Drafting a Civil Plaint

Drafting a Civil Plaint


What is a plaint?


A legal document that contains the contents of a civil suit showing the claim of the plaintiff after filing the suit, is called plaint. It is the first step by a plaintiff in the form of a legal document, to commence the suit. It shows the demands put forth by a plaintiff. With the help of a plaint, the cause of action and related information are narrated by the plaintiff.
The plaint consists of two elements- the legal theory and the legal remedy. The importance of plaint is that it initiates a lawsuit and helps a civil court to come to an appropriate jurisdiction.

A plaint is dealt with in Order VII of the Code of Civil Procedure. It contains different rules and different constituents for a plaint. Rules 1-8 include the particulars of a plaint, rule 9 describes how a plaint will be admitted, rule 10 to 10-B includes the returning of a plaint and appearance of parties, rule 11-13 tells us about the rejection of the plaint and in what circumstances it can be rejected. Section 26 of the Code of Civil Procedure states that every suit shall be instituted by filing a plaint

Important constituents of a plaint.

  • A plaint is a legal document containing some important constituents which are necessary to consider a plaint. The necessary contents are mentioned in Rule 1- 8 of Order VII of CPC. They are the following-
  • It should contain the name of the civil or commercial court where the suit is to be initiated.
  • The general details like the name, address, and description of a plaintiff should be present.
  • It should also contain the name, description, and address of the defendant.
  • It should mention the health issues or disabilities, if any, of the plaintiff.
  • The facts which result in the cause of action should be mentioned along with the place where it arises.
  • Besides mentioning the facts which result in the cause of action, the facts which would help in recognizing it should also be mentioned.
  • It should mention the relief which the plaintiff wants to seek from the court.
  • It should contain the amount so allowed when the plaintiff is ready to set off a portion of his claim.
  • The value of the subject matter should be contained, for court fees.
  • The plaintiff’s verification on oath should be present.

Sample-

                   IN THE COURT OF ADDITIONAL JUNIOR CIVIL JUDGE-
                           CITY CIVIL CODE AT HYDERABAD
                              O.S. NO. OF 2007
Mr. Rama Rao
S/o ……………….aged…….years
Occ. …………
R/o Hyderabad….. ……… Plaintiff
Vs
Mr. Appa Rao
S/o………………aged………years
Occ. ……..
R/o Hyderabad……. ……….. defendant
PLAINT FILED UNDER Section 26 READ WITH ORDER VII OF CPC
BRIEF FACTS OF THE CASE-
........
......
.............
SIGNATURE
VERIFICATION

REJECTION OF A PLAINT

  • In certain situations, when the requirements are not fulfilled, the plaint shall be rejected. Some such situations are mentioned below-
  • In a case where the cause of action has not been disclosed and it is practically impossible to prove the damage that has been caused to the plaintiff, the plaint is rejected. The facts should be mentioned clearly to seek remedies. One such example of a rejected plaint is the case of Snp Shipping Service Pvt. Ltd. v. World Tanker Carrier Corporation. In this case, the suit was dismissed and the plaint was rejected under Order 7, Rule 1(a) of the C.P.C.,1908.
  • The situations when the court asks the plaintiff to correct the valuation of an undervalued relief, and the plaintiff fails to do so in the given time, the plaint is rejected.
  • Where the court asks the plaintiff, to supply the required stamped papers in case of documents not being properly stamped, and the plaintiff fails to do so within the period, the plaint is rejected.
  • In some cases, the plaint contains some statement which secured by any law provides no right of remedy to the plaintiff. The plaint gets rejected.
  • Where it mandatory to submit a duplicate copy of a plaint and the plaintiff fails to do so, the plaint is liable to get dismissed.
  • When the plaintiff fails to comply with the provisions that are mentioned in Rule 9 of Order VII of the Civil Procedure Code.

Provisions in the CPC for the rejection of the plaint.
There are some provisions in the CPC for the rejection of the plaint. Some of the provisions are mentioned below-
The procedure for rejecting the plaint is mentioned in Order VII Rule 12 of C.P.C so that it can be used as president in future cases.
It is made clear in Order VII Rule 13 of C.P.C that if a plaint gets rejected it does not stop the plaintiff from filing a fresh plaint.

There are two modes for the rejection of a plaint-
At any stage of proceedings, the defendant has the right to file an interlocutory application for the rejection of the plaint.
Suo Moto- the words Suo Moto means on its own. Thus it is clear that projection of Suo Moto means projection itself. It is mentioned in order 7 rule 11.
Acid can be tried by the court itself under order 7 rule 11 if the conditions mentioned in the first point are fulfilled.

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