Principles of Apportionment Under Transfer of Property Act

Sections 36 and 37 of the Transfer of Property Act of 1882 deal with the doctrine of apportionment. Apportionment means the division or sharing out according to plan or ownership.

Apportionment under this act is defined by two factors

• Apportionment by time under Section 36

• Apportionment by estate under Section 37

Apportionment by Time

Section 36 of the act states that payments will be accrued over time and apportioned between the transferor and transferee based on the length of ownership. The payments will continue to be made on the appointed dates. During the transfer of any property that generates income via

• Rents,

• Annuities,

• Pensions,

• Dividends,

• Other periodic payments

Issues of apportionment occur between the transferor and the transferee. Section 8 of the act states, "Operation of transfer." Unless a different intention is expressed or implied, a transfer of property immediately transfers to the transferee all the interest that the transferor is then capable of conveying in the property and its legal incidents. If the property is land, such incidents include easements attached to it, rents and profits accruing after the transfer, and all things attached to the earth;"

For Example Consider that "A’ lets his property to ‘C’ for Rs. 1000/- per month. ’C’ pays the rent amount at the end of each month. ’A’ sold his property to ‘B’ on January 15. On January 31, C will pay Rs. 500/- to ‘A’ and Rs. 500/- to "B."

Liability of the tenant

Unlike Section 8, Section 6 applies to a transaction between the transferor and the transferee and does not hold the tenant liable since the section makes the principle of apportionment applicable only between the transferor and the transferee.

Concept of Transfer

The basic concept behind the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, is that when a property is lent out to many owners, none of the owners has the right to ask for a specific share of the rent or to demand eviction on the grounds that he is the co-owner and is thus allowed to do so.

Furthermore, as with all other sections, these are regarded in light of Section 8 of the Transfer of Property Act. According to the act, all interests, including rents and profits, must be transferred from the transferor to the transferee. In cases where income is made on a daily basis, the transferee would get the income on a daily basis starting on the day of transfer. However, if the income is not received on a daily basis and is obtained in the form of periodic payments, the amount must be apportioned between the transferor and the transferee.

Apportionment by Estate

Apportionment by estate means dividing all income generated by the property that is sold to several owners (i.e., all rents, annuities, pensions, dividends, and other periodic payments) amongst them all. This division must be made according to the portion of property ownership. Traditionally, income is distributed according to the portion of sale value paid by individual owners. If the income is monetary, it can be distributed among the many owners; however, if the income is in the form of a non-divisible asset, the transaction is made at the direction of the several owners.

The duties and obligations connected with the property do not grow with the number of owners. The burden of duties and obligations on any individual does not rise with the number of owners but remains constant irrespective of the property or the direction of the owners.

The person who has the obligation to execute the duties cannot be held liable for failure to perform the duties unless he has been given reasonable notice of severance.

Therefore, in such a case, the obligation attached to the property must then be performed in favour of each of the several owners in proportion to their respective shares in the property. The rule is applicable only after fulfilment of the following conditions −

• The person who is obligated with the duty to fulfill the burden under this section must have notice of the same.

• The obligation should be one that can be severed.

• The severance of the obligation should not end up increasing the burden of the obligation.

As a result, apportionment by estate simply means the division and future transfer of a property into the hands of a few owners, who are then liable to fulfil the obligations associated with their share of the property.

The difference between this and the previous part is that each section focuses on one of the two kinds of apportionment. Sec. 36 deals with time apportionment, whereas Sec. 37 deals with estate allocation.

Section 37, "Apportionment by estate, contemplates a situation in which each share of the various owners' income or rent is apportioned according to their specific share of the property. In tenancy cases, the tenant must be informed whether he must pay each owner separately; if the apportionment is not done or the tenant is not informed, the tenant is only liable singly.

This clearly explains that the estate can still be apportioned even if it is in a state of tenancy.

Conclusion

Sections 36 and 37 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, which deal with property Apportionment in India, and how it relates to Section 8 of the Transfer of Property Act of 1882. Several exceptions to these sections of the Indian Property Apportionment Act were discussed. These sections are extremely important in the Act since they specify the apportionment rule and how income must be divided in the case of a transfer, tenancy, or lease.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. What is the doctrine of apportionment in the Transfer of Property Act?

Ans. According to the act, all interests, including rents and profits, must be passed from the transferor to the transferee. In cases where income is earned on a daily basis, the transferee would get the income on a daily basis starting on the day of transfer.

Q2. What is the rule governing apportionment?

Ans. Apportionment of estates may come from either the acts of the parties or from the operation of law. When the whole of a property is transferred to more than one person, any gain arising from the property's obligation is shared among several owners.

Q3. What is meant by apportionment under Section 36 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882?

Ans. Apportionment means distribution in proper shares. Sections 36 and 37 of the Transfer of Property Act deal with property apportionment in India.