Letter of administration & sc is mandatory or not
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 16 June 2020
This query is : Resolved
Can Society insist on Letter of Administration or Succession Certificate for Transfer and Sale of a Flat and Share Certificate attached thereto ? If A owes a property and leave B his Wife and 2 Sons i.e C & D without any will. At the time of Transferring can society ask for Letter of Administration or Succession ? Can the flat get transfer on name of Nominee by merely taking No Objection Certificate of son C & D or it is mandatory for Legal heirs (B , C & D) to obtain LOA & Succession Certificate.
Basically society harass by asking Letter of Administration or Succession certificate rather than accepting NOC from C & D.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 16 June 2020
Legally NOC is not a valid document to admit the succession of the deceased so if the soceity is demanding LOA, the same is beneficial even for the successors to settle the issue of succession finally.
Though soceity should not be concerned with the succession and it can very well can enter the said flat in the name of the nominee but overall LOA is beneficial for all concerned.
kavksatyanarayana
(Expert) 16 June 2020
I opine a succession certificate is not necessary. And I think the legal heir certificate of the deceased is sufficient.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 16 June 2020
The rules/bye-laws of the soceity are also required to be gone through before arriving to the final opinion.
Dr J C Vashista
(Expert) 17 June 2020
What is the reasons and authority for the Managing Committee to ask for letter of administration or succession certificate of a deceased member ?
If the Society is asking for LoC or Succession Certificate it is illegal and ultra virus. Society has no locus standi for transfer of title / ownership for an intestate flat.
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 17 June 2020
Society is emphasizing to get Letter of Administration so that they will be sure that these people are only legal heirs and thereafter they will transferring the property on the name of nominee after taking the NOC of other legal heirs. There arguments are like while at the selling of the said property bank is ultimately going to ask LOA or Succession certificate for confirmation of legal heirs before giving the loan.
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 17 June 2020
Can the banking institutions ask for Letter of Administration or Succession certificate ? without these does they don't give loan to the buyers.
P. Venu 
(Expert) 17 June 2020
The Society is overreaching. It has no jurisdiction in succession or inheritance to the property in the flat. The role of the Society and the Managing Committee is confined to the membership in the Society as expressed by the share certificate.
In fact, the property is already vested with the legal heirs of the deceased y operation of law. There is nothing for the Society to superimpose themselves through their imaginary omnipresence.
Rajendra K Goyal
(Expert) 17 June 2020
If the process of nomination exists and nomination is registered with the Society. It should transfer the property in the name of Registered nominee.
Nominee is representative of the deceased, would receive the property. Nominee would hold the property till he is legally bound to transfer / distribute it to legal heirs of the deceased.
P. Venu
(Expert) 17 June 2020
In this context, the following ruling laid down by the Hon'ble Bombay High Court in the context of the provisions of Section 30 of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act repays study:
"It is very clear on the plain reading of the section that the intention of the section is to provide for who has to deal with the society on the death of a member and not to create a new rule of succession. The purpose of the nomination is to make certain the person with whom the society has to deal, and not to create interest in the nominee to the exclusion of those who in law will be entitled to the estate. The purpose is to avoid confusion in case there are disputes between the heirs and legal representatives and to obviate the necessity of obtaining legal representation and to avoid uncertainties as to with whom the society should deal to get proper discharge."
The ruling could be accessed at https://indiankanoon.org/doc/371108/
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 17 June 2020
The judgment cited by expert P. Venu is worth mentioning and relevant in the given facts.
K Rajasekharan
(Expert) 17 June 2020
"Legal Heirship Certificate", "Succession Certificate" and "Letters of Administration" have close relation. They serve a common purpose – they are being used for devolution of some rights on the property of a person died intestate, to their legal descendants. These certificates, because of their names rather than their contents, create some confusion in the minds of not only ordinary people but a section of learned lawyers also.
The "Letters of Administration" is an authority issued by a competent court to a right person to administer the distribution of the estate belonged to the deceased in the right proportion to the rightful claimant. It is issued when the Will of the deceased has no executors, no action is taken by the executor or the death of the executor occurred before administering the will.
A "Succession Certificate" on the other hand is granted exclusively in respect of “debts and securities” such as Provident Fund, Bank Deposit, Insurance, shares etc to which the deceased was entitled to, as per section 370 read with Section 214 of the Indian Succession Act. The certificate nevertheless declares who the successors of the property are and the ratio in which they would get their shares, unlike many people think.
"Legal Heirship Certificate" is issued by the revenue officers of the executive government. The certificate establishes the relationship of the heirs to the deceased. It is being used for claims relating to pension, gratuity and such other service benefits when the deceased had already not selected a nominee. It is not a conclusive proof for determining the legitimate heirs to any disputed estate.
When there is a dispute, the only course left for settling the matter is to file a suit in the civil court and get its decision.
On the other hand when there is no dispute the nominee can step into the shoes of the owner and deal with the property as per the law of succession in force.
Dr J C Vashista
(Expert) 18 June 2020
In the instant case Society has no jurisdiction, authority or concern with LoA, Succession Certificate or any other Court order.
However, financier is well within its rights, claim and interest in the intestate property vis-a-vis successors.
Rajendra K Goyal
(Expert) 18 June 2020
Agree with the expert Dr. J.C. Vashishta ji that LOA or Succession Certificate is not to be asked by the Society if Nomination is registered.
