• Misuse of will document

My grandfather split his total assets between me and my brother via a will document.He died due to a clot in brain and he suffer serious memory loss and unconsciousness during his last 6-10 months. During this period my brother, on my grandfather's hospital visit, took him to a document writer and he wrote a codicil to move some of the properties listed in the original will document in my name to his name and forced my grandfather to put signatures/thump impression in the codicil without his conscious decision.
I later came to know about this recently, when we try to register the properties in own names. I got a leak from one of employees from the document writer office about my brother's visit to the document writer and the codicil he wrote there to move the properties. Is there anything I can do to retrieve the properties I lost? The hospital in which my grandfather were admitted may have the medical history of my grandfather during the time the codicil was written. How should I proceed ?
Asked 4 years ago in Property Law
Religion: Christian

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28 Answers

Challenge the codicile being invalid and executed under un due influence. Challege will be to prove mental capacity of GF. This will prove by medical record about his mental incapacity.

Who are witness to the codicile ?.

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22596 Answers
31 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

You can file suit  to claim properties bequeathed to you 

 

2) take the plea that grand father was not mentally fit at time of execution of codicil 

 

4) rely upon grand father medical reports to prove he was not mentally fit at time of execution of codicil 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94518 Answers
7485 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Dear Sir,

You are suggested to apply for the mutation on your name and if the point is raised by the concerned authority, you are suggested to ask in writing the reason of such objection. You may also use RTI forum to extract the correct document and then file the case in court for declaration of that later document of codicil as null and void.    

Ganesh Singh
Advocate, New Delhi
6757 Answers
16 Consultations

4.5 on 5.0

You can take the plea that fraudulent codicil was discovered recently and you have taken legal proceedings within period of 3 years of discovery of fraudulent codicil 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94518 Answers
7485 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Not disclosing will in grand father life time and unknown witnesses to the Will creates suspicious circumstance. Valid ground to challege codicile 

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22596 Answers
31 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

Your question is not clear. Do as advise above. If brother claim extra property through codicile, challenge it.

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22596 Answers
31 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

Dear Sir,

That's you are suggested to register to properties and produce the certified copy of the other document and retain the main/original document with you. 

Ganesh Singh
Advocate, New Delhi
6757 Answers
16 Consultations

4.5 on 5.0

1. Collect the medical history of your grandfather from the hospital.

 

2. File an application before the Court seeking probate of the will  executed by your grandfather.

 

3. Your brother will get a copy of the said probate application filed by you and will surely contest it submitting the said codicil illegally obtained by him.

 

4. You shall have the chance to challenge the codicil on the ground that your grandfather was not in proper mental state to write a codicil for which it should be rejected.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27191 Answers
726 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. You do not admit that you are aware of the codicil.

 

2. You file an application for seeking probate of the will.

 

3. When your brother divulges the codicil, challenge it as advised in my earlier post.

 

4. It is a good case to win.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27191 Answers
726 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. Property documents are not required to be submitted for writing a codicil.

 

2. If a property already stands in your name then how can there be a will in connection with that property to be executed by your grandfather? The property is already in your name.

 

3. However, file an application seeking probate of the property as suggested in my earlier post.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27191 Answers
726 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

For mutation of property copy of  will with codicil is required 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94518 Answers
7485 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

You need challenge that illegal Codicil and file suit for cancellation of registration and the said codicil before civil court

Prashant Nayak
Advocate, Mumbai
31802 Answers
175 Consultations

4.1 on 5.0

You can challenge the codicil on the basis of your grandfather's medical condition at the time making this codicil.

You can obtain the medical certificate with regard to your grandfather's health condition at the time of making this codicil and if he was not medically fit to sign the codicil then this codicil make be invalidated in the probate of Will case itself and you can acquire the property on the basis of the original Will itself.

 

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84711 Answers
2172 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

The Witnesses of the codicil can be different persons to that of the witnesses to the original Will, hence that won't matter.

You may ascertain his medical condition as well as his mental stability to disprove the codicil.

 

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84711 Answers
2172 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

The registrar will seek the original title document  besides original Will and the original codicil and other relevant documents in order to register the property to his name.

Hence your brother has to depend on you for this transfer.

 

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84711 Answers
2172 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

File a police complaint against your brother under 420,406IPC

Rahul Jatain
Advocate, Rohtak
5365 Answers
4 Consultations

4.8 on 5.0

Yes.

Swarupananda Neogi
Advocate, Kolkata
2963 Answers
6 Consultations

4.7 on 5.0

you can challenge if it has been forged or some sort of fraud has taken place. This might be the forging of a signature or something less obvious. 

Mohammed Mujeeb
Advocate, Hyderabad
19299 Answers
32 Consultations

4.7 on 5.0

1. You have to challenge the codicil through a suit for declaration on the ground that consent of your grandfather was not a free consent.

2. The hospital records of your grandfather will have to be led in evidence by you to prove that he was not in a sound state of mind when he wrote the codicil.

3. In your suit you may also seek temporary injunction against creation of third party rights by your brother qua the properties given to him through codicil.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. The limitation period to file the suit is 3 years from the date of knowledge.

2. Seek temporary injunction in your suit against alienation of properties by your brother.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. You should first collect the medical records of your grandfather which can prove that he was not mentally fit at time of making codicil. 

2. Once you get the documents then file case for cancellation of property transfer by use of codicil as it was not valid as testator was not in state of executing any legal document.

Mohit Kapoor
Advocate, Rohtak
10687 Answers
7 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

- As per law, A codicil is a legal document that changes specific provisions of a last will and testament but leaves all the other provisions the same.

- A person can modify, update, or even completely revoke his last WILL testament at any time as long as he is  mentally competent. 

- Further,A Codicil becomes legally valid only when , the testator in the Will and the Codicil should be the same. The signatures should match, and it should have the Section and Clause of the Will in the same format, and two witnesses should sign the Codicil.

- Since your grandfather died due to a clot in brain and he suffer serious memory loss and unconsciousness , it means that he was not in position to prepare a codicil , which needs more attention than to write a WILL, because at the time of preparing a codicil one has to mention the reason for changing/alternating/adding in the WILL executed by the testator. 

- Firstly arrange all the medical record of your grandfather , which shows that he was suffering from brain clot.

- Then you should apply to get probated the original WILL written in your name, after stating that after written this WILL , the testator was not in  position to write any other WILL or Codicil ,due to continuous suffering from brain memory loss . 

- As per the Supreme Court , petition for probate or letters of administration of the Will of a testator must be filed within three years from the date of death of the testator.No probate is necessary for Christian and Muslim Wills.

- It is not mandatory that the same witnesses be present at the time of making Codicil ,and time gap is not a matter legally. 

- Registration of WILL is not mandatory for probate a WILL. 

- Yes, for registration of WILL, relevant property documents are needed.

Mohammed Shahzad
Advocate, Delhi
13095 Answers
195 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Challenge the will on these grounds and state that the codicil was made when he was not of sound mind. The court will dismiss the codicil.

Rahul Mishra
Advocate, Lucknow
14081 Answers
65 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

that is a very big proof a strong evidence that the codicil is a lie and dies not reflect the true intentions of your grandfather.

Rahul Mishra
Advocate, Lucknow
14081 Answers
65 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

No that is not so. He has made a fraudulent document which will not stand in court.

Rahul Mishra
Advocate, Lucknow
14081 Answers
65 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Dear Client

  • First you have to collect the evidence against your brother that he has actually done that along with the medical reports of your grandfather.
  • Then You can challenge the Codicil in the court stating that it was moved beyond the wishes of your grandfather along with all the evidences
  • Once the Codicil is declared invalid by the court the Original Will shall be considered as the final once and the properties shall be distributed in accordance with the same and that’s how you can retrieve the properties that you have lost.
  • Besides law is very clear on the point of Fraud and that is "Fraud vitiates everything". If you can prove by way of evidence that everything which was done was based on fraud then you will easily win the case and things will fall into its place. 

Pulkit Prakash
Advocate, Delhi
309 Answers
7 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Immediately you collect the medical records of your Grand  Father (GF) from the hospital which shows his medical condition and ailment.

File suit claiming the property bequeathed to you by your GF.

Your brother will come-up with the Codicil claiming the property.

You can defeat his plea using the medical reports which you obtain from hospital, showing that your GF was mentally ill & not know about the execution of Codicil.

You have to file the case within three years from date of knowledge of above codicil.

 

S Srinivasa Prasad
Advocate, Hyderabad
2876 Answers
9 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Further reply to your query:

You need to produce the original copies of Will, Codicil (if applicable) Death certificate of GF for mutation, your address proofs viz, Aadhar & Voter ID.

 

S Srinivasa Prasad
Advocate, Hyderabad
2876 Answers
9 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

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