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Section 364: Limit to refunding of one legatee to another

Indian Succession Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1925
Section 363 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 365

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 364

Section 364 limits the quantum of refunding that can be demanded from one legatee by another, restricting liability to the exact sum needed to equalize their proportional satisfaction.

  • Equalization of Abatement: A legatee who has received payment can only be compelled to refund such a sum as will reduce their legacy to the proportional amount they would have received had all legacies abated rateably.
  • Ceiling on Restitution: The paid legatee cannot be compelled to surrender their entire bequest to satisfy the unpaid legatee in full.
  • Pari Passu Parity: Ensures that both the previously paid legatee and the unpaid legatee end up in an identical position of equal percentage satisfaction.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • In re Winslow; Frere v. Winslow (1890) 45 Ch D 249: Held that the liability of a paid legatee to refund to an unpaid legatee is limited to the excess received over their rateable proportion.
  • Gour Chandra v. Khirodebandhu, AIR 1928 Cal 52: The Calcutta High Court affirmed that under Section 364, the refund cannot exceed the mathematical differential required to achieve equal rateable distribution.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

In any inter-legatee refund accounting, prepare a comprehensive comparative chart of total estate assets, total legacies, and the uniform abatement percentage, invoking Section 364 to defeat any claim exceeding the mathematical equalization quota.

Section 363 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 365