Overseas marriage and succession
Moll
(Querist) 18 October 2012
This query is : Resolved
My late relative, born in India, became a British Citizen and married an Indian girl in London at a registry office. The marriage was later deemed to have irretrievable broken down by a Judge in UK and a Decree Nisi granted but not made absolute prior to his death.
He died intestate in his ancestral home in India, where domiciled.
My question is does the wife have any benefit to his estate under the Intestacy rules of Indian Succession Act 1925. This is unclear to me because presumed intention would be not to make her a beneficiary to his estate given divorce proceeding where initiated and marriage breakdown.. Also is an oversea marriage under UK Law recognized in the same Act as reference to wife?
Devajyoti Barman
(Expert) 18 October 2012
Well. without seeing the decree copy it is difficult to advise. In some cases the court does grant division of property including right to succeed in case of death prior to implementation of order.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 02 December 2012
Law do not follow the intension. As the final decree for divorce could not be passed, it cannot be presumed that such decree would have been passed had your relative alive. The possibility of other side is also alive so in the given facts, the wife of deceased is entitled to inherit the entire estate of deceased as per succession act.
Moll
(Querist) 06 December 2012
Thank you for replies. I have been advised that the case of ancesteral property is stated as follows in The Indian Succession Act 1925:
PART III
MARRIAGE
20. Interests and powers not acquired not lost by marriage.-(1)
No person shall, by marriage, acquire any interest in the property of
the person whom he or she marries or become incapable of doing any act
in respect of his or her own property which he or she could have done
if unmarried.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 06 December 2012
Moll! You know the respective law so why to ask queries to others?
Moll
(Querist) 06 December 2012
At the time of my first post the answer was unknown to me.
