Report No. 66

8.50. Recommendation to make the policy-holder a trustee.-

It seems to us that this is a vital matter, on which uncertainty should be avoided. Apart from the question of uncertainty, there is a matter of substance which should be considered. Is it necessary to bring in theOfficial Trustee at all? At the time when the Act was enacted (1874), the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 had not been passed, and the rights and liabilities of the trustees and beneficiaries had not been codified. The position is different now, and it will be more convenient to make the policy-holder or his heirs a trustee, in cases where the policy-holder does not appoint a ierson as a trustee. Such a provision exists in England,1 and this part of the English provision does not appear to have created any serious difficulty. We, therefore, recommend that the section should be amended on the lines indicated above.

1. Section 11, Married Women's Property Act, 1882 (English) (Appendix 3).