Navigating F&F Settlements: Who Should Be the Legal Heir, Wife or Parents?

Hi, my sister was married 12 years ago, and her husband passed away due to Covid complications 20 days ago. He had joined IBM before his marriage and had nominated his parents for F&F settlement and had not updated the nominee after marriage.

The in-laws of my sister are not on talking terms with my sister right from the beginning. The company has sent all F&F related documents to her brother-in-law. She is a homemaker and has 2 kids and now relies on the F&F settlement amount for her and her kids' education.

Who should be the legal heir in this case as the nomination was done before marriage and was never updated later? She has not received any communication from HR so far as she is not a nominee mentioned in the F&F settlement.

Nominee Update After Marriage: A Case Study

This is an unfortunate situation where an employee did not update his nominee after marriage, being an employee of IBM. In my opinion, it is also the fault of the IBM HR Team. Good HR teams usually take proactive care of employees' welfare, compliance, etc.

In my early career in the early 80s, just after my transfer to the IR Department of M/S. GKW LTD, I faced a similar case when an employee committed suicide, naming his widowed mother as the nominee, leaving behind his wife and one child. The wife took the matter to court, and the court verdict was 60% to the wife and 40% to the widowed mother, likely based on the court verdict of Maneka Gandhi vs. Indira Gandhi regarding the property of Sanjay Gandhi, who died in a plane crash.

I immediately sent a letter to IBM HR stating the facts with supporting documents (marriage certificate) and discussed with an advocate to take appropriate legal action for relief.

S K Bandyopadhyay (WB, Howrah)
CEO-USD HR Solutions

Nominee's Right and Legal Heirs

The law on the point is that the nominee has only the right to receive the money from the employer, and that does not mean appropriating (using) it. The rest of the heirs have their rights, and the courts have the authority to apportion the benefits. As rightly advised by the learned member Shri Bandopadhyaya, immediately inform the employer, IBM, and take legal action staking your claim for the spouse and child of the deceased employee.

Thank you, Bandyopadhyay and KK HR, for your reply. We have written multiple times to HR, and they haven't responded to any of our concerns despite sending all legal documents. Very unfortunate. They were not even agreeing to talk to any of us regarding this matter. We have sent our concern to the Deputy Labour Commissioner today. Hope that helps us in some way. If nothing helps, the last resort is to go to court to settle the matter. Thanks for your advice and for taking the time to reply to my query.

Legal Heir Considerations in F&F Settlements

I think any delay is likely to be detrimental for you. The labor department cannot decide the matter of succession except in the case of gratuity, as per the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972.

Once the payment is released to the parents, it may become more lengthy and difficult to get the due share for the spouse and children, particularly with an unhelpful organization. Involving some family friends or community leaders could help in reaching a viable solution. However, it would be in your best interest to act quickly.

Role of a Nominee and Legal Heir

A nominee has a similar role to that of a trustee. The nominee does not supersede the rights of a legal heir in any condition. A legal heir does not become the successor of a property automatically unless he or she claims and exercises his or her rights.

Suggested Course of Action

The suggested course of action in this case is to serve a legal notice to the employer asserting her claim and rights. Meanwhile, apply for and obtain a legal heir certificate from the concerned authorities, which may be a Pradhan/Sarpanch/Panchayat Officer/Nayab Tehsildar/Anumandal Adhikaari/SDM/Circle Officer, depending on residence/state.

Obtaining a Succession Certificate

File a writ in the local civil court to obtain a succession certificate from the First Class Magistrate, which will be issued after due process. It will take 3 to 6 months. Since this is routine work for the courts, do not fall for exorbitant fee demands by advocates. This does not require any special application of the brain, and by paying more fees, you will not get it any sooner.

Rights of Successors

The succession certificate will categorically define the rights of all successors. Based on the available information in this case, the legal heirs of the first tier, that is the wife, her two kids, and the mother of the deceased, will each have equal shares, i.e., 1/4th each. As the children are minors, the mother is likely to be the natural guardian. Please note, the father of the deceased is not a first-tier successor; hence, he will not receive any share in this property.