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Section 369: Liability of executor or administrator for neglect to get any part of property

Indian Succession Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1925
Section 368 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 370

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 369

Section 369 codifies the personal liability of an executor or administrator for devastavit resulting from neglect or willful default in realizing estate property.

  • Fiduciary Duty to Collect Assets: An executor or administrator is bound to use ordinary prudence and reasonable diligence in realizing, recovering, and taking possession of all debts and properties of the deceased.
  • Actionable Neglect or Willful Default: Occurs where the representative permits actionable debts to become time-barred, allows assets to remain uncollected, or abandons estate rights without justification.
  • Personal Surcharge for Devastavit: The representative is personally liable to make good the resulting loss to the estate, with interest, out of their own personal property.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Styles v. Guy (1849) 1 Mac & G 422: Lord Cottenham held that executors are guilty of devastavit if they allow debts to remain outstanding without enforcing legal proceedings within a reasonable time, resulting in loss.
  • In re Forest of Dean Coal Mining Co. (1878) 10 Ch D 450: Sir George Jessel MR affirmed that an executor who fails through gross negligence to collect property of the testator must compensate the estate from their own pocket.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

In contentious administration actions, beneficiaries should review debt registers against limitation dates. If the executor permitted promissory notes or decrees to become time-barred, file an application for surcharge under Section 369 in the final accounting.

Section 368 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 370