Joint-Family Property

Property jointly acquired by the members of the joint family;
Separate property of a member “thrown into the common stock”;
Property acquired by all or any of the coparcener with the aid of joint family funds.

In a case, the Supreme Court observed that the character of any joint family property does not change with the severance of the status of the joint family and joint family property continues to retain its joint family character so long as the joint family property is in existence and is not partitioned amongst the co-sharers. By a unilateral act it is not open to any member of the joint family to convert any joint family property into his personal property.

Where property has been acquired by the members of joint Hindu family by their joint labour whether in business, profession or vocation, with the aid of joint family property, it becomes joint family or coparcenary property. According to Bombay High Court a property acquired by the joint labour of the members, even without the aid of joint family funds, is presumed to be joint family property in absence of any indication of an intention to the contrary.

Where two brothers acquired some property in a joint Hindu family by their joint efforts, in absence of an intention to the contrary it would be presumed to be joint property and their male descendants would acquire an interest in that property by birth.

If a property is acquired by the fund of joint labour even if it was purchased from income derived from land which was taken on bate and cultivated jointly there would be presumption of jointers and property would be treated as joint Hindu family coparcenary property.

Where any coparcener voluntarily throws his self-acquired property into the joint fund with the intention of abandoning all separate claims to it, it would be joint property, so as to be divisible among all the members. 

It is presumed that the family is joint and it holds joint property it would be a legal presumption that the property held by an individual member or by all the members is joint family property. If any member claims his separate right over certain part of joint property the burden of proof would be on him to prove that it was his separate property.

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Where a member of coparcenary voluntarily gives up his right in any property and mixes it with joint property, it would be deemed to be joint property. Where he gives away his property in the common stock it would become a part and parcel of the joint Hindu property and would not be treated separately.

All the members of joint Hindu family cannot create joint property by throwing their money in common stock. The property belonging to the coparceners only can create joint family property by blending them into common stock. Such a right is not available to female members of the joint family as they are not coparceners.

When a coparcener throws his separate property into the common stocks, he makes no gift under the Transfer of Property Act and therefore it does not amount even to transfer.

Property acquired with the aid and assistance of joint family property is also joint. Thus, accumulation of income, i.e., rent etc. of joint family property, property purchased out of such income, the proceeds of sale or mortgage of such property and property purchased out of such proceeds are also joint family property.

Where in a joint Hindu family some property is purchased in the name of one of its members, it will be regarded as a joint family property not his own separate property. If he has acquired any property without the help of joint family property it could be treated as his separate property. Where any member of joint family blends his self acquired property into common property of the family or joint family property, it all becomes joint property.

Where certain property is given to a member of joint Hindu family in order to meet the expenses of his maintenance and he acquires some other property out of the income from that property, in that case all the properties thus acquired by him would become his separate property. But in a case from Madras High Court, it was held that all the property thus acquired by him would be regarded as joint family property in the context of his sons.

Under Hindu law, when a property stands in the name of a member of a joint family, it is incumbent upon those asserting that it is joint family property to establish it.