and surrounded by commercial premises. It is currently a densely populated residential area. The Code of Agrarian Procedure refers to activities of production, industrialization, and commercialization of agricultural products, and none of those activities is the subject matter of this proceeding." Together with that filing, she submitted the following documentary evidence: 1) Photographs of the current state of the property. 2) Territorial land-use plan (plan de ordenamiento territorial) for the canton of Desamparados, district of San Juan de Dios. 3) Zoning and road regulatory plan (plan regulador de zonificación y vialidad) for the canton of Desamparados, district of San Juan de Dios. 4) Registry study of the parent parcel [Valor 003], from which lots [Valor 007], [Valor 002], and [Valor 008] were subdivided. She also stated: "I request that a site inspection (reconocimiento) of the property constituting the hereditary estate be conducted, so that it may be confirmed that there is no coffee plantation on said property and that the current nature of the land is built-upon land" (image 49).

II.- Since this proceeding was initiated after the entry into force of the Code of Agrarian Procedure — which took effect on February 28, 2025 — that legislation applies to it. Article 2 governs the subject-matter jurisdiction (competencia material) of the agrarian courts, and its first paragraph establishes that those courts have jurisdiction over: "Real and personal rights over agrarian properties designated or suitable for the development of agrarian activities and services, as well as rights connected to their protection and use. In addition, probate proceedings relating to such properties." With respect to properties that do not have an agrarian character, jurisdiction over probate proceedings belongs to the civil judge, in accordance with Article 8.3.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which provides: "Special criteria. Jurisdiction over the following matters is assigned as follows: 1. The preservation of assets, opening and recognition of wills, succession proceedings, and absences shall be handled by the court of the decedent's or absentee's last domicile, or, in the absence thereof, by the court of the place where the greater part of the assets is located." III.- According to the registry certificate at image 25, the registered nature of the property in the province of San José with registration number [Valor 002] is "coffee-growing land" and it measures six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. The Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José based its declaration of lack of jurisdiction solely on the registered nature of the property, without considering other complementary factors that must be taken into account for that purpose, such as the size of the land. Although there is no exact measurement that definitively classifies a parcel of real estate as being used for agrarian activity, the Reglamento de Fraccionamiento y Urbanizaciones of October 24, 2019, establishes in its Article 30: "According to the land-use capacity classes established in the Methodology for the Determination of Land-Use Capacity in Costa Rica, Decreto Ejecutivo N°41960-MAGMINAE, its amendments or any replacing regulation, agricultural, livestock, forestry, or mixed parcels classified as classes I, II, III, IV, V, and VI must have a minimum area of 5,000.00 m². All of the foregoing without prejudice to provisions issued by the municipality in its regulatory plan, the competent bodies in environmental matters, and the applicable regional plans. When the parcel is located within the Gran Área Metropolitana, the minimum area for agricultural parcels is 7,000.00 m², as established by the Reforma Plan Regional Desarrollo Urbano Gran Área Metropolitana, Decreto Ejecutivo N° 25902-MIVAH-MP-MINAE, and Decreto Ejecutivo N°38334-PLAN-MINAE-MIVAH-MOPT-S-MAG, known as: Aprueba Plan GAM 2013-2030, Actualización del Plan Regional de la Gran Área Metropolitana, and their amendments or any replacing regulations." The area of the property at issue in this proceeding is far too small to support a finding that agrarian activities are being conducted there. Added to this is the fact that the decedent worked as a messenger (as stated in the initial filing), which bears no connection to agrarian activity. Accordingly, the Chamber finds that this probate matter must be handled within civil jurisdiction. The evidence offered in the filing at image 49 is denied as unnecessary.

IV.- As a consequence of the foregoing, it is appropriate to declare that jurisdiction over this matter belongs to the Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José.

THEREFORE:

It is declared that the competent court to hear this matter is the Collegiate Court of First Instance, Civil Division, of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José.

Res: 2026-001385 SKRAMLAN/RPC LUIS PORFIRIO SÁNCHEZ RODRÍGUEZ - PRESIDING JUSTICE ROXANA CHACÓN ARTAVIA - JUSTICE ANA PATRICIA MONTERO MORALES - JUSTICE JORGE ENRIQUE OLASO ÁLVAREZ - JUSTICE JULIA VARELA ARAYA - JUSTICE 1 Telephone numbers: 2295-3671, 2295-3676, 2295-3675, and 2295-4406. Facsimile: 2258-4165.

Supreme Court of Justice SALA SEGUNDA Case File (Exp): 25-000557-0217-CI Resolution (Res): 2026-001385 SALA SEGUNDA DE LA CORTE SUPREMA DE JUSTICIA.

San José, at ten hours and five minutes on April twenty-third, two thousand twenty-six.

Jurisdictional conflict arising in the estate proceeding (proceso sucesorio) of [Nombre 001], filed before the Collegiate Civil Court of First Instance of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José by [Nombre 002], identity card [Valor 001].

WHEREAS:

I.- Ms. [Nombre 002] filed for the opening of the estate (sucesión) of Mr. [Nombre 001] before the Collegiate Civil Court of First Instance of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José. As the sole hereditary asset (haber hereditario), she identified the property (finca) in the province of San José, registry number (matrícula) [Valor 002] (image 1). The Collegiate Civil Court of First Instance of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José, by resolution issued at ten hours and seven minutes on October thirty-first, two thousand twenty-five, ordered: "The claim(s) established in this proceeding in connection with the facts alleged in the complaint or initial petition encompass the following: That the estate proceeding of [Nombre 001] be declared open; and, upon reviewing the same, it is apparent that the sole inventoried asset corresponds to the property in the San José registry section (partido) bearing registry number [Valor 002], with a registered land classification (naturaleza) of coffee-growing land (terreno de café). From the foregoing it follows that the legal subject matter of this proceeding is governed by Agrarian Law (Derecho Agrario), which has its own subject-matter courts, pursuant to Article 2, subparagraph 1, of the Agrarian Procedure Code (Código Procesal Agrario). Accordingly, this court declares itself to lack jurisdiction over the matter and orders its transfer to the Agrarian Court (Juzgado Agrario) of the Second Judicial Circuit of San José, so that proceedings may continue there, and that court shall carry the matter through to its conclusion" (image 40). The petitioner (promovente) filed a motion for reconsideration with appeal in the alternative (recurso de revocatoria con apelación en subsidio) against that ruling, arguing: "I do not agree with the declaration of lack of jurisdiction issued by this Collegiate Court, since I consider that, although the registered classification, according to the Registry, of the sole asset constituting the hereditary estate — the property in the San José registry section [Valor 002] — is coffee-growing land, that classification dates to 1975, when three lots were subdivided from the parent tract (finca madre) [Valor 003], which at that time was owned by the decedent's (causante) grandfather, [Nombre 006]. Since 1990, when the property was registered in the name of the decedent [Nombre 001], no registry transactions whatsoever have been carried out on the parcel, so its registered classification has not changed, even though in its current physical state the land is fully built up and there is no trace of any coffee plantation" (image 43). The Collegiate Civil Court of First Instance of the Third Judicial Circuit of San José, by resolution issued at eleven hours and twenty-one minutes on November eleventh, two thousand twenty-five, denied the motion for reconsideration, stating: "Having considered the moving party's arguments, this court does not find them persuasive, inasmuch as the registry certificate for San José property [Valor 002] establishes that its classification is coffee-growing land. While the petitioner states that in its current physical state the land is fully built up and there is no trace of any coffee plantation, no evidence whatsoever has been submitted to show that the actual classification differs from the one recorded in the Public Registry (Registro Público). In that regard, based on the registry information, the sole asset in the hereditary estate has an agrarian character (vocación agraria). And pursuant to Article 2 of the new Agrarian Procedure Code cited above, which grants subject-matter jurisdiction to hear succession proceedings when they involve real-property rights in parcels of an agrarian nature, this proceeding must be resolved by the Agrarian Jurisdiction" (image 45). The petitioner filed another pleading, entitled "appeal" (recurso de apelación), in which she argued: "I request that the present matter remain before the civil courts, as it is a proceeding strictly civil in nature and bears no connection to any agrarian activity. My husband, [Nombre 001], who was a messenger, was the registered owner of the property in the San José registry section bearing property folio number (matrícula de folio real) [Valor 002], located in San Juan de Dios de Desamparados, with an area of six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. That property was acquired in 1990. [Nombre 003] and I married in 1983, and when he acquired that property, a home was built there in which we established our residence. The property is even subject to the family homestead regime (régimen de habitación familiar). While in the 1970s, when the cadastral survey (levantamiento catastral) was conducted, the entire parent tract was devoted to the planting and production of coffee, when it was subdivided into lots (loteada) by the decedent's grandfather, Mr. [Nombre 006], the purpose was for my late husband and the rest of his siblings and relatives to build their homes and live there with their respective families. The parent tract [Valor 003], with an area of one thousand nine hundred five square meters and fifty-two square decimeters, gave rise to three derived parcels (fincas hijas): [Valor 006] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 004]), [Valor 004], and [Valor 005] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 005]). Each parcel measures approximately six hundred square meters. On the lot originally assigned to my late husband, [Valor 002], the family home was built — the home where we had established our residence and where our children grew up. Since my husband [Nombre 003] passed away in 2004, I had to support my young children on my own, and small commercial units were built on the property; the rental income from those units, together with my personal efforts, allowed me to provide for my children's upkeep and education. The entire parent tract is fully subdivided and built up; the coffee crops disappeared long ago from the physical and present-day reality of the parcel. The sole criterion that, according to the National Registry (Registro Nacional), the property is classified as coffee-growing land cannot be used to characterize the current situation of a parcel where no coffee plants remain and no agricultural or farming activities are carried on, and which fronts a main road and is surrounded by commercial premises. It is currently a densely populated residential area. The Agrarian Procedure Code refers to activities of production, industrialization, and commercialization of agricultural products, and none of those activities is the subject matter of the present proceeding." Along with that pleading, she submitted the following documentary evidence: 1) Photographs of the property's current condition. 2) Territorial land-use plan (plan de ordenamiento territorial) for the canton of Desamparados, San Juan de Dios district. 3) Zoning and road-use regulatory plan (plan regulador de zonificación y vialidad) for the canton of Desamparados, San Juan de Dios district. 4) Registry title search (estudio registral) for the parent tract [Valor 003], from which lots [Valor 007], [Valor 002], and [Valor 008] were subdivided.

Furthermore, [the party] stated: "I request that an inspection be carried out on the property constituting the estate assets (haber sucesorio), in order to confirm my assertion that no coffee plantation (cafetal) whatsoever exists on that property and that the nature of the land is currently developed land (terreno construido)" (imagen 49).

**II.-** Since this proceeding was initiated after the entry into force of the Code of Agrarian Procedure (Código Procesal Agrario) — which occurred on 28 February 2025 — that body of law is applicable to it. Article 2 governs the subject-matter jurisdiction (competencia material) of agrarian courts, and its first subparagraph provides that they have jurisdiction over: "Real and personal rights over agrarian property (bienes agrarios) intended for or suitable for the development of agrarian activities and services, as well as those connected to their protection and exploitation. Also included are succession proceedings (procesos sucesorios) relating to such assets." With respect to assets lacking an agrarian character (vocación agraria), the court with jurisdiction over succession proceedings is the civil court, pursuant to article 8.3.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Código Procesal Civil), which provides: "Special criteria. The following matters are assigned as follows: 1. The securing of assets, the opening and probate of wills, successions, and absence proceedings are assigned to the court of the last domicile of the decedent (causante) or absent person and, failing that, to the court of the place where the greater part of the assets is located." **III.-** According to the registry certificate (certificación registral) at imagen 25, the nature of the parcel (finca) in the province of San José with registration number (matrícula) [Valor 002] is "coffee land" and it measures six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. The Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José relied solely on the nature of the property to declare its lack of jurisdiction, when in fact there are other complementary factors that must be taken into account for that purpose, such as the size of the land. While there is no exact minimum measurement for determining that a property is considered to be used for agrarian activity, the Reglamento de Fraccionamiento y Urbanizaciones of 24 October 2019 provides in article 30: "According to the land-use capacity classes established in the Methodology for Determining Land-Use Capacity in Costa Rica, Decreto Ejecutivo N°41960-MAGMINAE, its amendments or any superseding regulation, agricultural, livestock, forestry, or mixed parcels classified as I, II, III, IV, V, and VI must have a minimum area of 5000,00 m². All of the foregoing is without prejudice to the provisions issued by the municipality in its land-use plan, the competent environmental authorities, and the applicable regional plans. When the parcel is located within the Gran Área Metropolitana, the minimum area for agricultural parcels is 7000,00 m², as established by the Reforma Plan Regional Desarrollo Urbano Gran Área Metropolitana, Decreto Ejecutivo N° 25902-MIVAH-MP-MINAE, and Decreto Ejecutivo N° 38334-PLAN-MINAE-MIVAH-MOPT-S-MAG, entitled: Aprueba Plan GAM 2013-2030, Actualización del Plan Regional de la Gran Área Metropolitana, its amendments or any superseding regulation." The size of the property at issue in this proceeding is far too small to conclude that agrarian activities are carried out on it. Added to this is the fact that the decedent was a messenger (as recorded in the initial petition (libelo inicial)), which bears no relation to agrarian activity. Accordingly, the Sala is of the view that this probate proceeding (mortual) must be handled within civil jurisdiction.

The evidence offered in the brief at image 49 is rejected as unnecessary.

IV.- As a corollary to the foregoing, it is appropriate to declare that the court with jurisdiction to hear this matter is the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

Por tanto:

It is hereby declared that the court with jurisdiction to hear this matter is the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

Res: 2026-001385 SKRAMLAN/RPC LUIS PORFIRIO SÁNCHEZ RODRÍGUEZ - PRESIDENTE/A [signature image] ROXANA CHACÓN ARTAVIA - JUSTICE   [signature image] ANA PATRICIA MONTERO MORALES - JUSTICE [signature image] JORGE ENRIQUE OLASO ÁLVAREZ - MAGISTRATE JULIA VARELA ARAYA - MAGISTRATE 1 Telephone numbers: 2295-3671, 2295-3676, 2295-3675 and 2295-4406.

Facsimile: 2258-4165.

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San José, at ten hours and five minutes on April twenty-third, two thousand twenty-six.

Jurisdictional dispute (competencia) arising in the probate proceeding (proceso sucesorio) of [Nombre 001], brought before the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José by [Nombre 002], national identity card (cédula de identidad) [Valor 001].

WHEREAS:

I.- Ms. [Nombre 002] petitioned to open the estate proceedings of [Nombre 001] before the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José. As the sole hereditary asset, she identified the property parcel (finca) in the province of San José with registration number (matrícula) [Valor 002] (image 1). The Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José, by ruling issued at ten hours and seven minutes on October 31, two thousand twenty-five, ordered: "The claim(s) set forth in this proceeding with respect to the facts alleged in the complaint or initial petition comprise the following: That the probate proceeding of [Nombre 001] be declared open; and upon its review, it is noted that the sole inventoried asset is the parcel in the San José registry district (partido de San José), registration number [Valor 002], classified as coffee-growing land (terreno de café). From this it follows that the legal subject matter of the proceeding is governed by agrarian law (Derecho Agrario), which has its own specialized courts with subject-matter jurisdiction, in accordance with Article 2, Section 1 of the Código Procesal Agrario. Accordingly, this court of justice declares itself without jurisdiction to hear the matter and orders its transfer to the Juzgado Agrario del II Circuito Judicial de San José, so that court may take over adjudication and carry the proceeding through to its conclusion" (image 40). The petitioner (promovente) filed a motion to reconsider with alternative appeal (recurso de revocatoria con apelación en subsidio) against that ruling, arguing: "I disagree with the declaration of lack of jurisdiction issued by this Tribunal Colegiado, since I consider that, although the classification recorded in the Registry for the sole asset comprising the hereditary estate (haber hereditario) — the parcel in the San José registry district [Valor 002] — is coffee-growing land, that classification dates back to 1975, when three lots were subdivided from the parent parcel (finca madre) [Valor 003], which at the time was owned by the decedent's (causante's) grandfather, [Nombre 006]. Since 1990, when the property was registered in the name of the decedent [Nombre 001], no registry transaction whatsoever has been made on the real property, so the property's registered classification has not changed, even though in current reality the land is fully built upon and there are no traces of any coffee plantation" (image 43). The Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José, by ruling issued at eleven hours and twenty-one minutes on November 11, two thousand twenty-five, denied the motion to reconsider, stating: "Having examined the arguments of the petitioning party, the undersigned does not find them persuasive, given that the property certificate for San José registration number [Valor 002] shows the classification as coffee-growing land. Although the petitioning party states that in current reality the land is fully built upon and there are no traces of any coffee plantation, no evidence whatsoever is offered to show that the actual classification differs from that recorded in the Registro Público. In this regard, according to registry information, the sole asset in the hereditary estate has an agrarian character (vocación agraria). And pursuant to Article 2 of the new Código Procesal Agrario as transcribed above, since subject-matter jurisdiction to hear probate proceedings involving real property rights in parcels of an agrarian character lies with the Agrarian Jurisdiction (Jurisdicción Agraria), this proceeding must be resolved by the Agrarian Jurisdiction" (image 45). The petitioner filed another brief titled "appeal" (recurso de apelación), in which she argued: "I request that this matter remain before the civil courts, as it is a proceeding of a strictly civil nature with no connection whatsoever to agrarian activity. My husband, [Nombre 001], who was a courier, was the registered owner of the parcel in the San José registry district with registered folio (folio real) number [Valor 002], located in San Juan de Dios de Desamparados, measuring six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. That property was acquired in 1990. [Nombre 003] and I married in 1983, and when he acquired that property, the home where we established our domicile was built. The property is also encumbered under the family homestead regime (régimen de habitación familiar). Although in the 1970s, when the cadastral survey (levantamiento catastral) was conducted, the entire parent parcel was devoted to coffee cultivation and production, when it was subdivided into lots by the decedent's grandfather, Mr. [Nombre 006], this was done so that both my deceased husband and the rest of his siblings and family members could build their homes and reside there with their respective families. The parent parcel [Valor 003], measuring one thousand nine hundred five square meters and fifty-two square decimeters, gave rise to three child parcels (fincas hijas): [Valor 006] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 004]), [Valor 004], and [Valor 005] (currently owned by the children of [Nombre 005]). Each property measures approximately six hundred square meters. Initially, on the lot assigned to my deceased husband, [Valor 002], the dwelling house was built where we had established our domicile and where our children grew up. Since my husband [Nombre 003] passed away in 2004, I had to provide for my young children on my own, and so small commercial units were built on the property, whose rental income, together with my personal effort, allowed me to cover my children's upkeep and schooling. The entire parent parcel is fully subdivided and built upon; the coffee crops disappeared from the physical and present reality of the property long ago. The sole criterion that, according to the Registro Nacional, the property is classified as coffee-growing land cannot be used to characterize the current situation of a parcel where no coffee plantations exist and no agricultural or agro-livestock activities are carried out, situated on a main road and surrounded by commercial establishments. It is now a densely populated residential area. The Código Procesal Agrario pertains to activities of production, industrialization, and commercialization of agricultural products, and none of those activities is the subject matter of the present proceeding." Together with that brief, she submitted the following documentary evidence: 1) Photographs showing the current state of the property. 2) Territorial land-use plan (plan de ordenamiento territorial) for the canton of Desamparados, San Juan de Dios district. 3) Zoning and road regulatory plan (plan regulador de zonificación y vialidad) for the canton of Desamparados, San Juan de Dios district. 4) Registry study (estudio registral) of the parent parcel [Valor 003], from which lots [Valor 007], [Valor 002], and [Valor 008] were subdivided.

Furthermore, [the party] stated: "I request that an inspection be carried out on the property constituting the estate assets (haber sucesorio), in order to confirm my assertion that no coffee plantation (cafetal) whatsoever exists on that property and that the nature of the land is currently developed land (terreno construido)" (imagen 49).

**II.-** Since this proceeding was initiated after the entry into force of the Code of Agrarian Procedure (Código Procesal Agrario) — which occurred on 28 February 2025 — that body of law is applicable to it. Article 2 governs the subject-matter jurisdiction (competencia material) of agrarian courts, and its first subparagraph provides that they have jurisdiction over: "Real and personal rights over agrarian property (bienes agrarios) intended for or suitable for the development of agrarian activities and services, as well as those connected to their protection and exploitation. Also included are succession proceedings (procesos sucesorios) relating to such assets." With respect to assets lacking an agrarian character (vocación agraria), the court with jurisdiction over succession proceedings is the civil court, pursuant to article 8.3.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Código Procesal Civil), which provides: "Special criteria. The following matters are assigned as follows: 1. The securing of assets, the opening and probate of wills, successions, and absence proceedings are assigned to the court of the last domicile of the decedent (causante) or absent person and, failing that, to the court of the place where the greater part of the assets is located." **III.-** According to the registry certificate (certificación registral) at imagen 25, the nature of the parcel (finca) in the province of San José with registration number (matrícula) [Valor 002] is "coffee land" and it measures six hundred thirty-five square meters and twenty-four square decimeters. The Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José relied solely on the nature of the property to declare its lack of jurisdiction, when in fact there are other complementary factors that must be taken into account for that purpose, such as the size of the land. While there is no exact minimum measurement for determining that a property is considered to be used for agrarian activity, the Reglamento de Fraccionamiento y Urbanizaciones of 24 October 2019 provides in article 30: "According to the land-use capacity classes established in the Methodology for Determining Land-Use Capacity in Costa Rica, Decreto Ejecutivo N°41960-MAGMINAE, its amendments or any superseding regulation, agricultural, livestock, forestry, or mixed parcels classified as I, II, III, IV, V, and VI must have a minimum area of 5000,00 m². All of the foregoing is without prejudice to the provisions issued by the municipality in its land-use plan, the competent environmental authorities, and the applicable regional plans. When the parcel is located within the Gran Área Metropolitana, the minimum area for agricultural parcels is 7000,00 m², as established by the Reforma Plan Regional Desarrollo Urbano Gran Área Metropolitana, Decreto Ejecutivo N° 25902-MIVAH-MP-MINAE, and Decreto Ejecutivo N° 38334-PLAN-MINAE-MIVAH-MOPT-S-MAG, entitled: Aprueba Plan GAM 2013-2030, Actualización del Plan Regional de la Gran Área Metropolitana, its amendments or any superseding regulation." The size of the property at issue in this proceeding is far too small to conclude that agrarian activities are carried out on it. Added to this is the fact that the decedent was a messenger (as recorded in the initial petition (libelo inicial)), which bears no relation to agrarian activity. Accordingly, the Sala is of the view that this probate proceeding (mortual) must be handled within civil jurisdiction.

The evidence offered in the brief at image 49 is rejected as unnecessary.

IV.- As a corollary to the foregoing, it is appropriate to declare that the court with jurisdiction to hear this matter is the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

Por tanto:

It is hereby declared that the court with jurisdiction to hear this matter is the Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

Res: 2026-001385 SKRAMLAN/RPC LUIS PORFIRIO SÁNCHEZ RODRÍGUEZ - PRESIDENTE/A [signature image] ROXANA CHACÓN ARTAVIA - JUSTICE   [signature image] ANA PATRICIA MONTERO MORALES - JUSTICE [signature image] JORGE ENRIQUE OLASO ÁLVAREZ - MAGISTRATE JULIA VARELA ARAYA - MAGISTRATE 1 Telephone numbers: 2295-3671, 2295-3676, 2295-3675 and 2295-4406.

Facsimile: 2258-4165. Email: [email protected]

Revisión del Documento  Corte Suprema de Justicia SALA SEGUNDA Res: 2026-001385 SALA SEGUNDA DE LA CORTE SUPREMA DE JUSTICIA. San José, a las diez horas cinco minutos del veintitrés de abril de dos mil veintiséis.

Competencia surgida en proceso sucesorio de [Nombre 001], promovido ante el Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José por [Nombre 002], cédula de identidad [Valor 001].

CONSIDERANDO:

I.- La señora [Nombre 002] promovió la apertura de la sucesión de don [Nombre 001] ante el Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José. Como único bien hereditario, indicó la finca de la provincia de San José matrícula [Valor 002] (imagen 1). El Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José, por resolución de las diez horas siete minutos del treinta y uno de octubre de dos mil veinticinco, dispuso: “La (s) pretensión (es) establecida (s) en este proceso en relación con los hechos narrados en la demanda o gestión inicial, comprende lo siguiente: Que se declare abierto el proceso sucesorio de [Nombre 001], y revisado el mismo, se denota que el único bien inventariado corresponde a la finca del partido de San José matrícula [Valor 002], con naturaleza de terreno de café. De lo anterior se infiere que el tema jurídico objeto del proceso es regulado por el Derecho Agrario, el cual cuenta con tribunales por razón de esa materia, de conformidad con el numeral 2 inciso 1 del Código Procesal Agrario. En consecuencia, este tribunal de justicia se declara incompetente para conocer el asunto y se ordena su envío al Juzgado Agrario del II Circuito Judicial de San José, para que continúe con su conocimiento, quien deberá continuar con el trámite de este asunto hasta su terminación” (imagen 40). La promovente interpuso recurso de revocatoria con apelación en subsidio contra esa decisión, alegando: “No comparto la declaratoria de incompetencia dictada por este Tribunal Colegiado, ya que considero que, aunque la naturaleza, según el Registro, del único bien que constituye el haber hereditario, finca del Partido de San José [Valor 002], es terreno de café, dicha naturaleza data del año 1975, cuando se segregaron tres lotes de la finca madre [Valor 003], que en ese entonces era propiedad del abuelo del causante, [Nombre 006]. Desde el año 1990 en que la propiedad quedó inscrita a nombre del causante [Nombre 001] no se le ha hecho movimiento registral alguno al inmueble, por lo que la naturaleza del inmueble registralmente no ha variado, aunque en la realidad actual el terreno está totalmente construido y no hay vestigios de cafetal alguno” (imagen 43). El Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José, por resolución de las once horas veintiún minutos del once de noviembre de dos mil veinticinco, rechazó el recurso de revocatoria, señalando: “Analizado los alegatos de la parte actora, no son compartidos por quien ahora resuelve, toda vez que de la certificación de la propiedad de San José matrícula [Valor 002], se tiene que su naturaleza es terreno de café. Si bien la parte promovente indica que en la realidad actual el terreno está totalmente construido y no hay vestigios de cafetal alguno, no se aporta prueba alguna que indique que la naturaleza no se ajusta a la inscrita en el Registro Público. En ese sentido, de acuerdo con la información registral, el único bien del haber sucesorio tiene vocación agraria. Y de conformidad con el artículo 2 del nuevo Código Procesal Agrario arriba transcrito, por competencia material para conocer procesos sucesorios verse sobre derechos reales de bienes inmuebles de naturaleza agraria, este proceso debe ser dirimido por la Jurisdicción Agraria” (imagen 45). La promovente presentó otro escrito, titulado “recurso de apelación”, en el que argumentó: “Solicito que el presente asunto se mantenga ante las autoridades civiles, por tratarse de un proceso de naturaleza estrictamente civil, sin que guarde relación alguna con actividad agraria. Mi esposo, [Nombre 001], quien fue mensajero, era el propietario registral de la finca del partido de San José con matrícula de folio real número [Valor 002], ubicada en San Juan de Dios de Desamparados, con una medida de seiscientos treinta y cinco metros cuadrados con veinticuatro decímetros cuadrados. Dicha propiedad fue adquirida desde el año 1990. [Nombre 003] y yo contrajimos matrimonio en el año 1983, y cuando adquirió dicha propiedad, se construyó la vivienda donde establecimos nuestro domicilio. Incluso la propiedad está afecta al régimen de habitación familiar. Si bien en los años setenta, cuando se realizó el levantamiento catastral, toda la finca madre estaba dedicada a la siembra y producción de café, cuando la misma se loteó por parte del abuelo del causante, señor [Nombre 006], fue para que tanto mi esposo fallecido como el resto de sus hermanos y familiares construyeran sus viviendas para habitarlas con sus respectivas familias. La finca madre [Valor 003], con una medida de mil novecientos cinco metros cuadrados con cincuenta y dos decímetros cuadrados, dio origen a tres fincas hijas: [Valor 006] (actualmente propiedad de los hijos de [Nombre 004]), [Valor 004] y [Valor 005] (actualmente propiedad de los hijos de [Nombre 005]). Cada inmueble con una medida aproximada de seiscientos metros cuadrados. Inicialmente en el lote que le correspondió a mi esposo fallecido, [Valor 002], se construyó la casa de habitación donde teníamos fijado nuestro domicilio y donde crecieron nuestros hijos. Desde el fallecimiento de mi esposo [Nombre 003] en el año 2004, tuve que sacar adelante a mis hijos pequeños, por lo que en la propiedad se construyeron unos pequeños locales comerciales con cuyos alquileres y mi esfuerzo personal pude brindarles manutención y estudios a mis hijos. Toda la finca madre está totalmente loteada y construida, hace mucho tiempo desaparecieron de la realidad física y actual del inmueble los cultivos de café. No puede tomarse en cuenta únicamente el criterio que según el Registro Nacional la propiedad es de naturaleza: terreno de café, para englobar la situación actual de un terreno donde ya no existen cafetales ni se desarrollan actividades agrícolas o agropecuarias, ubicada frente a una calle principal, rodeada de locales comerciales. Actualmente es una zona residencial densamente poblada. El Código Procesal Agrario se refiere a actividades de producción, industrialización y comercialización de productos agrícolas y ninguna de esas actividades es materia del presente proceso”. Junto a ese escrito aportó la siguiente prueba documental: 1) Fotografías del estado actual de la propiedad. 2) Plan de ordenamiento territorial del cantón de Desamparados, distrito San Juan de Dios. 3) Plan regulador de zonificación y vialidad del cantón de Desamparados, distrito San Juan de Dios. 4) Estudio registral de la finca madre [Valor 003], de donde fueron segregados los lotes [Valor 007], [Valor 002] y [Valor 008]. Además, manifestó: “Solicito se practique un reconocimiento en la propiedad que constituye el haber sucesorio, a fin de que se constate mi dicho que sobre dicho inmueble no existe cafetal alguno y que la naturaleza del terreno es actualmente terreno construido” (imagen 49).

II.- Como este proceso se inició luego de la entrada en vigencia del Código Procesal Agrario -lo que ocurrió el 28 de febrero de 2025-, dicha normativa le resulta aplicable. El artículo 2 regula la competencia material de los tribunales agrarios y su primer inciso determina que les corresponde conocer acerca de: “Derechos reales y personales sobre bienes agrarios, destinados o aptos para el desarrollo de actividades y servicios agrarios, así como los vinculados a su tutela y aprovechamiento. Además, los procesos sucesorios relativos a estos”. Respecto de los bienes que no tengan vocación agraria, el competente para conocer los procesos sucesorios es el juez civil, de conformidad con el artículo 8.3.5 del Código Procesal Civil, que establece: “Criterios especiales. Corresponde conocer lo siguiente: 1. Los aseguramientos de bienes, apertura y reconocimiento de testamentos, sucesiones y ausencias al tribunal del último domicilio del causante o ausente y, en su defecto, al del lugar donde esté la mayor parte de los bienes”.

III.- De conformidad con la certificación registral de imagen 25, la naturaleza de la finca de la provincia de San José matrícula [Valor 002] es “terreno de café” y mide seiscientos treinta y cinco metros cuadrados con veinticuatro decímetros cuadrados. El Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José se basó únicamente en la naturaleza del inmueble para declarar su incompetencia, siendo que existen otros factores complementarios que se han de tomar en cuenta para tales efectos, como por ejemplo la extensión del terreno. Si bien no existe una medida exacta para determinar que un bien inmueble es considerado de actividad agraria, el Reglamento de Fraccionamiento y Urbanizaciones del 24 de octubre de 2019 establece en su ordinal 30: “Según las clases de capacidad de uso establecidas en la Metodología para la determinación de la Capacidad de Uso de las Tierras de Costa Rica, Decreto Ejecutivo N°41960-MAGMINAE, sus reformas o normativa que le sustituya, las parcelas agrícolas, pecuarias, forestales o mixtas cuya clasificación sea I, II, III, IV, V y VI deben tener un área mínima de 5000,00 m². Todo lo anterior sin perjuicio de las disposiciones emitidas por la municipalidad en su plan regulador, los entes competentes en materia ambiental y los planes regionales vigente. Cuando el predio se localice dentro del Gran Área Metropolitana, el área mínima para parcelas agrícolas es 7000,00 m², según lo establece la Reforma Plan Regional Desarrollo Urbano Gran Área Metropolitana, Decreto Ejecutivo N° 25902-MIVAH-MP-MINAE, el Decreto Ejecutivo N°38334-PLAN-MINAE-MIVAH-MOPT-S-MAG, denominado: Aprueba Plan GAM 2013-2030, Actualización del Plan Regional de la Gran Área Metropolitana, sus reformas o normativa que les sustituya”. La medida de la propiedad objeto de este proceso es demasiado pequeña como para estimar que allí se realizan actividades agrarias. A ello se suma que el causante era mensajero (según se consignó en el libelo inicial), lo que no guarda relación con la actividad agraria. En consecuencia, la Sala es del criterio de que esta mortual ha de ser tramitada en la jurisdicción civil. Por innecesarias, se rechazan las probanzas ofrecidas en el memorial de imagen 49.

IV.- Como corolario de lo expuesto, procede declarar que el competente para conocer el asunto es el Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

POR TANTO:

Se declara que el competente para conocer el asunto es el Tribunal Colegiado de Primera Instancia Civil del Tercer Circuito Judicial de San José.

Res: 2026-001385 SKRAMLAN/RPC  LUIS PORFIRIO SÁNCHEZ RODRÍGUEZ - PRESIDENTE/A  ROXANA CHACÓN ARTAVIA - MAGISTRADO/A  ANA PATRICIA MONTERO MORALES - MAGISTRADO/A  JORGE ENRIQUE OLASO ÁLVAREZ - MAGISTRADO/A  JULIA VARELA ARAYA - MAGISTRADO/A 1