succession certificate
A succession certificate is granted under Part X of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 by the District Judge (or a court authorised by it) on an application under Section 372. It relates only to debts and securities, such as bank deposits, shares and loans owed to the deceased. It protects persons who pay the holder, and Section 214 bars courts from passing a decree for a debt in favour of a claimant who does not have one (or probate or letters of administration).
It is granted after a summary inquiry and does not decide title finally; a person with a better right may still sue. It differs from probate, which proves a will and is granted to the executor, and does not cover immovable property.
Example
The widow obtained a succession certificate under Section 372 to withdraw her late husband's fixed deposits from the bank.
In Indian law
- Sections 214 and 370–390 (Part X), Indian Succession Act, 1925
See also
probate · legal representative · succession · intestate
Read more in the study notes
- Probate, letters of administration and succession certificates (Family Law II - Mohammedan Law)
- Transfer and transmission of shares, judicial intervention and rights of shareholders (Company Law)
- Original petitions and execution petitions (Drafting, Pleading and Conveyance)
- The Indian Succession Act and domicile (Family Law II - Mohammedan Law)
- Legacies, ademption and protection of the estate (Family Law II - Mohammedan Law)
- Life policies: assignment, nomination, claims, and the LIC and GIBNA Acts (Insurance Law)