Patna Law Notes

  What is a Will? An Overview The Indian Succession Act is the law governing wills. It applies to almost all Indians except Muslims. A Will is a legal declaration made by a person regarding the distribution of his assets after his death. (Section 2 (h) of the Indian Succession Act.) Codicil- Sometimes the testator may draft an additional instrument to explain, alter or add to the contents of his will, such documents are referred to as codicils. Legally, a codicil is a part of the will. A Privileged Will is a special kind of will that becomes relevant only during a war, or in cases wherein soldiers are engaged in active combat duty. What kind of assets can be bequeathed through a Will? All kinds of movable and immovable assets including real estate, money deposited in banks, securities, and even brand names, trademarks, and Intellectual Property Rights. Even though a will is a legal document, there is no prescribed format for it. It could be handwritten or typed. A wil

  What is ‘Delegated Authority’? As per the principle of separation of powers, state authority is divided among three organs- the legislature, executive and judiciary. The task of the legislature is to frame laws. The executive has been entrusted with the task of implementing the laws framed by the legislature and the task of the judiciary is to uphold them. Though the doctrine of separation of powers is considered the cornerstone of modern constitutional forms of government, in practice this principle is rarely followed strictly. Practical contingencies make some overlap of functions inevitable. One such instance of one organ performing the task of another is the prevalence of delegation of legislation. Delegation of legislation entails the transfer of part of the legislature’s authority to frame laws to the administration/executive. Legally speaking, delegated legislation may be defined as that which proceeds from any authority other than the sovereign power and is therefor