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Section 240: Administration until will produced

Indian Succession Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1925
Section 239 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 241

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 240

Section 240 provides for the Grant of Administration until a Will is Produced where there is reason to believe a will exists but it cannot be immediately found.

  • Reasonable Belief of Will Existence: Where there is reason to believe that there is a will in existence, but it cannot be produced at the time, letters of administration may be granted.
  • Limited Custodial Grant: The grant is expressly limited until the will, or an authenticated copy thereof, is produced and admitted to probate.
  • Temporary Preservation of Estate: Prevents estate assets from being dissipated or compromised during the search for a concealed or misplaced testamentary instrument.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Chiranjilal Shrilal Goenka v. Jasjit Singh (1993) 2 SCC 507: The Supreme Court noted that temporary grants under Section 240 maintain the legal status quo while searches for testamentary documents proceed.
  • State of Bihar v. Radha Krishna Singh (1983) 3 SCC 118: Affirmed that interim administration grants protect estates from intermeddlers pending will discovery.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Where an application is made under Section 240, counsel should pray that the administrator be restrained from alienating immovable property without prior leave of the court, ensuring the estate remains intact if the will is subsequently discovered.

Section 239 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 241