In a crucial ruling, the Karnataka High Court has held that an insurance policy nominee does not have absolute rights over insurance benefits if the policyholder's legal heirs stake a claim. The court clarified that Section 39 of the Insurance Act, 1938, which governs nominations, does not override personal succession laws like the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. The judgment came in the case of Neelavva @ Neelamma vs Chandravva @ Chandrakala @ Hema and Others, where a dispute arose over the rightful claimants to an insurance payout. Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde ruled that a nominee can receive the insurance benefits only if the legal heirs do not claim them. If a legal heir asserts their right, the nominee's claim must yield to personal succession laws. The case involved a man who had named his mother as the sole nominee for two insurance policies before his marriage. After his marriage and the birth of his child, he did not update the nomination. Following his death in 2019, a legal .