Beyond validity, the most important quality of a will is clarity. Ambiguous bequests — "I leave my property to my children equally" when the testator has children from two marriages, step-children, and adopted children — generate exactly the litigation that a will is supposed to prevent. GP drafts wills that identify every asset specifically, define every beneficiary precisely, address every contingency that can be anticipated, and are written in language that leaves no room for dispute about the testator's intentions.
For HNI and business families, a will is one component of a larger estate plan — which will typically also include a family trust, HUF arrangements, a business succession plan, and life insurance structures. GP advises on the complete estate plan — ensuring that every component is consistent with every other, that the tax implications of each structure are understood, and that the overall plan achieves the family's objectives for the orderly and efficient transfer of wealth across generations.
Drafting of wills under the applicable personal law — Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Parsi, or Special Marriage Act. Every will GP drafts identifies assets specifically, defines beneficiaries precisely, appoints an executor with clear powers, addresses the substitution of beneficiaries who predecease the testator, and is executed with the formal requirements that will survive a probate challenge. For Muslim testators, the wasiyyat is drafted in compliance with the one-third restriction and the rules on bequests to heirs.
Comprehensive estate planning for high-net-worth individuals and business families — integrating the will with a family trust, HUF structure, business succession plan, and life insurance nominations. GP maps the family's complete asset picture, identifies the gaps and inconsistencies in existing arrangements, and builds an estate plan that achieves the orderly transfer of wealth across generations while minimising tax friction and the risk of succession disputes.
Will planning for NRI families whose assets span India and one or more overseas jurisdictions. An Indian will governs Indian assets — but the overseas assets are governed by the law of the jurisdiction where they are held. GP advises on whether a single will can govern both, whether a separate overseas will is required, how the two wills interact, and how to structure the India-side bequest to facilitate FEMA-compliant repatriation by NRI beneficiaries. Covers India + Australia, Singapore, UAE, and UK arrangements.
Registration of wills with the Sub-Registrar under the Registration Act 1908 — not mandatory but strongly recommended, as it creates an official record of the will's existence and execution date that significantly strengthens the will's position in any subsequent challenge. GP manages the complete registration process and advises on safe custody arrangements — ensuring the original will is accessible to the executor when needed without being accessible to anyone else during the testator's lifetime.
Living wills and advance medical directives — recognised by the Supreme Court of India in Common Cause v. Union of India (2018) — allowing a person to specify in advance the medical treatment they do or do not wish to receive if they become incapacitated and unable to communicate their wishes. GP drafts living wills in the form approved by the Supreme Court, with the required witnessing and countersignature by the Judicial Magistrate, and advises on the practical steps to ensure the directive is accessible to the treating hospital when needed.
Review of existing wills — identifying ambiguities, outdated provisions, assets not covered, and beneficiaries whose circumstances have changed. Codicils to amend existing wills without a full redraft — for changes in specific bequests, changes in executors, or the addition of new assets. GP recommends that wills be reviewed every five years and after every major life event — marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, the death of a beneficiary, or a significant change in assets.
Under the Indian Succession Act 1925, a will must be attested by two or more witnesses — each of whom must have seen the testator sign the will (or seen the testator acknowledge a previous signature) and must then sign the will in the testator's presence. A witness who is also a beneficiary under the will does not invalidate the will — but the bequest to that witness is void. GP ensures every will is properly witnessed by independent parties who are not beneficiaries.
For immovable property (land and buildings), the law of the place where the property is situated governs the succession — so Indian property is governed by Indian law regardless of where the testator lives. For movable property (shares, bank accounts, personal effects), the law of the testator's domicile typically governs. An NRI with assets in India and Australia may need two wills — one for each jurisdiction — to ensure both estates are properly administered.
The Supreme Court of India in Common Cause v. Union of India (2018) upheld the right to execute a living will — an advance medical directive specifying the treatment a person wishes to refuse if terminally ill and incapacitated. The directive must be signed before two witnesses and countersigned by a Judicial Magistrate. GP drafts living wills in the form prescribed by the Supreme Court and advises on the steps to ensure the directive is accessible when needed.
GP's wills are drafted with one eye on the probate court. Every will is executed with a formal record of the testator's capacity — including a contemporaneous note of the testator's instructions in their own words, medical evidence of capacity where the testator's age or health warrants it, and independent witnessing by professionals unconnected to any beneficiary. A GP will is not just a record of the testator's wishes — it is a document that can be defended in court if any beneficiary chooses to challenge it.
GP's succession team handles contested probate proceedings — which means the estate planning advice is shaped by real experience of how wills fail. The clauses that generate the most litigation, the family configurations that most commonly produce disputes, the asset types that most often cause ambiguity — all of this informs how GP drafts wills and structures estate plans. The planning is done with the disputes in mind, not discovered in them.
A will alone is rarely sufficient for a business family or an HNI. The will must be consistent with the trust deed, the HUF partition arrangements, the business succession plan, and the life insurance nominations. GP advises on the complete estate plan — checking that every component is aligned, that the tax implications of each structure are understood, and that the overall plan will achieve the family's objectives without generating friction between the components. This is not a document drafting service — it is estate planning.
Advised the patriarch of a Mumbai manufacturing family on the complete restructuring of the family's estate plan. The family's existing arrangements — a 1998 will, an unregistered trust deed, and an HUF that had never been formally constituted — were inconsistent, outdated, and would have produced significant tax friction and litigation risk on the patriarch's death. GP drafted three coordinated wills (for the patriarch, his wife, and the adult son who was to inherit the business), established two private family trusts for the non-business assets, restructured the HUF to reflect the daughters' coparcenary rights under the 2005 amendment, and prepared a business succession plan documenting the intended transition of the company's shareholding and management. Total estate covered: ₹120 crore.
Advised a UK-resident NRI on a coordinated will structure covering assets in both India and the UK. The Indian will — governed by the Hindu Succession Act — covered three Mumbai residential properties and an NRE account, with beneficiaries in India and the UK. The UK will — governed by English law — covered a London flat, a UK ISA portfolio, and a UK pension. GP coordinated with a UK solicitor on the UK will to ensure the two wills did not conflict in their residuary clauses and that the Indian will's FEMA provisions correctly structured the repatriation of the Mumbai property sale proceeds to the UK beneficiaries. Both wills were registered in their respective jurisdictions.
Advised a retired Delhi professional on the execution of a living will following the Supreme Court's 2018 judgment in Common Cause. The client — having watched a family member receive unwanted life-prolonging treatment — wished to document in advance the treatment they would refuse if terminally ill and without decision-making capacity. GP drafted the advance directive in the form prescribed by the Supreme Court, arranged for execution before two witnesses, obtained the countersignature of the First Class Judicial Magistrate as required, and lodged copies with the client's treating hospital, the client's children, and GP's own safe custody file.
The practice works alongside GP's tax team — ensuring that the estate plan's tax implications are understood before the documents are executed, not discovered in the estate administration. For business families, GP's corporate team is involved in the business succession component — ensuring the will and the shareholding arrangements are aligned and that the intended transfer of the business on death will be legally effective.
GP maintains a will safe custody service — retaining original wills for clients who wish to ensure the document's safe preservation and accessibility to their executor on death.
The five assets and situations that most Indian wills fail to address — digital assets, jointly held property, assets acquired after the will was drafted, overseas accounts, and the death of a beneficiary before the testator.
Read Guide →Whether an NRI needs a separate Indian will and an overseas will — or whether one will can cover both — depends on the nature of the assets and the laws of both jurisdictions. GP's guide for NRIs in Australia, Singapore, UAE, and the UK.
Read Guide →Whether you need a will drafted for the first time, an existing will reviewed and updated, a living will executed, or a complete estate plan for your family — speak to us today.
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