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Author - Gagan Gandhi

According to The Indian Succession Act, 1925, a probate is official proof of a will. 

The executors of the will, are issued Probates as a gesture with a seal of approval from the court. Authorizing them to implement or execute the will.

In cases where there are no executors of the will, only a simple letter of administration is issued by the court, and not probate.

The Indian Succession Act, 1925 decrees that probate is official proof of a will. Probate is issued to the executor or the person who is authorized to implement or execute the will and thereby adds a legal character to the will. 

Probate, as defined in the India Sucessession Act, 1925, is ‘A copy of will certified under the seal of a court of competent jurisdiction with a grant of administration of the estate of the testator’. 

The executor or the beneficiary can apply to the court concerned for the grant of probate. Probate can be granted when the will has been proved in accordance with legal provisions. If the court is not satisfied then it will demand strict proof and issue the probate only when fully satisfied. It may also file a petition and give notice to heirs and beneficiaries.

The probate process begins with the filing of the petition with the probate court to either

• admit the will to probate and appoint the executor or 
• if there is no will, appoint an administrator of the estate.

Notice of the court hearing regarding the petition must be provided to all of the decedent's heirs and beneficiaries. If an heir or beneficiary has any objections to petition, they can do so in court. These notices of the hearing are published in any local newspaper. This is done to inform anyone who has any objection to the process. They too can object in court. Any creditor who wishes to make a claim on assets of the estate must do so within a limited period of time which varies from state to state.

An inventory of all of the decedent's probate property which includes shares, stocks etc is taken.  All estate and funeral expenses, debts and taxes are to be paid by the estate.

The personal representative must determine which creditor's claims are legitimate and pay those and other final bills from the estate. The personal representative is also permitted to sell estate assets to fulfil the decedent's obligations.

Legal title in property is transferred according to the will or under the laws of intestacy if there was no will.

After the completion of the waiting period to allow creditors to file claims against the estate, the personal representative requests the court to grant him the authority to transfer the remaining assets to beneficiaries as mentioned in the will, or if there is no will, according to state succession laws.

In other words, a properly drafted will, updated regularly to account for life changes, organized records of debts, personal property and other assets make the probate process very simple.