RIGHT OF BENEFICIARY
1. Right to rents and profits-Section 55 of the Indian Trust act provides the right to rents
and profits to the beneficiary of trust property.
2. Right to Specific Execution- Section 56 of the Indian Trust act provides that the
beneficiary is entitled to the specific execution of the trust as per the intention of author of
trust.
3. Right to transfer of possession- Section 56 of the Indian Trust act provides that when the
beneficiaries or a single beneficiary are competent to contract and all of them are of one
mind, then they may require the trustee to transfer the possession of property to them or to
person decided by them
Exception- A married women who is a sole beneficiary has no right to transfer the
possession. This exception is under the scrutiny of Law commission.
4. Right to inspect and take copies of trust instrument, etc.- Section 57 of the Indian trust
act provides that the trustee has right to take and inspect copies of the following:
i) Trust instrument
ii) Documents of title relating to trust
iii) Accounts of the trust property
iv) Vouchers, if any
v) Cases submitted and opinions taken by trustee for his guidance in discharge of duties
5. Right to transfer Beneficial interest- Section 58 of the Indian Trust act provides that a
competent beneficiary can transfer his interest. Married women is an exception to this right.
6. Right to sue for execution of trust- Section 59 of the Indian Trust act provides that when
no trustees are appointed or all trustees die, disclaim or discharged or the execution of trust
becomes impracticable, then the beneficiary may institute a suit for the execution of trust.
7. Right to proper trustees- Section 60 of the Indian trust act provides that the beneficiary
has the right that the property shall be properly protected and administered by proper
person or number of persons
8. Right to compel any act of duty- Section 61 of the Indian trust act provides that the
beneficiary has right that his trustee shall be compelled to perform any particular act and
beneficiary can also restrain the trustee for committing any contemplated or probable
breach of trust.
LIABILITY OF BENEFICIARY
The liability of Beneficiary under the Indian Trust act is defined under Section 68. This section
provides that Where one of the several beneficiaries-
(a) Join in committing breach of trust or
(b) Knowingly obtains any advantage without the consent of other beneficiaries or
(c) Does not take proper steps to protect the interests of other beneficiaries when h
knows of a breach of trust, committed or intended, and conceals the same or
(d) Has deceived the trustee and induced him to commit a breach.
Then, the other beneficiaries are entitled to have all his beneficial interest impounded as against
him and all who claim under him until the loss caused by the breach has been compensated.
REMEDIES OF BENEFICIARY
1) To take action against trustee personally- Section 62 of the Indian trust act deals with
the right to action against trustee personally. It is also known as personal remedy of the
beneficiary. This section provides that when trustee wrongfully buys the trust property,
then the beneficiary has the right to have the property. But the beneficiary has to pay the
purchase money paid by the trustee, with the interest and any such expenses for the
preservation of the property and the trustee or purchaser must do the following things:
(a) Account for net profits of the property
(b) Be charged with an occupation rent
(c) Allow the beneficiary to deduct a proportionate part of money if the property gets
deteriorated due to omissions of trustee or purchasor
2) To have the trust property- Section 63 of the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 states that:
(i) Trust Property in Third-Party Hands: If trust property ends up with a
third party in a manner inconsistent with the trust, the beneficiary can
demand that the third party formally acknowledges the trust property or file
a suit to have it recognized as trust property.
(ii) Converted Trust Property: If the trustee has sold or exchanged trust
property, and the resulting money or assets can be traced to the trustee, their
heirs, or legatees, the beneficiary has rights to these new assets similar to
their rights over the original trust property.
3) Property Wrongfully converted- Section 65 of the Indian trust act provides that When
trustee wrongfully sells or transfer trust property and later becomes the owner of such property,
then the property again becomes the subject to the trust.
4) In case of Blended Property- Section 66 of the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 provides that if a
trustee wrongfully mixes trust property with their own assets, the beneficiary is entitled to
place a charge on the entire combined fund, securing their right to the amount owed from the
trust property. This protects the beneficiary’s interest in cases of improper mixing by the
trustee.
PYQ
Q. What are the liabilities of beneficiaries(2014, 2016, 2019) 1 marks
Q. What are the rights of beneficiaries(2016) 1 marks
Q. Mention the sections which deal with the rights of beneficiaries(2016) 1 marks
Q. Explain the personal remedy of the beneficiary against the breach of trust(2014) 4 marks
Q. Write an analytical essay on the rights and liabilities of a beneficiary. Also explain in short
consequences when a beneficiary does not fulfil its liabilities(2017) 8 marks