SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, HYDERABAD

TUTORIAL I

Interim submission for

CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE AND LIMITATION ACT II

TOPIC:
Critical examination of the rules relating to Res judicata and their
effectiveness by introduction of Amendments.

Course Teacher
Dr. Anuradha Binnuri

Submitted by

Swarnima Sharma

B.A. LLB Division B

PRN No- 16010323163

Semester - VIII
 INTRODUCTION

Under the Roman law, “ex captio res judicata” means “one suit and one decision is enough for
any single dispute”.1 Earlier, this concept was known as Purva Nyaya or former judgement by
Hindu lawyers. Res judicata originated from the Seventh Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution.The doctrine has been accepted in all civilized legal system.The concept of Res
judicata, which means ‘thing already decided by a competent court’, has been taken from English
Common Law System. It is embodied under Section 11 of Civil Procedure Code, 1908. It
provides that once a matter is finally decided by a competent court, no party shall be permitted to
reopen it in subsequent litigation. This principle rests on two basic principles:

 One should not be vexed twice for the same cause.

 There should be finality to litigation.

This principle is required to promote fairness in administration of justice to prevent abuse of law.
This applies not only to the claims made in the first case, but also to the claims that could have
been made in the case when it was first submitted in the court. Basically the pre requisites for
Res judicata to apply include a judicial decision by a proficient Court or Tribunal which is final
as well as binding on the parties. The decision must be made on merits of the case, and the
hearing must be held in a fair manner. Here, it is not relevant if the decision is right or wrong.

This principle is founded upon the principles of equity, justice as well as good conscience and it
also applies to various civil suits and criminal proceedings. The purpose remains to inculcate
finality to a particular litigation. Two concepts are included in the nature of Res judicata i.e.
issue preclusion (collateral estoppel) and claim preclusion. In case of claim preclusion if a party
has either won or lost a case they will not be allowed to sue the opposite party based on the same
set of facts and events, be it in any court of law. In case of issue preclusion, the relitigation of
issues of law is prohibited as they have already been determined by the judge as part of an earlier
case.

The rule of Constructive res judicata is also included in Section 11 of the Civil Procedure Code
which is also referred to as an artificial form of res judicata. It provides that if a plea has been

1
The Key to Indian Practice- A summary of the Civil Procedure Code (Mulla) 12th Edition
taken by a party in a proceeding between him and the defendant he will not be permitted to take
pleas against the same party in the following proceeding with reference to the same matter. It is
opposed to public policies on which the principle of res judicata is based. It would mean
harassment and hardship to the defendant. The rule of constructive res judicata helps in raising
the bar. Hence this rule is known as the rule of constructive res judicata which in reality is an
aspect of augmentation of the general principles of res judicata.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope and operations of the concept of Res judicata have been decided in several cases
decided by several courts in India. The Supreme Court critically examined the provisions of
Section 11 in the case of Styadhyan Ghosal v. Deorajin Debi 2 which stated that when a matter
between two parties is decided, either on the basis of question of fact or question of law and the
decision is final, neither party shall be allowed to pursue the matter again and harass the other
party. In the absence of rule like res judicata there would have been endless litigation and parties
would be going through continuous harassment and incurring huge expenses. The principle of
res judicata has been evolved from common law system and now is been included in
jurisprudence of every well regulated country. The judgement was delivered by Justice Dasgupta
who emphasized on the importance of ‘rule of conclusive judgement’.

In the historic case of Daryao vs. State of Uttar Pradesh3, the universal application of Res
judicata was accepted. It was determined by the court, that the concept was of wide applicability
and it did not only apply to a certain cut-out category of cases. A writ petition had been filed in
this case and the application of res judicata was found to be extending towards the writ
applications as well. The applicability of res judicata was found to be applicable to a petition
under Article 32 of the Constitution of India.

In the case of Mathura Prasad v. Dossibai N.B. Jeejeebhoy4, it was held that res judicata
constitutes between the parties to the previous case and cannot move again in collateral

2
AIR 1960 SC 941
3
1961 AIR 1457
4
1971 AIR 2355
proceedings. Generally, a decision by a competent court operates as res judicata even on point of
law. However, a question of law which is not related to facts that gives rise to the right, will not
operate as res judicata. When the cause of action is different or the law is different, the decision
has been already altered by an authority. The decision made will be declared as valid and res
judicata will not operate in the subsequent proceeding.

The number of cases decided by the courts so far have shown that res judicata incorporates more
than what is encompassed in the basic definition. Therefore, several new additions and
amendments are possible within the concept inasmuch as there are several applications involved
through every novel aspect. Res judicata has proven to be useful as a civil tool and has combined
many grounds of relief to the judiciary for better implementation of laws.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This research is being carried out to realise the following objectives:

 Examination of the rule of Res judicata and other rules relating to the same.
 Critical analysis of amendments that have been introduced in this field.
 To achieve consensus between the modern implications in the field of civil law related to
Res judicata.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The methodology adopted throughout the research is widely analytical and descriptive. Legal
research has been conducted with reference to case studies that are in consonance with the spirit
of the research topic. Sources relied on are mainly secondary, which includes research published
online as well as in several noted law journals along with books written by esteemed authors.
The lectures and class activities are an important part for the inspirational insights in the
research. Consultation with the concerned faculty has been rich with guidelines and pointers so
as to help in the proper construction of the study.
 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

 What are the implications relating to the applicability of Res Judicata?

 How is Res Judicata interpreted in the newer areas in the judicial field?
 What are the amendments that are affecting the application of Res Judicata?

CONCLUSION

The Doctrine of Res Judicata can be understood as something which restricts either party to
“move the clock back” during the pendency of the proceedings. The extent of res judicata is wide
and it includes a lot of things which even include Public Interest Litigations. This doctrine can be
applied outside the Code of Civil Procedure and covers a lot of areas which are related to the
society and people. The scope and the extent have widened with the passage of time and the
Supreme Court has elongated the areas with its judgments. It is interesting to study the several
aspects where this principle is not only identified, but is also applicable in its implementation.

The study mainly combines the several amendments that have affected Res judicata and the rules
relating to the same in such a manner that it becomes incumbent to study the outcome of such
rules. The application of the principle has a far and wide coverage which can be both interesting
as well as complicated to figure out and it remains the main highlight of the research carried out.

CHAPTERIZATION

Chapter One – Introduction

Chapter Two – Nature, Scope and Application of Res Judicata

Chapter Three – Amendments and Rules relating to Res Judicata

Chapter Four – Conclusion

Chapter Five – Bibliography