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Theodor Oelenheinz
Born	1872
Died	1951
Nationality	German
Occupation(s)	Lawyer, author, publisher
Known for	Abolition of Inheritance (1919)
Relatives	Leopold Oelenheinz (brother), Karl Georg Hoffmann (grandfather)

Theodor Oelenheinz (1872–1951) was a German lawyer, author, and legal theorist known for his 1919 publication Abolition of Inheritance (Abschaffung des Erbrechts), a socially progressive proposal for reforming inheritance law in the aftermath of World War I. He was also involved in publishing, political activism, and held affiliations with various political and professional organizations throughout his life.

Early life and education

Oelenheinz was born in 1872, the son of a bank director from Karlsruhe. He was the grandson of Karl Georg Hoffmann, former finance minister of the Grand Duchy of Baden, and the brother of artist and architect Leopold Oelenheinz. He studied law, economics, and philosophy at the University of Heidelberg, where he received his doctorate summa cum laude in 1897.

Legal career and military service

He worked as a lawyer in Mannheim and Heidelberg from 1899 to 1941. Between 1890 and 1919, he served intermittently in the military, leaving with the rank of captain and good certificates about his achievements and character. Around 1912, he was apparently promised appointment to the Oberster Kolonial- und Konsulargerichtshof (Colonial and Consular Supreme Court), which was never founded, allegedly due to British intervention. To prepare, he studied international and colonial law at the Oriental Seminar in Berlin for three semesters.

Publishing and affiliations

In addition to publishing Abolition of Inheritance in 1919, he authored a second book, Das Erfindungsrecht, in 1922/1923, and published the weekly newspaper Deutsche Woche in Mannheim.

He was a member of or affiliated with a number of associations, including:

• The nationalist Pan-German League, a predecessor of the NSDAP
• The subgroup of commercial lawyers in the German Association of Economists (Reichsverband Deutscher Volkswirte)
• People’s Justice Party (Volksrechtspartei, 1926–1930), where he served as head of the local group
• Lawyer Society of Nazi Germany (NSRB / BNSDJ, 1933–1944)
• German Business Association (Deutscher Wirtschaftsverein e.V.), chairman in Mannheim
• SA patron member until January 1933 and SS patron member since August 1933
• Financial supporter of the NSDAP via the Opferring since 1932

While only half of the lawyers who were members of the NSRB/BNSDJ were also NSDAP party members, his early and long membership, along with his other affiliations, could be seen as a sign of support for the early Nazi regime.

Oelenheinz’s name is also associated with the founding of the Nazi fashion agency Deutsches Modeamt in Berlin around June/July 1933. A Dr. Oelenheinz from Mannheim is reported to have served as co-founder and board member alongside prominent figures such as Magda Goebbels, Sigmund Weech (creator of the German coat of arms and an older version of the Berlin coat of arms), and Hans Horst (former director of the wool company Nordwolle). However, Oelenheinz, Weech, and Goebbels resigned within one month of the agency’s founding.

Political stance and contradictions

Oelenheinz’s Nazi affiliations appear to conflict with his social-liberal, partially communist-friendly ideas in Abolition of Inheritance. Despite his affiliations and financial support of the early Nazi period, he never became an NSDAP member. His file at the Lawyer Society reveals several rebukes for non-conforming behavior. Colleagues accused him of agitating against the NSDAP. After World War II, authorities in both West and East Germany referred to him as an “antifascist”; he was declared “not affected” during denazification.

Postwar life

After the war, Oelenheinz regained his license to practice law in Mannheim in 1950, pursued a late habilitation at the University of Heidelberg, and appeared as a witness in court cases against Nazi criminals. He died in late 1951.

Abolition of Inheritance

In the 19th century, inheritance tax was often promoted as an effective means of social revolution and reform, with moderates seeking to restrict inheritance rights and more radical approaches seeking to abolish them altogether. Oelenheinz book Abolition of Inheritance (original title Abschaffung des Erbrechts) falls into the latter category.

The book is structured as a formal legislative proposal describing a new inheritance regime. He attempted to strike a balance between Marxist abolition of private property and capitalism. His concept introduced the idea of “property for life”, abolishing the right to extend property beyond death. His main innovation was a clear distinction between revenue-generating assets (e.g., land, financial assets, rental property, machinery) and private-use goods (e.g., clothing, personal residence, household items, a savings allowance equal to the last annual salary of the deceased).

Mixed-use properties (such as a self-inhabited house with rental units) were classified as revenue-generating and not inheritable. Debt linked to such assets would be assumed by the state, while private debt would remain with the heirs. Dependents were to receive annuities based on the social status of the deceased, funded by interest from confiscated assets. If insufficient, the assets themselves could be gradually liquidated. Ultimately, the state bore responsibility for providing for dependents.

Family businesses could be continued by heirs through lease-rent payments (4% for 20 years). If no heir took over, other shareholders, employees, or external parties could lease them from the state. Otherwise, the state would take over or close the business. Rental housing would be converted into public housing.

Private-use assets would follow a succession order starting with children, then siblings, and ending with the spouse. Fathers could pass to sons, mothers to daughters. Indivisible assets could be auctioned and the proceeds divided. Older, listed buildings could qualify for maintenance inheritance. Private parks open to the public might also be considered private-use property. To prevent evasion, the state could confiscate excessive private-use assets.

Oelenheinz’s proposal was bold and ahead of its time but raised critical questions. Annuities based on seized assets might be unsustainable. Criteria like “social status” were undefined and could imply new forms of privilege. The classification of mixed-use properties might discourage efficient property use. Nevertheless, his distinction between revenue-generating and private-use assets prefigures modern policies like tax exemptions for self-inhabited homes in Germany.

Although Oelenheinz's vision of an Abolition of Inheritance was never implemented, it has been acknowledged as part of the intellectual groundwork that influenced the evolution of inheritance taxation in Germany. His work is cited in leading legal commentaries, including the Staudinger commentary, one of the most authoritative interpretations of the German Civil Code (BGB) today, as well as Planck’s commentary, which served as the original and official commentary at the time of the BGB’s enactment.

Works

• Oelenheinz, Theodor (1919). Abschaffung des Erbrechts. Mannheim.
• Oelenheinz, Theodor (1923). Das Erfindungsrecht. Mannheim.

See also

• Inheritance tax
• Karl Georg Hoffmann
• Leopold Oelenheinz
• Denazification
• Weimar Republic

This page will be placed in the following categories if it is moved to the article namespace.

Categories:

• 1872 births
• 1951 deaths
• German legal scholars
• German lawyers
• People from Mannheim
• University of Heidelberg alumni