B. B. Mitra's The Guardians & Wards Act – Eastern Law House, 17th Edition

Eastern Law House, a name on the spine of Indian law books for over a century, publishes the Seventeenth Edition of B. B. Mitra's The Guardians & Wards Act, revised by K. J. Sengupta. It is the standard practitioner's commentary on the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, and on the body of guardianship and custody law that has grown around it.

Guardianship and custody of children is among the most frequently litigated questions in matrimonial disputes, and one where the governing principle — that the welfare of the minor is the paramount consideration — has to be applied to facts that are never the same twice. This commentary works through the section-by-section text alongside the decisions of the High Courts and the Supreme Court that give those sections their present meaning.

Questions dealt with in this edition

• Jurisdiction of the Family Court in guardianship and custody proceedings.
• Preferential rights of relatives in the appointment of a guardian.
• Conditional appointment of a guardian of property, and the limits on a guardian's power to deal with the minor's estate.
• Illegal detention of a minor and habeas corpus — when the writ lies and when the parties must be relegated to the Act.
• Factors governing the appointment of a guardian, and the weight given to each.
• Rights of a surrogate mother, and custody of children born through surrogacy to couples in live-in relationships.
• Whether a purdahnashin woman is disqualified from guardianship.
• Guardianship of illegitimate children.
• Appointment of a guardian by compromise, and the powers of the Lok Adalat.
• Removal and discharge of a guardian, and appointment of a successor.
• Duties and liabilities of a guardian under Mohammedan law.

Scheme of the book

• Introduction — the scheme and history of the Act.
• Chapter 1, Preliminary — title and commencement, definitions, jurisdiction of courts and subordinate judicial officers.
• Chapter 2, Appointment and Declaration of Guardians — power of the court to make orders, applications and procedure, interim orders and the considerations governing appointment.
• Chapter 3, Duties, Rights and Liabilities of Guardians — general duties, guardian of the person, guardian of property with the attendant powers, restrictions and accountability, and termination of guardianship by removal, discharge or cesser.
• Chapter 4, Supplemental Provisions — orders regulating guardians, penalties, costs, appeals and High Court rules.

Appendices

• Rules framed under Section 50 of the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890.
• The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956.
• The Indian Majority Act, 1875.
• The Family Courts Act, 1984.
• Specimen forms for use in guardianship proceedings.
• Principles governing inter-country adoption under the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890.
• A detailed subject index.

Who should buy this book

• Advocates practising in family and matrimonial courts, where custody and guardianship applications are daily work.
• Judges and judicial officers of the Family Courts, District Courts and Guardian Judges.
• Adoption and child welfare agencies, and those advising on inter-country adoption.
• Judiciary aspirants and law students reading family law, where the Guardians and Wards Act, the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act and the Majority Act are examined together.

Book details