Mumbai high court fees for legal heir certificate / letter of adminstration

1. Legal Heir Certificate vs. Letter of Administration

   • A Legal Heir Certificate is typically issued by local authorities such as the municipal corporation or tehsildar. It is generally accepted for small transactions and basic property matters like claiming insurance, bank accounts, or transferring small movable assets.
   • A Letter of Administration (LA) is a more formal document issued by the court, especially when the property in question includes immovable property or significant assets, such as land, flats in cooperative societies, or pagdi properties. The LA is recognized by all authorities, including the cooperative society, for transferring or selling property.

2. Court Fees and Procedure for Letter of Administration

   • The court fees for applying for a Letter of Administration are typically high, especially in Mumbai, and can be in the range of Rs. 75,000 or more, depending on the value of the property and the type of assets involved. This fee is required when you approach the High Court for such a petition.
   • If you initially obtain a Legal Heir Certificate and later need to obtain a Letter of Administration due to complications in transferring or selling properties, you would have to pay the court fees again at the time of filing for the LA. Unfortunately, the fees are not transferable, and the earlier payment of fees for the Legal Heir Certificate does not offset the court fees for a Letter of Administration.

3. Validity of Court Fees

   • The court fees paid for Letter of Administration are valid only for the particular application and cannot be carried over to future applications. Each new filing or petition requires separate payment of fees. Therefore, if you later need to obtain a Letter of Administration, you will need to pay the full fee again.

4. Considerations Before Deciding

   • If there is a possibility that you will need to transfer or sell the properties in question, it may be more efficient to apply directly for the Letter of Administration, even if the initial cost is higher. This would ensure that you won’t face delays or difficulties later on, especially with the cooperative society or authorities involved in the property transactions.
   • If you are unsure, it's wise to consult with a qualified legal professional to assess the likely complexities and decide whether it’s more practical to proceed with a Legal Heir Certificate first and apply for a Letter of Administration later.

5. Final Advice

   • Since the properties involved are substantial, including cooperative society flats and land, a Letter of Administration may ultimately be required for smooth transfer and transactions. If you anticipate any challenges in the future, it's worth considering whether the higher initial cost of a Letter of Administration would save time, energy, and additional costs in the long run.

You can obtain a legal heirship certificate and NOC from other legal heirs and then approach the landlord to tnasfer the rental agreement for the pagdi system to your name.

If he refuses or do not respond properly then you can approach court with a suit for mandatory injunction to direct the landlord to transfer the pagdi system property to your name on the basis of legal heirship certificate and NOC from other legal heirs

Thanks for your advice.

If I were to file at the same time a  petition for a Legal Heir certificate, and another petition for a Letter of adminstration, Would I be able to do so by paying  court fee of Rs. 75000/- or would I have to pay separate court fee for each of these petitions?.

Or is it possible to file one petiton for both Legal Heir certificate as well as Letter of adminstration, so I dont have to pay the court fees twice?

You don\t get confused by invoking too many legal terms.

You first understand your problem and then approach an experienced lawyer in the local and listen to his suggestions, if you find the suggested ideas are proper then you may take steps to get reliefs/remedies as per the advise rendered.