The Indian Legal System has adopted the principle that whenever an Indian citizen’s rights are curtailed or infringed, the matter is adjudicated and rights compensated or restored by filing a Civil Suit. Civil Law includes non-criminal issues, depending on the pecuniary value, subject matter and local limitations, the determination of the extent of judiciary takes place. A civil lawyer in India is one who advises, appears and handles civil litigation before various courts and tribunals in the Country
The services provided by us are:

• Appearance before various competent authorities for all commercial and civil litigation,
• Drafting and submissions of various documentation, deeds, plaints, applications etc,
• Drafting of property related documentation, sale deeds, memorandum of understanding,
• Filing of trademark and copyright applications and handling trademark litigations before various courts,
• Negotiate settlements in law suits, property matters etc,
• Services offered in matters pertaining to Family Law, Constitutional Law, Service Law, Company Law, Insolvency, Banking and Finance Law, Recovery Suit, Consumer Law, Property Suit, Wills and Probate and more
• Keeping the client informed of any change or update in the law.

Civil Law is the branch of law which deals with matters that are non criminal in nature relating to Family Law, Constitutional Law, Service Law, Company Law, Insolvency, Banking and Finance Law, Recovery Suit, Consumer Law, Property Suit, Wills and Probate, Enforcement of Decrees etc. Civil lawyers appear before various courts in India namely District Court, High Court, Supreme Court, Consumer Disputes Forum, Central Administrative Tribunal, and Appellate Tribunals for Electricity, Competition Appellate Tribunal etc.

Specialization in property matters

1) Partition of Property :- Partition of property is also subject to the laws of inheritance applicable to a particular person in a particular state. Different laws can apply and vary from state to state.

In certain urban commercial or residential properties where individual saleable units cannot be carved out or partitioned, the court orders a sale of the property. After the sale, the proceeds are divided according to the share of each person. Once that is done, each owner is free to take whatever decision he wants to about his individual share.

Types of Partition

In all situation of shared ownership of property, there could be two kinds of partition-contested or uncontested.

• In a contested scenario, when all parties do not agree, a legal suit has to be filed in the courts. The shares of the people involved would depend on the particular share for each one as mentioned in their purchase or inheritance document.
• In an uncontested situation, all co-owners mutually agree to the solution.
• The deed should be executed on a stamp paper and drafted in a clear and unambiguous manner.
• It creates new owners and needs to be registered at the office of the sub-registrar to give it a legal and binding effect.
• The deed should in particular mention the date from which the entire procedure is effective.
• The names of the parties and their respective shares should be specifically mentioned.

2) Property disputes

• Illegal Possession of Property

A lot of advice is sought from property eviction lawyers on the issue of illegal possession. For a layperson seeking expert advice, it is important to understand that this could happen in two ways – one when some strangers forge documents and occupy the property by force. These could be people who are into the business of using unlawful tactics to force their entry into properties.

Unfortunately, sometimes local authorities also aid in these unlawful activities. That calls for the need to seek advice from law experts. This kind of an illegal possession can also happen when a tenant refuses to vacate. We strongly suggest adopting strong measures to avoid entrapment in these issues.

Complete support – efficacy, competence, and transparency in legal representation to handle all such cases. We have a team of dedicated property eviction lawyers pan India to take care of matters even if an overseas citizen can’t be physically present. Starting from the investigation and information collection involved in the entire case to the actual fight – filing, representing & managing litigation – for the rightful ownership, we take care of everything. All this happens without the client having to travel back and forth to India.

Illegal Sale of Property

Overseas citizens are often caught in situations where they seek legal advice for property and land disputes in India. This is because Property Fraud is a bane for NRIs who are not able to constantly review the present status of their land and properties in India.  This could involve either travelling to India more, which they are not always able to manage and which can become a mental as well as physical hassle.

As a precaution, property should be mutated and transferred in your name and not be allowed to be in the name of people who have passed away. This would ensure that the property in question wards off people who unnecessarily give attention to grabbing of properties which are unattended and unkempt for long.  This also takes care of property and land disputes in India.

The real estate market has been a burgeoning one, to say the least. Now a lot of things get handled and managed maturely but fraud practices are also equally prominent. Increasingly we have many NRIs coming to our property legal service experts for sorting out their property matters.

People looking for houses for sale or any other property for sale are vary of entering into such transactions for fear of deceit and trickery. There is an entire nexus that operates between officials at various levels, property dealers and their legal representatives – in some manner or

• Illegal transfer of property

Illegal transfers or mutation are a basic form of all property disputes that NRIs are faced with, and hence we have seen growth in Civil Lawsuit in India. You would always need to establish a clear title to stake your ownership. You would also need to change the ownership of the said piece of land or house in the name of the current living legal owners to avoid any fraud. Moreover, in case any fraud takes place, there needs to be clarity on the title to contest the case.

In India, the transfer is not an automatic process but often a time-consuming process under the law. If it is not done, then given the rampant land grabbing in India, in the absence of an updated title, it is assumed that the particular property is abandoned. The lack of action causes various property issues which give rise to a need for legal action such as filing of Civil Lawsuit in India.

There are different ways that a transfer can take place. Inheritance through a Will document or the law of natural succession in the absence of Will is two basic ways. In the latter case, inheritance is of class I legal heirs under the succession laws in India.

Illegal transfers or mutation are a basic form of all property disputes that NRIs are faced with, and hence we have seen growth in Civil Lawsuit in India. You would always need to establish a clear title to stake your ownership. You would also need to change the ownership of the said piece of land or house in the name of the current living legal owners to avoid any fraud. Moreover, in case any fraud takes place, there needs to be clarity on the title to contest the case.

In India, the transfer is not an automatic process but often a time-consuming process under the law. If it is not done, then given the rampant land grabbing in India, in the absence of an updated title, it is assumed that the particular property is abandoned. The lack of action causes various property issues which give rise to a need for legal action such as filing of Civil Lawsuit in India.

There are different ways that a transfer can take place. Inheritance through a Will document or the law of natural succession in the absence of Will is two basic ways. In the latter case, inheritance is of class I legal heirs under the succession laws in India.

• Property Disputes

Property Disputes have caused many a family to suffer. Hence these issues need due attention. Inheritance could bring along with it the complications of illegal transfers, possession or even sale by close relatives, trusted representatives and third parties.

Illegal transfers can happen in three main ways:

• First, when there is forging or fabrication of documents like Wills – that is, making fake Will documents. This could be done by somebody to deprive the other shareholders of their due share. This is one of the most common methods, and here the defaulter takes advantage of the absence of the others and provides fake ownership to get control. For any mutation to happen, any one owner has to inform about the death of the previous owner. At times, one owner decides not to give the details like these for his selfish motive.
• Second, impersonation is one of the common methods used too. In such cases, one party impersonates as a shareholder and produces himself in court for the same. Some of them are successful too. They manage to go and stake a claim on what belongs to somebody else. Therefore, a careful and proactive approach should be followed by all owners to avoid these fraudulent practices.
• A third very obvious way is the misuse of the Power Of Attorney (POA) documents. In a host of cases, people end up giving general, non-restrictive POAs to their friends or relatives. In a lot of situations, people misrepresent, and there is a betrayal by even family members or close relatives, who give proof of utter mistrust and get properties transferred in their names. It is therefore advised that utmost care should be taken while granting a POA to anybody. Do not ever give any additional powers or you stand the risk of having them misused by vested interests.

The first two cases – false documentation and impersonation – can be challenged in courts if one files a Civil Lawsuit in India within the limitation period; the limitation period being three years of the date of knowledge of the said illegal transfer.

These two situations can invoke both civil and criminal litigation. However, in the case of improper misuse of POA, please be warned that hundreds of people have been deprived of their properties because of misuse of POA.

Landlord Tenant Disputes

One of the most common cases is the question of how to evict a tenant in India. The saga of landlord-tenant disputes is not limited to just local levels. It becomes worse because people take undue advantage of the absence of overseas citizens. Most NRIs have no option but to give their houses on rent to protect from trespassers and illegal occupants. This also ensures management and care of assets which could otherwise be in a state of deterioration or neglect. However, the landlord-tenant relationship is delicate and needs to be treated with caution. Though a full proof protection can’t be guaranteed in any situation, some common sense steps are required to be done to mitigate risks. Serving a notice to quit does not always work since these illegal occupants, in any case, are disrespecting all existing tenancy arrangements. The eviction process is a cumbersome process for overseas citizens to carry out. Residents consistently ignore eviction notices, and it is in this context that the responsibility of legal advisors increases.

It takes knowledgeable land dispute lawyers to understand and resolve such issues. We have a dedicated, experienced team of legal service experts who exclusively handle matters for NRIs and overseas citizens all across the country. We help NRIs safeguard their interest even in times of increasing value of real estate in India.

Did you know?

• Rent laws across the nation are now more in favor of the landlords than ever before-land dispute lawyers assist you in getting your property rightfully back to you in case you have a problem. Moreover, such laws with some special provisions in certain cases for NRIs, are now available in individual states making eviction comparatively a lot easier.
• Some judgments from the Honorable Supreme Court of India and the various State High Courts have very efficiently and conclusively upheld the rights of the landlords in eviction suits against the occupants.
• Special clauses such as ‘personal necessities’ have been introduced in rent laws – these clauses regulate the landlord-tenant relationship by arming the landlord with legal teeth to evict tenants. They would also prove to be an expeditious way to deal with the Rent matters in certain states.
• Evicting a tenant needn’t always be a nightmare – as property dispute lawyers, we help overseas citizens find effective solutions to these issues without having to travel to India.

As far as factors unique to these conflict issues are concerned it is good to have proper legal agreements that safeguard the interests of the landlord.

• Rent/lease agreements should be properly defined, written and signed by both parties
• Registration of these documents is a must
• Most landlords are better off if they enter into Leave and License agreements with the tenants. These should preferably be of shorter duration – say, not more than 11 months.
• At the first instance of an occupant acting out of line by not depositing rent or not following instructions like making changes in the building without taking consent, the owner should get an indication that he needs to be shown the door out of his property
• If at all a legal notice sent to residents is not yielding result, then law has provisions for setting up of various rent courts all across the country for bringing them to court for conviction
• Property disputes lawyers suggest that you should enter into sound agreements with your tenants so that your legitimate rights stay protected. Even if you have to engage in a Power of Attorney agreement with some friend or relative for the tenancy, make sure it is only a specific POA and not a general one.
• It is always advised to get your tenants registered with local police stations. In some places this registration is necessary and in others it needn’t be mandatory. It is better to do this.
• Property agreements need to be renewed as and when required. Rental payments should frequently be checked.

It is important for the tenants also to understand and realize their responsibility too. Although there are tenancy and rent-related laws in all Indian States conflicts still arise and more so in the case of NRIs who cannot oversee their properties always very well. Owners of properties in conflict can neither enjoy the value of these nor exercise proper rental rights. Most of the time landlords have a problem evicting tenants too. It takes skilled property dispute lawyers to be able to solve these cases and restore rights to owners.