The Argentine courts have ruled that the nieces and nephews of María Kodama, the late widow and key advocate of renowned Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, are his “universal heirs.”
This decision grants them rights to the author’s creations. The Argentine author has become the most translated Latin American writer in China, and his work has greatly influenced Chinese authors.
The National Court of First Instance in Civil Matters 11 declared the five nieces and nephews—Mariana del Socorro, Martín Nicolás, María Victoria, Matías, and María Belén—as the sole claimants of inheritance rights, making them successors to Borges’ legacy.
María Kodama held custody of Borges’ work until her passing at the age of 86 on March 26.
According to attorney Fernando Soto, who represented Kodama in court, the ruling brings relief.
The nephews and nieces now inherit Borges’ entire body of work, including cultural, physical, and intellectual property assets.
María Kodama, born on March 10, 1937, in Buenos Aires, did not leave a written will, prompting her five nephews and nieces to seek legal intervention for the inheritance.
Kodama and Borges had a relationship that lasted over a decade, only formalized two months before the writer’s death in April 1986.
In 1988, Kodama established the Jorge Luis Borges Foundation, which exhibits the writer’s library, first editions of his books, manuscripts, and other memorabilia.
Borges, a renowned admirer of Chinese literature, had an affinity for exploring different worlds.
Despite being unable to travel to China, he expressed his fascination with works like “Dream in the Red Pavilion” by Cao Xueqin.
The court’s decision settles the inheritance matter and recognizes the nieces and nephews as the rightful heirs to Jorge Luis Borges’ literary and cultural legacy.