According to Indian law, will registration is not mandatory. However, registration implies that the registrar has checked the identity of the writer of the Will and the witnesses by attesting to it. An individual's Will is often challenged by a court on the grounds that it has been compelled, a threat was made, or it has been made by a person who lacks mental capacity. Registering the Will can be one manner in which to establish the fact that the testator of his own drifting will make the will with his full mental capacity in mind.
In a study, 90% of respondents posited that they had no clue who had written their parent's Will or where it was stored. The relatives may presume that you died intestate if they are unaware of where your Will is. Your estate will be distributed according to the succession law that applies. In some cases, this may not be in accordance with the instructions of your Will. As it was stated earlier, if you Register your Will, your Executor or your next of kin will be able to get your Will from the Registrar if there is a dispute that your native Will is unable to be located.
What is the procedure for signing a Will?
- Nexgen Estate Planning Solutions drafts a will for you
- There is a date that has been complemented in the Sub-Registrar office for the registering of a Will
- Payment of government registration fees has been made. These fees differ from state to state, but they are about the same in all states.
- Upon the Testator (the person writing the Will) along with two Witnesses, the Testator and Witnesses go to the office of the Sub-Registrar in order to register the Will.
- After one week, we will be able to collect the registered copy of the Will.
It is not necessary to register a will. What Are the Benefits of Registering?
- If future problems arise as a result of the execution of a will, registering the will gives the testament unequivocal legal backing. Having this become available in the event that a disagreement arises as to whether the will is valid is extremely useful.
- In a situation in which two wills of the same testator (writer of the will) are dated on the exact same day and the validity of both of them is questioned, the will which has been registered will receive more legal standing than the one that has not been.
- It is important to keep in mind, however, that simply registering a will is not enough. "It is important to note that registration alone will not suffice to eliminate all suspicion regarding the company, when suspicion exists, without submitting a close examination of the evidence of registration," the Supreme Court stated in the case of "Rani Purnima Devi And Others versus Kumar Khagendra Narayan Dev And Others."
Listed below are the steps for registering a will:
- A will has greater flexibility than other instruments when it comes to registration under the Registration Act. In contrast, every other instrument must be registered within four months of the date of signing. Hence, a will can be made at any moment.
- As a consequence of their delicate nature, the same rule does not apply to wills.
- For a variety of reasons, such as privacy and security, a testator may not wish to reveal his/her will to those around them. As a consequence, there is no set deadline for submitting a will.
- In this case, the will have to be registered in the back of the Sub-Registrar or Registrar of the district court whose jurisdiction has jurisdiction over a considerable portion of the estate.
- In all lots or unspecified cases, the registration procedure must be undertaken by the Registrar's office or the Sub-Registrar's office. In certain circumstances, Section 31 of the Registration Act may provide an exception, but that is only in a few cases.
- In this section, it is stated that the manager may be allowed to re-word special cause being shown in order to attend at the place of dwelling for the registration of the will.
- Depending on the situation and surroundings, it may be wrong in connection with health, impending death, and the choice of such scenarios.
- A Registrar of Patents has the responsibility of inspecting the document on the endeavor in order to make sure no concrete errors are made concerning the registration and that an accurate record is made of it.
Registrable wills
- There is a misconception around wills that a registered will is superior to an unregistered will even if the unregistered will has an older date by a fair margin.
- I strongly believe that in the act of two wills, the judge of Badari Basamma v. Kandrikeri, highly regarded the second of these wills to prevail.
- As a normal practice, it is also custom that the clauses are definite irrespective of whether they will be registered or not. This, therefore, explains why there is no basis for the misconception.
What to Do If the Testator Passes Away
- Regardless of the status of the will, whether it has been registered or not, the probate process must be initiated in the district court or high court in the capture jurisdiction.
- As a result, the court will psychiatry the will and ensure that it was made by the due process of execution as the constitution requires.
- A court will let the executor know what the executor's responsibilities are behind the perch and release the connected property based on the provision in the will.
- When there is no executor named by the testator, the court will appoint an administrator who will be responsible for receiving the sticking to of the fund.
Will revocation
As per section 62 of the Indian Succession Act, the maker of the will can revoke it at any time when he or she is competent enough to do so. Competition indicates a hermetic mind and that the testator has reached majority age.