Lawwatch : Resources for Learners

Substantial Question of Law & Second Appeal

By K Rajasekharan 3 December 2021Civil law, Constitutional law

A second appeal lies to the High Court (HC) from every decree passed in appeal by any subordinate court if the HC is satisfied that the case involves a substantial question of law. If satisfied the HC shall formulate that question. The Memorandum of Appeal shall state the substantial question of law proposed.

Legal Heirship Certificate not for Property Transfer

By K Rajasekharan 1 December 2021Property & Succession

An heirship certificate serves the purpose of identifying the relationship of the heirs to the deceased person. Legal Heirship Certificate is issued by the revenue officers of the executive government - in Kerala it is the Tahsildar - based on the enquiry made by his junior revenue official – the Village Officer. The certificate can be used for drawing an amount not exceeding Rs five lakh as of now. The Legal Heirship Certificate however has some sanctity in revealing the legal heirs of the deceased.

All about Succession Certificate

By K Rajasekharan 1 December 2021Property & Succession

The term succession refers to the process by which the legal heirs acquire the property of the deceased. A Succession Certificate (SC) however is the one that is granted exclusively in respect of “debts and securities” such as Provident Fund, Bank Deposit, Insurance, Shares etc to which the deceased was entitled to, as per Section 370 read with Section 214 of the Indian Succession Act. Therefore, one can apply for a SC only in respect of debts and securities.

Recall of Witness u/s 311 CrPC & 165 IEA

By K Rajasekharan 24 November 2021Criminal law, Evidence law

The Judge has unfettered authority to summon any material witness, or examine any person attending the court, though he is not summoned as a witness, or recall or re-examine any person already examined, if his evidence appears to be essential to the just decision of the case, under Section 311 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).

Phone Tapping in India: Its Legal Provisions

By K Rajasekharan 23 November 2021Criminal law, Family, Marriage & Divorce

Telephone tapping or wiretapping is the monitoring of telephone and Internet-based conversations by a third party, often by covert or illegal means. Legal wiretapping by a government agency is called lawful interception. Lawful interception, which is being done by government agencies for security purposes, is strictly controlled to ensure privacy.

Legality of a Person’s Will in regard to his Dead Body

By K Rajasekharan 21 November 2021Civil law, Property & Succession

Dead men are no longer persons in the eye of the law. They are devoid of much rights and no sort of liabilities. They no longer remain as the owners of their property even till their successors enter upon to take care of their inheritance. They have inheritable and uninheritable rights. Personal rights are uninheritable and they are wholly extinguished by his death. Proprietary rights on the other hand are usually inheritable. The successors step in as owners of his property at the moment he dies.

Conviction on the sole Testimony of the Victim

By K Rajasekharan 19 November 2021Criminal law

The legal position regarding the conviction on sole testimony of prosecutrix even without any corroboration is now well settled. In a large number of cases, the accused was convicted on the sole testimony of the prosecutrix without any corroboration.

Trial in India for an Offence Committed Outside

By K Rajasekharan 18 November 2021Criminal law

The criminal courts in India can conduct trial against an Indian citizen for the offences he has committed outside India but the trial cannot commence without previous sanction of the Central Government under Section 3 and 4 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) and Section 188 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC).

Suit against Public Nuisance u/s 91 CPC

By K Rajasekharan 17 November 2021Civil law

When a public nuisance or other wrongful act affecting or likely to affect the public occurs, two or more persons or the Advocate General can file a suit for a declaration and injunction or for such other appropriate relief in a civil court, after obtaining leave of the court, under Section 91 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC).

Termination for hiding facts during Selection

By K Rajasekharan 14 November 2021Civil law, Constitutional law

In Avtar Singh v Union of India & Ors delivered on 21 July, 2016, a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court (SC) considered various decisions on the question of suppression of information or submitting false information in the verification form as to the question of having been criminally prosecuted, arrested or as to pendency of a criminal case. In the judgement the SC resolved the conflict of opinion in the various earlier decisions of its Division Benches and arrived at some guidelines in deciding such issues.

Trust in India : Its legal Framework

By K Rajasekharan 10 November 2021Civil law, Property & Succession

Trust is the asset or property entrusted by the Settler (the author of the trust) to the Trustees who manages it for the benefit of the beneficiaries of the Trust. In other words, the Settler entrusts the property to the Trustees for the beneficiaries in a Trust.

Kerala Headload Workers Act not applicable to Domestic Purposes

By K Rajasekharan 9 November 2021Civil law

The Kerala Headload Workers Act is not applicable to engagement of a person by an individual for domestic purposes. It is applicable to engagement or employment of persons directly or through a contractor in or for an establishment, whether for wages or not, for loading or unloading or carrying on head or person or in a trolly any article or articles in or from or to a vehicle or any place in such establishment, and includes any person not employed by any employer or contractor but engaged in the loading or unloading or carrying on head or person or in a trolly any article or articles for wages.