The Indian Succession Act, 1925 can be broadly be divided into two categories, testamentary succession and intestate succession. Testamentary succession is applicable when a written Will has been created. Intestate succession is applicable when a Will has not been created and the properties of the deceased person are to be distributed as per the applicable laws based on religion

Testamentary Succession

The law of testamentary succession is concerned how best the effect could be given to the wishes of the testator (i.e the person who made the will) , what are the rules relating to making of a will and allied and subsidiary matters.

The testator enjoys full freedom of bequeathing his property. All matters relating to testamentary succession are laid down in the Indian succession Act, 1925.

The law of testamentary succession deals with the rules and devolution of property on the basis of their relationship to the deceased as well others.

Intestate Succession

The law of Intestate succession is concerned with the matters such as who are the persons entitled to take property i.e who are their heirs; what the rules of preference among the various relations are; in what manner the property has to be distributed if case a person has more than one heir.

The law of intestate succession is more properly the law of inheritance.It consists of rules which determine the mode of devolution of the property of the deceased on heirs solely on the basis of their relationship to the deceased.

Difference:

The difference is inheritance is a general word and the inheritance means one who derives the interest in property, But Succession is that who is the next successor of the predecessor or the person who dies. I.e. C dies and A is the successor and A dies B is the successor. When C dies both A and B are the inheritors but B is not successor.

Hence Inheritance is deriving interest by blood relation or genetic connection. But Succession/intestate succession is only after a person dies.

Successor is successor of predecessor but inheritance is all the person after successor as well as successor. In other words Inheritance can be successor as well as next to the successor.

Inheritance can be by succession but succession cannot be by inheritance. Intestate Succession is after death of a person. Inheritance may be after or before death of person.

Illustration:

• A is a father and B is a son. B gets property after A dies. It is intestate succession.
• C is Grand Father, A is his son (father of B) and B is A’s son/daughter (grandson/granddaughter of C).
• Then C (grandfather) died, B (grandson) gets property from C (grandfather), then B (grandson) too has share in the C (grandfather) property as per Hindu Succession Act 1956. Then the property B (grandson) gets from C (grandfather) is inheritance but not succession.

Succession, as well as inheritance, is by A (father) because he derives property from one's parents or ancestors and intestate as per Hindu succession act is who dies without making any testamentary ( documents/deeds, for example, WILL, gift deed, partition deed )) . But the share of property which A (father) got cannot be partitioned until he dies intestate (without making any testamentary document). Further after the death of A (father) only, B (son of A) gets right in self-acquired property of A. otherwise it is a property by succession as well as inheritance.

 One cannot ask the inheritance in self-acquired property but one B ( as a son of A) can ask the property inherited to his predecessor A (father) as a successor of the person who died intestate C(grandfather). So inheritance right is more powerful than succession. Succession comes into effect only after death.

 But inheritance has limitation i.e. he can ask the property after the share of a successor. But in succession, he enjoys all of the property. if there are 3 sons in succession, then 3 sons are successor and has equal shares i.e. Succession by inheritance as well as intestate. Succession will not come to grandson i.e. B, but he has inheritance.