Concept of Gift (Hiba) under Islamic Law

Introduction
A Muslim can devolve his property in various ways. Muslim law permits the transfer of
property inter vivos (gift) or through testamentary dispositions (will). A disposition
inter vivos is unrestricted as to quantum and a Muslim is allowed to give away his entire
property during his lifetime by gift, but only one-third of the total property can be
bequeathed by will. Conventionally, a gift, being a transfer of property is governed by
the Transfer of Property Act, 1882. But Chapter VII of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882
regulating the gifts does not apply to the ‘Muslim Gifts’ or the ‘Hiba’. Although there is
no such difference between a gift made by a non-muslim or a Muslim yet, the formalities
of Hiba are different from that of a gift made by a non-muslim. Therefore, Hiba is
governed by the Muslim Personal Law.
Meaning and Definition of Gift
A gift is generally a transfer of ownership of a property by a living person to another
living person without any consideration. In Islamic law, gifts are known as ‘Hiba’. To
be very precise, gift implies to an extensive overtone and appertain to all kind of
transfers of ownership not involving any consideration. On the other hand, the term
‘Hiba’ includes a narrow connotation. It is basically transferred inter vivos i.e. between
living person.

According to Hedaya– “Hiba is an unconditional transfer of ownership in an existing

property, made immediately without any consideration.”

According to Ameer Ali– “A Hiba is a voluntary gift without consideration of property

by one person to another so as to constitute the donee the proprietor of the subject-
matter of the gift.”

According to Mulla– “A Hiba is a transfer of property, made immediately and without

any exchange by one person to another and accepted by or on behalf of the latter.”

According to Fyzee– “Hiba is the immediate and unqualified transfer of the corpus of
the property without any return.”

Salient Features of a Hiba

After anatomizing the definitions and meaning, some prominent features of Hiba
emerge as follows:

1. Hiba is a transfer of property by act of the parties and not by operation of law.
It means that any transfer of property done by the court of law or any transfer of
ownership by the Muslim law of inheritance will not be considered as Hiba.
 2. Under Hiba, a living Muslim voluntarily transfers the ownership of any property
to another living person. Hence, it is a transfer inter vivos.
3. The transferor transfers ownership of the property in absolute interest and the
transferee gets the complete title in respect of the property given to him.
Conditions, restrictions or partial rights in the gifted property are averse to the
concept of Hiba under Islamic law.
4. Hiba is operative with immediate effect and deprives the transferor of his
control and ownership over the property. Moreover, as the property is passed
immediately to the transferee, the property must be in existence at the time when
the gift is made. A gift made for a property which will exist is future is termed as
void.
5. A Hiba is a transfer of property without any consideration. If anything of
any value is taken by the transferor in return or exchange, such a transfer of
property is not a gift.

Competency of the Donor: Capacity and Right

A person who makes the declaration of a gift is called a donor. A donor must be a
competent person to make a gift. Every Muslim, male or female, married or
unmarried, who has attained the age of majority and has a sound mind is a
competent donor. For the purpose of making a gift, the age of majority is the attainment
of 18 years and 21 years if he is under a certificated guardian.

Capacity to make a Hiba

Mental capacity: A person who is of sound mind and has the mental capacity to
understand the legal implications of his act is eligible to make a gift. However, a gift
made by a person of unsound mind during lucid intervals is a valid gift. Also, the donor
must be free from any coercive or fraudulent influence while making a gift.

In the case of Hussaina Bai v. Zohara Bai AIR 1960 MP 60 the validity of a gift
made by parda-nasheen ladies was declared by the court. In this case, a parda-nasheen
Muslim lady was brought from Nagpur to Burhanpur on an excuse that her brother-in-
law was seriously ill. After reaching the place, she had a fit of hysteria, and soon after
it, she was made to sign a gift deed without informing her the content of the deed and
no opportunity was given to her to take an independent decision. The court held that-

“When a gift is made by a parda-nasheen lady, it is important to establish that the

consent of the lady was free and she made the gift on her independent advice. The burden
to prove that the gift was made free from compulsion lies on the donee. In this case, the
deed was executed from the lady under compulsion, it was not her voluntary act, and
hence, the deed was held invalid.”

Financial Capacity: According to the Hanafi view, if a person is under insolvent

circumstances, he is allowed to make a gift. However, the Kazi has the power to declare
any gift as void if it is made with a view to defraud the donee. The Indian courts have
accepted the view of the Hanafi school that from the fact of indebtedness or
embarrassing financial circumstances of the donor, it cannot be inferred that the donor
has fraudulent intentions. So, in every gift, there must be a bona fide intention on the
part of the donor to transfer property to the donee. Evidently, if a gift is made with a
malafide intention to defraud the donee, the gift is invalid.

Right to make a Hiba

Capacity to make a gift is not solely enough. The donor must also have a right to make
a Hiba. A Muslim has a right to gift only those properties of which he has the ownership.
If he is simply a tenant in a house, he is not allowed to gift that house to someone because
he does not have the ownership of that house. Such a gift is considered as invalid.

However, a Muslim has a right to gift away all his properties which are under his
ownership at the time of declaration of the gift. The transfer of the property by the donor
must be in the absolute interest of the donee. Therefore, it is imperative that the donor
himself has the ownership of that property which he intends to pass on to the donee.
Competency of the Donee
The person in whose favour the gift is made is known as the donee. For being a
competent donee, the only essential requirement is that a donee must be any person in
existence at the time of the making of a gift. He may be a person of any religion, sex, or
state of mind. Thus, a Muslim can make a lawful Hiba in favour of a non-muslim,
female, minor or an insane person.

Child in Womb: A child in the mother’s womb is a competent donee provided that it is
born alive within six months from the date on which the gift was made. If after the
declaration of the gift the child dies in the womb or an abortion takes place, the gift
becomes void. Also, the child must be in existence in the mother’s womb at the time of the
making of the gift. If a child is not in the mother’s womb or the conception takes place
after the declaration of the gift, such a gift is void ab initio.

Juristic Person: A juristic person includes a firm, corporation, company, association,

union, university or any other organization. A juristic person is presumed to be an adult
of sound mind like a human being in the eyes of law and hence, is a competent donee in
whose favour a gift can be made. A gift in favour of a mosque, temple or a school is valid.

Two or more Donees: A donee may be an individual or a class of persons. In case the
donee is a group of people, all the people in that particular group must be ascertainable.

The Subject matter of Hiba

Islamic law does not make any distinction between ancestral or self-acquired or
between movable or immovable property as far as the concept of Hiba is concerned. Any
form of the property upon which the dominion can be exercised may constitute the
subject-matter of the Hiba. Both incorporeal and corporeal property can be the subject-
matter of a Hiba.
Similarly, a gift can be made of property on lease, a property of attachment or any
actionable claim. Unlike the concept of the will or wasiyat under Islamic law in which
only one-third of the total property can be bequeathed by a will, a Hiba or gift can be
made of the entire property.

Formalities of a Hiba
It is often supposed that the word ‘gift’ connotes the exact identical meaning as the term
‘Hiba’. A gift is a broad and generic concept whereas Hiba is a narrow and well-defined
legal concept. Juristically, in Islamic law, a Hiba is treated similar to a contract
consisting of an offer to give something on the part of donor and acceptance on the part
of the donee. Thus, to make a Hiba three essential formalities have to be fulfilled.

1. A declaration of gift by the donor

2. Acceptance of the gift by the donee
3. Delivery of possession by the donor and taking of possession by the donee

These three formalities are discussed in detail below:-

Declaration of gift by the Donor

Declaration simply signifies the intentions of the donor to make a gift. It is a
substantiation of the intention of the donor to transfer the ownership of the property to
the donee.

Oral or Written: The donor may declare a gift of any kind of property either orally
or through a written deed.

In the case of Md. Hesabuddin v. Md. Hesaruddin AIR 1984 Gau. 41, a Muslim
woman made a gift of her immovable properties in favour of her son. The gift was
written on ordinary paper and was not a registered deed. The court held the validity of
such gifts in this case as-“ Under Muslim law, writing is not essential for the validity of
a gift whether it is moveable or immovable property. Therefore, the gift, in this case,
was held to be valid because writing and registration of a gift are not mandatory
requisites to make a valid gift.”

Express Declaration: A declaration of a gift must be expressly made in clear words

that the donor is conceding his ownership of the property completely. A gift made in
ambiguous words is null and void.

In Maimuna Bibi v. Rasool Mian AIR 1992 Pat. 203 it was held that-“ It is
necessary that the donor divest himself completely of all the dominion and ownership
over the property of gift. The donor must express his explicit intention to transfer the
ownership to the donee clearly and unequivocally.”
Free Consent: The consent of the donor in making the gift must be free. A declaration
of a gift must be made voluntarily by the donor. Any gift made by a donor under threat,
force, coercion, influence or fraud is not a valid gift.

Bona fide Intention: Mere announcement of a gift is not considered as a valid

declaration until it entails the intention of the donor. Absence of real and honest
intention to transfer the ownership of the property will make a gift ineffective. A gift
made with an intention to defraud the donee is void. A gift without an intention may be
pretence gift, colourable or Benami transaction etc. however, mere indebtedness does
not affect the competency of the donor unless his malafide intention is established.

Acceptance of gift by the Donee

For the validity of a gift, it must be accepted by the donee. Acceptance manifests the
intention of the donee to take the property and become its new owner. Without
acceptance, the gift is considered to be incomplete. Since under Islamic law, Hiba is
treated as a bilateral transaction, therefore, it is important that the proposal made by
the donor to transfer the ownership of the property must be accepted by the donee.

Minor: In case the donee is minor, the acceptance on behalf of a minor can be given by
the guardian of the property of the minor.

Juristic person: If a gift is made in favour of any institution or any other juristic
person, the acceptance of the gift is made by either manager or any other competent
authority.

Two or more Donees: Gift made in favour of two or more donees must be accepted
by each and every person separately. If the share of each person is explicitly specified
by the donor then, they will get the separate possession in the same way as declared by
the donor. But if the share under a gift is not specified and no separate possession is
given by the donor, then also the gift is valid and the donees will take the property as
tenants-in-common.

Delivery of Possession

The formalities laid down for gifts under Section 123, Transfer of Property Act, 1882,
are not applicable to Muslim gifts. Under Islamic law, a gift is complete only after the
delivery of possession by the donor and taking of possession by the donee. Thus, it is
obligatory that the declaration and acceptance must be accompanied by the delivery of
possession of the property.

The gift takes effect from the date when the possession of the property is delivered to the
donee and not from the date when the declaration was made by the donor. Delivery of
possession is an overriding facet in Islamic law. The importance is to such an extent that
without the delivery of possession to the donee, the gift is void even if it has been made
through a registered deed.

The donor must divest himself of not only the ownership but also the possession in favour
of the donee in order to make a gift complete. Muslim law does not presume transfer of
ownership rights from donor to a donee without the explicit delivery of possession of the
property.

In Noorjahan v. Muftakhar AIR 1970 All. 170, a donor made a gift of certain
property to the donee, but the donor continued to manage the properties and takes the
profit himself. Till the death of the donor, no mutation was made in the name of the
donee. It was held by the court that since no delivery of possession was made, the gift
was incomplete and ineffective in nature.

Mode of Delivery of Possession

The mode of delivery of possession totally depends upon the nature of the property
gifted. Legally, the donor is required to do something by which the donee gets the
physical control over the property in order to constitute the delivery of possession.

A donee is said to be in possession of a property when he is so placed that he can exercise

exclusive dominion over it and gain the benefits out of it as is usually derived from it.
Therefore, the delivery of possession can be either actual or constructive i.e. symbolic.

Actual Delivery of Possession

Actual delivery means when a property is physically handed over to the donee. This type
of delivery is possible only with tangible properties (movable as well as immovable)
which are capable of being physically possessed and given.

Where the property is movable, it must be actually transferred and handed over to the
donee.

For example, if a donor gifts a car to the donee, he must give the keys of the car and
all other documents of the car to the donee so that he can use it. Mere declaring the gift
on a document is not enough. The property must be handed over immediately.

Similarly, where the property is immovable, its actual delivery of possession is

compulsory. But since it cannot be picked up and handed over, the donor may delivery
such property by giving all the documents related to that property and by placing it to
the donee so that he can use it as he likes.
For example, if a donor gifts the house in which he is residing, he must vacate it and
ask the donee to live in it in order to make his gift valid. In case of a garden, the donor
may give full dominion to the donee to use the garden in whichever way he wants
including all the rights to enjoy the fruits and flowers.

Constructive Delivery of Possession

Constructive delivery of possession means a symbolic transfer of property. In this mode

of delivery, the donor does some act due to which it is legally presumed that the
possession has been delivered to the donee. Such type of delivery of possession takes
place only when the property is of such a nature that it is not possible to delivery through
actual mode. Constructive delivery of possession is sufficient to constitute a valid gift
under two circumstances only:

1. Where the property is intangible.

2. Where the property is tangible but, under the situation, its actual delivery of
possession is not possible.

When the constructive delivery of possession is completed?

When the possession of the movable property is delivered, the exact time of delivery of
possession can be easily determined. The problem arises in the case of immovable or
incorporeal properties where it is onerous to prove the exact time of the delivery of
possession. However, in India, there are two judicial views regarding the exact time of
the completion of delivery of possession.

 Benefit Theory: Under this view, it is believed that a constructive delivery of

possession is complete as soon as the donee starts getting the benefits out of the
gifted property. Where even after the declaration of the gift, the donor is enjoying
the benefits, the gift is not complete. But, if the donor enjoys the benefits, it is
deemed that the delivery of possession has taken place.

This approach lays more emphasis on the facts of donee’s benefits from the gifted
property instead of the act which symbolises constructive delivery of possession.

For example, if a donor gifts a rented house to the donee, the delivery of possession is
considered to take place from the date on which the donee gets the rent from the tenants.

 Intention Theory: This approach supports the view that the delivery of
possession is completed on the date on which the donor intent to transfer the
possession to the donee. The intention of the donor can be proved on the basis of
the facts and circumstances which vary from case to case. In correspondence to
the intention of the donor, some potent facts must be established which exhibit
that the donor has physically done everything he could in the given circumstances.
In other words, the court accepts that the delivery of possession is deemed to have taken
place only when the bona fide intention of the donor to complete the gift is thoroughly
established and it is not important to prove that from which date the donee reaps the
benefits of the property given.

For example, if the donor and donee are living in the same house which constitutes the
subject-matter of the gift, the donor’s intention to transfer the possession to the donee is
sufficiently proved if the donee has been authorised to manage the house.

Who may challenge the Delivery of Possession?

It is not at all necessary to prove separately in each and every case that the delivery of
possession has been completed until and unless the validity of gift is challenged by the
donor, the donee or any person legally authorised to claim on behalf of them.

In the case of Y. S. Chen v. Batulbai AIR 1991 MP 9o , a Muslim woman made a gift
of a portion of her house to her daughter. The gifted portion of the house was occupied
by a tenant who used to pay the rent regularly to the daughter (donee) recognising her
as the landlady. After some time, the tenant refused to recognise the daughter as his
landlady on the ground that the gift made in her favour was void because there was no
delivery of possession. It was held by the court that –

“Any objection as to the validity of gift on the ground of absence of delivery of possession
cannot be raised by the tenant who is a stranger to the transaction of a gift.”

Conditional or Contingent Hiba

The contingent or conditional gifts whose operation depends upon the occurrence of a
contingency. A contingency is a possibility, a chance, an event which may or may not
happen. Under Islamic law, conditional or contingent gifts are void.
For example, if a Muslim made a gift to his wife for life, and after her death to his
children who are living at the time of his death, the gift is said to be contingent.

Revocation of Hiba
Although Prophet was against the revocation of gifts, it is a well-established rule of the
Islamic law that all voluntary transactions, including Hiba, are revocable. Different
schools have different views with regard to revocation. The Muslim law-givers classified
the Hiba from the point of view of revocability under the following categories:

 Revocation of Hiba before the delivery of possession

All gifts are revocable before the delivery of possession is given to the donee. For such
revocation, no orders of the court are necessary. As discussed above that under Muslim
law, no Hiba is complete till the delivery of the possession is made, and therefore, in all
those cases where possession has not been given to the donee, the gift is incomplete and
whether it is revoked or not, it will not be valid till the delivery of possession is made to
the donee.

It implies that the donor has changed its mind and not willing to complete the gift by
delivery of possession.

For example, X, a Muslim, makes a gift of his car to Y through a gift deed and no
delivery of possession has been made to Y. X revokes the gift. The revocation is valid.

 Revocation after the delivery of possession

In this situation, a Hiba can be revoked in either of the following ways:

1. With the consent of the donee

2. By a decree of the court.

Mere declaration of revocation by the donor or filing a suit in the court or any other
action is not enough to revoke a gift. The donee is entitled to use the property in any
manner until a decree is passed by the court revoking the gift.

Gift to Minor

Any gift made in favour of a minor or insane person is valid. They may not have the
capacity to understand the legal consequences but they are persons in existence and
thus, are competent donee. But such gifts are valid only if accepted by the guardian of
the minor or insane donee. A gift is void without the acceptance by the guardian.

For the purpose of acceptance of the gift, the guardian of a minor or insane donee are
as under in the order of priority:

1. Father
2. Father’s executor
3. Paternal grandfather
4. Paternal grandfather’s executor

Therefore, in the presence of the father, the paternal grandfather is not allowed to accept
the gift on behalf of the minor or insane and so on. If all the above-mentioned guardians
are not present, then the gift is accepted by the ‘guardian of the property of minor or
insane’.

If a guardian himself makes a gift in favour of his ward, he will declare the gift acting
as a donor and has the capacity to accept the gift as the guardian of the minor or insane.
It is to be noted here that the mother is not recognized as the guardian of the
property of her minor child. Hence, she is not entitled to accept the gift on behalf of
her minor child.

Where a gift is made to a minor or lunatic, the gift is complete only if the guardian has
taken the actual or constructive delivery of possession of the property on behalf of such
persons. If the possession is taken by any other person who is neither a legal guardian
nor a de facto guardian, the gift becomes ineffective and void.

Katheessa Ummand v. Naravanath KumhamuandAIR 1964 SC 275 is a

leading case on this point.

Facts: In this case, a Muslim husband made a registered gift to his wife who was a
minor. The gift was accepted by the donee’s mother. Unfortunately, after two years, the
husband died and soon after it the donee (wife) also died. The validity of the gift was
challenged by the elder brother of the donor (husband) on the ground that there was no
delivery of possession as a gift to the minor was accepted by her mother who is not a
legal guardian according to the Islamic law.

Issue: The question before the court was whether a gift by a Muslim husband to his
minor wife and accepted by the mother on behalf of the minor wife, is valid?

Held: The court, in this case, held that it is a well-established rule under Islamic law
that mother is not a legal guardian of the minor’s property, therefore, she is incompetent
to take the delivery of the possession on behalf of the minor donee. But, in case there is
no legal guardian to accept the gift, the completion of the gift for the benefit of the minor
has the utmost significance.

If the donee had already attained the age of puberty, the gift is valid even if it is accepted
by a person who has no authority to accept the gift on behalf of a minor. In this case, the
gift was held to be valid although the delivery of possession was not accepted by any
competent guardian on behalf of minor but since the minor had reached the age of
discretion (fifteen years) and was competent to accept the gift herself.

When Delivery of Possession is not necessary

Islamic law of gift binds great significance to delivery of possession especially in case of
immovable property. The other essentials of Hiba will have no legal effect unless
accompanied by delivery of possession. But there are certain exceptions to this general
rule. The following are the situations under which a gift is valid without actual or
constructive delivery of possession:
  Donor and donee live jointly in the gifted house: Where the subject-matter
of a gift is a house in which the donor and donee both resides together, any formal
delivery of possession is not necessary to complete the gift. Since the donee is
already continuing the possession of the house in some other capacity, there is no
need to give the donee the same possession again in a different capacity.

But, there must be some conspicuous act or apparent activity on the part of the donor
that indicates the bona fide intention of the donor to transfer the possession.

In Humera Bibi v. Najmunnissa 1905 28 All. 17, a Muslim lady executed a gift
deed of her house in favour of her nephew who was living with her in the same house.
The property was transferred in the name of the nephew but she continued to live with
him as before. But after the making of the gift, the rents were collected in the name of
the donee. It was held that “ the gift was valid although there was neither any physical
transfer to the donee nor any physical departure of the donor from the house.”

 Gift by a husband to wife or vice versa: where a gift of immovable property

is made by a husband to wife or vice versa, no transfer of possession is
mandatory. The reason behind this is that a joint residence is an integral aspect
of the relationship of marriage. To perform the matrimonial obligations it is
necessary the husband and wife must live together.

In the case of Fatmabibi v. Abdul Rehman AIR 2001 Guj. 175, the husband
made an oral gift of a house to his wife. Later, the deed was also registered. The
stepson, who lived with his wife in the gifted house, challenged the validity of the gift
on the ground that there was no delivery of possession of the house. It was held that
–“Oral gift in presence of two persons amounts to the declaration, mentioning the
name of the wife in the registration deed amounts acceptance and mutation in the
name of the wife at the instance of the wife amounts sufficient delivery of possession
keeping in view the relationship between the parties.”

In Katheessa Ummand v. Naravanath Kumhamuand AIR 1964 SC 275 the

Supreme Court held that “ where a husband made a gift in favour of his minor wife by a
registered deed and possession is handed over to the mother of minor wife, the gift was
valid. Since the wife had no father and grandfather alive, nor any executor, the delivery
of the gift deed to her mother instead of the minor wife herself did not invalidate the gift,
as the intention was well established.”

 Gift by Guardian to Ward: In case a guardian makes a gifts in favour of his

ward, he declares the gift as donor and accepts the gift on the part of the donee,
the delivery of possession is not compulsory provided that there is a bona fide
intention on the part of the guardian to divest his ownership and give it to his
ward.
 Gift of property already in possession of donee: The basic objective behind the
concept of delivery of possession is to give the physical dominion over a property
to the donee. But, anyhow if the donee already has possession of the property
 given by donor under a gift, mere declaration and acceptance are enough to
complete the gift. No formal delivery of possession is required to complete the
gift.

Doctrine of Mushaa

The word ‘Mushaa’ has an Arabic origination which literally means ‘confusion’. Under
Islamic law, Mushaa denotes an undivided share in joint property. It is, therefore, a co-
owned or joint property. If one of the several owners of such property makes a gift of
his own share, there may arise confusion in regard to what part of the property is to be
given to the donee. Practically, it is too difficult to deliver the possession of a joint
property if a gift is made by a donor without partition of the joint property.

To circumvent such confusion, the Hanafi Jurists have developed the doctrine of
Mushaa. Gift of Mushaa i.e gift of a share in the co-owned property is invalid without
the partition and actual delivery of that part of the property to the donee. If the co-
owned property is not capable of partition, the doctrine of Mushaa is impertinent. A
Mushaa or undivided property is of two kinds:

Mushaa Indivisible

It includes the property in which the partition is not possible. A gift of an undivided share
(Mushaa) in a property which is incapable of being divided or where the property can
be used for better advantage in an undivided condition, is valid. The doctrine of Mushaa
is not applicable where the property constituting the subject-matter of the gift is
indivisible. All the schools of Islamic law accept the view that a gift of Mushaa indivisible
is valid without partition and the actual delivery of possession.

For example, a staircase, a cinema hall, a bathing ghat etc. comprises indivisible
Mushaa properties. If these kinds of properties are divided, then their original identity
will be lost.

Mushaa Divisible

Mushaa divisible is the property which is capable of division without affecting its value
or character. If the subject-matter of a Hiba is Mushaa divisible, the doctrine of Mushaa
is applied and the gift is valid only if the specific share which has been gifted, is
separated by the donor and is actually given to the donee. However, a gift without
partition and the actual delivery of possession is merely irregular and not void ab initio.

For example, a co-owned piece of land or a garden or a house is a Mushaa divisible

property which can be divided by a visible mark of identification without changing its
original character.
Shia law does not recognize the principle of Mushaa. According to Shia law, a gift of a
share of divisible joint property is valid even if it is made without partition.

Comparison of Gift and Will

Basis of
Gift Will
Comparison

A man can give away his whole property Only one-third of the net estate
Quantum
during his lifetime. can be bequeathed.

For bequeathing more than one-

A gift inter vivos can be made in favour
third of the property to any
Beneficiary of any person without any restriction
person, consent of heirs is
(except during marz-ul-maut).
mandatory.

The property may or may not be

in existence at the time of
Existence of Property gifted must be in existence at
execution of the will but it must be
Property the time of making the gift.
existing at the time of the death of
the legator.

A transfer of property comes into

Transfer of Under gift, the immediate and absolute
effect only after the death of the
Property transfer of property takes place.
legator.

Since property devolves on the

Immediate delivery of possession must
Delivery of legatee only after the death of the
take place as soon as the donor declares
Possession legator so no question of delivery
the gift and the donee accept the same.
of possession arises.

Once a gift is made, a mere declaration A bequest may be revoked by the

to revoke it by the donor is not sufficient. legator any time after executing it
Revocation A revocation can only take place either and before his death either
by the consent of the donee or by the impliedly or expressly or by a
intervention of the court. subsequent will.