Section 20: Other Suits to be instituted where defendants reside or cause of action arises (General/Residual Section to tell the place of institution of the Civil Suit before the Civil Court)

 

Section 20: Other Suits to be instituted where defendants reside or cause of action arises:

Section 20 of CPC 1908 is known by the name as General as well as Residual  Section for selecting the place of civil court for instituting the civil suit because it covers all other cases related to selection of the civil courts for institution of the civil suit which cases do not fall within the provision of section 15 to 19 of CPC 1908.

Section 20 of CPC states as under:

Subject to the limitation aforesaid (i.e. Section 20 of CPC is subject to the limitations as provided in Section 15 to 19 CPC as we had discussed earlier in the last videos), every suit shall be instituted in the Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction-

a.    the defendant, or each of the defendants where there are more than one at the time of commencement of the suit, actually and volunterly resides or carries on business or personally works for gain;

Let us take an example which is illustration (a) appended to this Section:

i.                  A is a tradesman in Calcutta,

ii.              B carries on business in Delhi.

iii.           B, by his agent in Calcutta buys goods of A and requests to deliver them to the East India Railway Company.

iv.            A delivers the goods accordingly in Calcutta.

v.               Now if B will not pay for the price of the goods purchased by his agent, then A may sue B for the price of the goods either in Calcutta where the cause of action has arisen or in Delhi where B carries on business. 

b.   any of the defendants, where there are more than one, at the time of the commencement of the suit, actually and volunterly resides or carries on business or personally works for gain, provided that in such case either the leave of the court is given, or the defendant who do not resides or carries on business or personally work for gain, as aforesaid, acquince in such institution; or

c.    the cause of action, wholly or in part arises.

Let us taken an example from illustration b appended to this Section:

 

i.                  A resides at Shimla ;

ii.              B at Calcutta; and

iii.           C at Delhi;

iv.             A B and C being together at Banaras B and C make a joint promissory note payable on demand, and deliver it to A.

v.               If in future B and C resile from their promise and do not pay the due amount of A to A then he may B and C at Banaras where the cause of action arose i.e. the place where B and C had executed promissory note in favor of A; he may also sue them at Calcutta where B resides or at Delhi, where C resides;

vi.            but in each of these cases if the non resident defendant object the suit cannot proceed without the leave of the court.

Here it is important to mention that an application for such leave may be of made after institution of the Civil Suit the Civil Court makes grant such a leave without previous notice to the defendant.

  Explanation appended to Section 20 of CPC 1908: A Corporation shall be deemed to to carry on business at its sole or principal office in India or, in respect of any cause of action arising at any place where it has also a subordinate office at such place.

The word “Corporation” includes not only a statutory corporation but also companies registered the under the Compaines Act.

Question: Whether Section 20 of CPC Overlapse Section 19 of CPC 1908.

Answer: Yes, Section 20 of CPC 1908 overlapse Section 19 of CPC as this Section further gives one for more option to the plaintiff to institute the civil suit before the Civil Court where the cause of action has arises to institute the civil suit.

It is a General section covering all personal action i.e. suits relating to personal or movable property.

However it is very important to not here that when two or more courts are vested with the jurisdiction to entertain and try a civil suit then the choice of selecting one of the said court lies with the plaintiff as it is the plaintiff who can decide out of the several competent courts before which court he would like to move. The defendant cannot insist the plaintiff to institute the civil suit in a particular civil court.