Will

Succession Toolkit

The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article, which was published by the Outlook Money on 1st April, 2022 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

Intestate succession planning laws in India are unfavourable for women. So, women must use the tools available and become the decision-makers in how their assets are transferred. The Covid pandemic has shown that life is fragile, and tragedy can strike any time. In the course of conversations with clients, we find that most women do not undertake succession planning, and even fewer understand the need for an estate plan. This is mainly due to lack of awareness, and because they usually tend to look to their husbands and/or other family members to deal with their assets. This needs to change, especially at a time when women are becoming wealth creators in their own right and are increasingly running large family businesses. Many women today are also inheriting valuable portions of the family business.

One can execute a Will just by signing it and having it attested by two witnesses. There is no requirement for having the Will mandatorily registered in India

Continue Reading Your Succession Toolkit

reverse mortgaged property
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 12th March, 2022 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

One of my relatives has reverse mortgaged his house, he died recently. It is understood that there is a specific will insisted by the banker and got executed at the time of reverse mortgage, wherein it says, “the property will devolve on my wife with absolute rights” and so on. Are the legal heirs eligible to claim for the rights of the said property?

– ArunContinue Reading Can legal heirs have claim in the reverse mortgaged property?

Release Deed
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 16th February, 2022 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

Is mutation of property possible through unregistered Will?

— Name withheld on requestContinue Reading Is release deed for immovable property a valid document?

Will Making
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 12th February, 2022 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

A person wishes that his property after his death be given to a memorial trust or a cancer hospital. At present, he wishes to have his house with him for stay during his lifetime. Is there any way by which he can make some kind of nomination so that his house (after his death) could be given to the cancer trust to be used by people visiting Mumbai for treatment?

—Iyer

Continue Reading How to bequeath a property to charity?

Can a Will be written from overseas
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 16th January, 2022 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

Me and my family (wife and son) are NRIs based in Sweden. I have properties and movable assets in India. Can I write a Will on plain paper while I am in Sweden with respect to my assets? Is it okay to get it witnessed by my other NRI friends from India, based in Sweden, for the time being? What are other precautions to be taken when writing a Will from overseas with respect to assets and liabilities in India?

– Narsinh ModaniContinue Reading Can a Will be written from overseas?

If my brother-in-law died intestate, who will be the legal heir?
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 24th November, 2021 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

My brother-in-law passed away suddenly and has not left any Will. He has a house in his name which is under mortgage for a loan. He is survived by his wife, a son who is a major and his mother. The house isn’t an ancestral property. It is a Hindu family. If the house is sold after a few years of the death of his mother, who will be the legal heirs for the money? Will it be my sister and her son only or will the legal heirs of the mother (another son and two daughters) also be a part?

—Name withheld on requestContinue Reading If my brother-in-law died intestate, who will be the legal heir?

A will can help in ensuring smooth transition of assets
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 27th October, 2021 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

My question is regarding my share in a house built by my father. The said house was built in 1990 and registered in the name of my mother and my elder brother (I was a minor then). My father passed away in 2016 and all immovable assets were transferred in my mother’s name. My mother has always maintained that all her assets, movable and immovable, be shared equally between us brothers. She has not made any Will and I do not feel comfortable asking her to make one either. My question is that in the absence of any Will, what is my share in the said house? Since the house is registered jointly in the name of my brother and my mother, she legally owns half of the house. Will my share amount to half of her share, i.e 50% of 50% = 25% or will it be her complete share, i.e 50%?

—Name withheld on requestContinue Reading A will can help in ensuring smooth transition of assets

Probate Compulsory for a Will to bequeath property in Mumbai
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 18th August, 2021 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

I reside in Mumbai with my family in a flat transferred to me as per the Will of my father after his death. Now, I wish to sell this flat. I have two siblings, one in Mumbai and another in Chennai. For selling the flat, is it necessary to get their approval? Do they have to sign the sale deed, as the Will is not probated? My brother in Chennai is unable to move out of his house due to ill health. Is it necessary to get a power of attorney (PoA) from him to sell the flat? If yes, how can it be done? Is it necessary that I must also be present to sign in the PoA? Also, considering the health of my brother, is there a provision to call the registrar home and certify the PoA deed? Please advise.

—Mallika G.

Continue Reading Probate Compulsory for a Will to bequeath property in Mumbai

Siblings get estate in intestacy if parents pre-decease owner
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 04th August, 2021 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

My elder brother and his wife died recently. They don’t have any children and have not left behind a Will. We were three brothers of whom now I am the sole survivor. We also have two sisters who are married. Now, who will be the successor to my late brother’s property, including movable and immovable assets?

—Name withheld on requestContinue Reading Siblings get estate in intestacy if parents pre-decease owner

The rights of a legal heir supersede the rights of a nominee
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The Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas shares their comments and opinions in an article in the  following Q&A which was published by the Mint Newspaper on 07th July, 2021 and the online edition of the same can be found here.

My father and mother passed away after they came down with covid. My father had made a registered Will in 2015. According to that document, my nephew has been named the claimant of all his liquid assets. However, after 2015, my father declared me as his nominee in almost all his bank accounts. Under these circumstances, who is the rightful claimant of my father’s liquid assets, my nephew or myself?

—Name withheld on requestContinue Reading The rights of a legal heir supersede the rights of a nominee