In many common programming languages a class should ultimately derive from a known base class (such as Object in Java and Forté, or CObject in MFC). This review allows you to define a set of base classes that all classes should ultimately derive from.

Review items are logged when a class is discovered that, after walking up the inheritance tree, does not derive from a class named in the configuration of this review.

In object orientated languages having a common base class is a good idea as it provides designers and developers with a common starting point they can rely on for certain operations.

Classes should ultimately derive from one of a set of common base classes, or you should provide a good reason why this is not necessary.