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Inheritance: Women prefer peace with brothers Surekha Pandit was adamant. The 35-year-old found herself cajoling and arguing with her husband and in-laws all the time. The subject? The division of the family property and other assets. Ironically, however, the struggle wasn't for herself. "On principle, I wanted an equal share for my husband's divorced sister who had returned home. Even if that meant that her share would eat into my husband's," says the Mumbai-based lawyer. She finally had her way and her sister-in-law was taken care of. Despite clear provisions in succession laws, a fair share for the daughter, in reality, is still a sporadic sighting. Pandit's family is one such. In another uncommon case, a divorced daughter in Mumbai was given not only ownership, but control in the family's business. Yet, there is a definite whiff of change in the few homes that possess an open and a more progressive outlook. They are slowly coming around to accepting equitable distribution of wealth as the decent way of life. Says certified financial planner Kartik Jhaveri, "The law provides for a well-defined succession plan. More often than not, we see it being agreed to, especially where ancestral property is concerned." In non-ancestral property, the person has the discretion of distribution and may want to alter the share. "It is a funny situation . Normally we don't see an unmarried woman come in for planning. Entire families do." Mutual funds - http://mutualfunds.investorline.co.in/ Life Insurance - http://insurance.investorline.co.in/ The bulk of daughters in our country have been structured to accept their wedding gifts or streedhan, scoot to their newfound family and never look back for more. Mumbai's Sita Venkatraman, 30, remembers the time her mother sold their flat, which was in her deceased father's name. Her brothers were given an equal share of the amount. "I and my sister, who were married by then, were gifted a silk saree each," she says, with an understanding smile. Zankhana Shah, of MoneyCare Financial Planning, says in her experience, she has seen women mostly get "up to" 10% of the total wealth. And, as we all know, only in extreme adversity does a married daughter's original family chip in funds to see her through. Senior Mumbai psychiatrist Dr Ashit Sheth remembers a distressed woman whose brother remained indifferent to her crumbling marriage and financial condition. "Even if women want to do something, the command of the business lies with their brothers, who do not want to entertain any 'dependency' ." Clearly, they must find the thought of sharing the spoils with sisters heartwrenching. That the sister does not pursue her rights strongly enough to maintain family peace adds another complexity to the issue. As advocate and women's rights activist Flavia Agnes says, "My experience is that women are not bothered." They may make a claim on their husband's wealth, says Agnes, but not their father's. This brings us to another bigger problem — even in this day and age, most women don't even know about their rights and that the law provides for them. Planner like Kartik Jhaveri strongly advise women to take an active interest in the financial goings-on of their homes. "Ninety eight per cent women don't know what's happening. Money comes in it and gets deployed wherever; signatures are taken..." Mutual funds - http://mutualfunds.investorline.co.in/ Life Insurance - http://insurance.investorline.co.in/ Even if they are aware about the laws and wish to stake their claim, they remain clueless about how to go about it. Senior Kolkata advocate Gitanath Ganguly, executive chairman, legal aid services of West Bengal, says: "The problem is, women don't know where to go and how to go about getting their due. Therefore, what is needed are more legal literacy programmes by the government." Ganguly renders some practical advice: "The first thing you must do, instead of going to the court or hiring lawyer, is approach the nearest legal aid centre, which offers counselling and assistance." But why wait for such an eventuality? Lawyers recommend women mustensure their names are secured in the nomination papers of propertyand bank accounts of their parents. Also, however uncomfortable the thought, women must insist on a paternal or maternal will. Lawyers and financial planners suggest parents must put together a will till they "are still in their senses" to safeguard a daughter's interests. An equitable division must ideally be made before her marriage. Mumbai advocate Shobha Jagtiani says a valid will doesn't require a lawyer's presence. A short will with a clear date, even if prepared without a detailed list, is legitimate, if it is signed by two witnesses. A copy of the same could then be kept with a lawyer. A more focused and transparent approach to will-making , especially in families with large assets to share, would be to involve a third-party facilitator. Shah speaks of a division of assets among two brothers and a sister. The family, which runs a finance company, sat down to split its wealth of a couple of crores. The daughter was offered a directorship in the company, some shareholding, a few offices and cash. "Succession plan is not 'by the way' ," says Shah. Here, the planner prepares an objective listing of behavioural attitudes of each family member. In a family, one son may believe in lifestyle, one just pure fun and the daughter in adventure. Each of them would thus have a unique approach towards money. "Like, if one doesn't like philanthropy, he can't be given a trust to manage." Division of wealth is thus conducted after "navigating family dynamics" . Splitting an inheritance , also termed "sudden money" , is certainly not an easy job. "It brings along its opportunities and challenges for allocation." Allocation also depends on each individual's short and long-term goals. Now, how much do your daughter's goals matter? 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