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Pravesh DabasAdvocate Delhi, India

02 · Family & Personal Matters

Succession & Inheritance

Succession law decides who inherits a person's property when they die, whether or not they left a will.

What this covers

  1. 01Inheritance where there is no will
  2. 02Succession certificates for debts and securities
  3. 03Letters of administration
  4. 04Disputes among heirs
  5. 05Rights of daughters and widows in family property

How it generally works

Inheritance without a will is governed by personal law: the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists; Muslim personal law; and the Indian Succession Act, 1925 for Christians, Parsis and others.

Since the 2005 amendment to the Hindu Succession Act, daughters have the same rights as sons in coparcenary (ancestral joint family) property.

Banks and companies often ask for a succession certificate before releasing a deceased person's money or securities; this is obtained from the civil court.