(W.P. Ordinance II of 1962)
[8 January 1962]
An
Ordinance to amend and consolidate the law relating to Civil Courts in the
province of [3][3][the
Punajb]
Preamble.— WHEREAS it is expedient to amend and consolidate
the law relating to Civil Courts in the province of [4][4][the Punjab].
NOW,
THEREFORE, in pursuance of the Presidential Proclamation of the seventh day of
October, 1958, and having received the previous instructions of the President,
the Governor of West Pakistan is pleased, in exercise of all powers enabling
him in that behalf, to make and promulgate the following Ordinance:-
CHAPTER
I
PRELIMINARY
1. Short title, extent and commencement.— (1) This Ordinance may be called the [5][5][Punjab] Civil Courts Ordinance, 1962.
(3) It shall
come into force at once in the Divisions of Bahawalpur, [8][8][* * *] Lahore, Multan, [9][9][* * *] Rawalpindi and Sargodha [10][10][* * *], and in the remaining parts of the
province or any specified area or areas thereof, it shall come into force on
such date or dates as Government may, by notification in the official Gazette,
appoint in this behalf.
2. Definitions.— In this Ordinance, unless the context
otherwise requires, the following expressions shall have the meanings hereby
respectively assigned to them, that is to say—
(c) “Land” means land which is not occupied as the
site of any building in a town or village and is occupied or has been let for
agricultural purposes or for purposes subservient to agriculture or for pasture
and includes the sites of buildings and other structures on such lands;
(d) “land suit” means a suit relating to land or to
any right or interest in land;
(e) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made
under this Ordinance;
(f) “small cause” means a
suit of the nature cognizable by a Court of Small Causes under the Provincial
Small Cause Courts Act, 1887[13][13];
(g) “unclassed suit” means a suit which is neither
a small cause nor a land suit; and
(h) “value” used with reference to a suit means the
amount or value of the subject matter of the suit.
CHAPTER
II
CIVIL
COURTS
3. Classes
of Courts.— Besides the Courts of Small
Causes established under the Provincial Small Cause Courts Act, 1887[14][14], and the Courts established under any other
enactment for the time being in force, there shall be the following classes of
Civil Courts, namely:-
(a) the
Court of the District Judge;
(b) the
Court of the Additional District Judge; and
(c) the
Court of the Civil Judge.
4. Civil
Districts.— For the purposes of this Ordinance, Government may, by notification,
divide the province into civil districts, fix the limits of such districts and
determine the headquarters of each such district.
5. District Judges.— Government shall, in consultation with the
High Court, appoint as many persons as it thinks necessary to be District
Judges and post a District Judge to each district:
Provided
that the same person may be appointed to be District Judge of two or more
districts.
6. Additional District Judges.— (1) Government may, in consultation with the
High Court, appoint as many Additional District Judges as may be necessary.
(2) An Additional District Judge shall
discharge such functions of a District Judge as the District Judge may assign
to him, and in the discharge of those functions he shall exercise the same
powers as the District Judge.
7. Original jurisdiction of District
Judges in suits.— Except as
otherwise provided by any enactment for the time being in force, the Court of
the District Judge shall have jurisdiction in original civil suits without
limit as regard the value.
8. Civil Judges.— Government may, in consultation with the
High Court—
(a) fix the number of Civil Judges to be appointed;
(b) make rules prescribing qualifications for
recruitment of persons as Civil Judges; and
(c) appoint as many Civil Judges as may be deemed
necessary.
9. Pecuniary
limits of Jurisdiction of Civil Judges.— The jurisdiction to be exercised in original
civil suits as regards the value by any person appointed to be a Civil Judge
shall be determined by the High Court either by including him in a class or
otherwise as it thinks fit.
10. Local limits
of jurisdiction.— (1) The local limits of the jurisdiction of a Civil Judge shall be such
as the High Court may define.
(2) When the High Court posts a Civil Judge
to a district, the local limits of the district shall in the absence of any
direction to the contrary, be deemed to be the local limits of his
jurisdiction.
11. Power to
invest Civil Judges with Small Cause Courts Jurisdiction.— The High Court may, by
notification, within such local limits as it thinks fit, confer upon any Civil
Judge the jurisdiction of a Judge of a Court of Small Causes under the
Provincial Small Cause Courts Act, 1887[15][15], for the trial of suits, cognizable by such
Courts, upto such value not exceeding one thousand rupees as it thinks fit.
12. Exercise by Civil Judges of Jurisdiction of
District Courts in certain proceedings.— (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Succession Act, 1925[16][16], the High Court may, by general or special
order, authorise any Civil Judge to take cognizance of or any District Judge to
transfer to a Civil Judge under his control, any proceedings or class of
proceedings under the said Act.
(2) The District Judge may withdraw any such
proceedings taken cognizance of by or transferred to a Civil Judge, and may
either himself dispose of them or transfer them to a Court under his control
competent to dispose of them:
Provided
that nothing herein contained shall empower a District Judge to withdraw such
proceedings as have been specifically transferred from his Court by the High
Court.
(3) Proceedings taken cognizance of by or
transferred to a Civil Judge as the case may be, under this section, shall be
disposed of by him subject to the rules applicable to like proceedings when
disposed of by the District Judge.
13. Places of sitting of Courts.— (1) The High Court may fix the place or
places at which any Court under this Ordinance is to be held.
(2) The place or places so fixed may be
beyond the local limits of the jurisdiction of the Court.
(3) Except as may be otherwise provided by
any order under this section, a Court under this Ordinance may be held at any
place within the local limits of its jurisdiction.
14. Control of
Courts and Presiding Officers.— (1) All Civil Courts in the areas to which this
Ordinance extends shall be subordinate to the High Court, and, subject to the
general superintendence and control of the High Court, the District Judge shall
have control over all Civil Courts within the local limits of his jurisdiction.
(2) The posting of Civil Judges shall be made
by the High Court.
15. Power to distribute business.— Notwithstanding anything contained in the
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908[17][17], every District Judge may by written order
direct that any civil business cognizable by his Court and the Courts under his
control shall be distributed among such Courts in such manner as he thinks fit:
Provided
that no direction issued under this section shall empower any Court to exercise
any powers or deal with any business beyond the limits of its jurisdiction.
16. Delegation of powers by District Judges.— A District Judge may, with the previous
sanction of the High Court, delegate, in respect of any specified portion of
the district, to any Civil Judge in the district, his powers under sections 14
and 15 of this Ordinance and the powers of the District Court under section 24
of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908[18][18], and such powers may be exercised by such
Civil Judge subject to the general control of the District Judge.
CHAPTER
III
JURISDICTION
IN CIVIL APPEALS
17. Appeals from
District Judges or Additional District Judges.— (1) Save as otherwise
provided by any enactment for the time being in force, an appeal from a decree
or order of District Judge or Additional District Judge exercising original
jurisdiction shall lie to the High Court.
(2) An
appeal shall not lie to the High Court from a decree or order of an Additional
District Judge in any case in which, if the decree or order had been made by the
District Judge, an appeal would not lie to that Court.
18. Appeals from Civil Judges.— (1) Save as aforesaid, an appeal from a
decree or order of a Civil Judge, shall lie—
(a) to the High Court if the value of the original
suit in which the decree or order was made exceeds [19][19][[20][20][twenty five] hundred] thousand rupees; and
(b) to the District Judge in any other case.
(2) Where the function of receiving any
appeal which lie to the District Judge under the last preceding sub-section has
been assigned to an Additional District Judge, the appeal may be preferred to
the Additional District Judge.
(3) The High
Court may, by notification, direct that appeals lying to the District Judge
from all or any of the decrees or orders passed in any original suit by any
Civil Judge shall be referred to such other Civil Judge as may be mentioned in
the notification, and the appeals shall thereupon be preferred accordingly, and
the Court of such Civil Judge shall be deemed to be a District Court for the
purposes of all appeals so preferred.
CHAPTER
IV
SUPPLEMENTAL
PROVISIONS
19. Continuance of powers of officers.— Whenever any person holding an office in the
service of the State who has been invested with any powers under this Ordinance
throughout any local area is transferred or posted at any subsequent time to an
equal or higher office of the same nature within a like local area, he shall,
unless the High Court otherwise directs or has otherwise directed, exercise the
same powers in the local area to which he is so transferred or posted.
20. Provisions regarding petition-writers.— The High Court, in consultation with the
Board of Revenue, [21][21][Punjab], may make rules consistent with this
Ordinance and any other enactment for the time being in force,—
(a) declaring what persons shall be permitted to
act as petition-writers in Courts;
(b) regulating the issue of
licences to such persons, the conduct of business by them and the scale of fees
to be charged by them; and
(c) determining the authority
by which breaches of such rules shall be investigated and the penalties which
may be imposed.
21. Temporary
vacancy of office of District Judge.— In the event of the death of a District Judge or
of his being prevented from performing his duties by illness or other cause,
the Additional District Judge, if any, or in the absence of the Additional
District Judge from the district, the senior most of the Civil Judges at the
headquarters, shall assume charge of the district without interruption of his
ordinary jurisdiction, and while so incharge shall perform the duties of the
District Judge with respect to the filing of suits and appeals, receiving
pleadings, execution of processes and the like, and shall be designated
Additional District Judge or Civil Judge, as the case may be, incharge of the
district and shall continue in such charge until the office of the District
Judge has been resumed or assumed by an officer duly appointed thereto.
22. Delegation
of powers of the District Judge.— Any District Judge, leaving the headquarters and
proceeding on duty to any place within his jurisdiction or in the event of his
absence from the district on leave may delegate to the Additional District
Judge or in the absence of an Additional District Judge to the senior most of
the Civil Judges at the headquarters, the powers of performing any of the
duties enumerated in section 21 that may be emergent; and such officer shall be
designated Additional District Judge or Civil Judge, as the case may be, in
charge of the district.
23. Temporary vacancy of office of Civil Judge.— In the event of the death, suspension or
temporary absence of any Civil Judge, the District Judge, may empower any other
Civil Judge of the District to perform the duties of the Judge of the vacated
Civil Court, either at the place of such Court or of his own Court, but in
every such case the register and records of the two Courts shall be kept
separately.
24. Civil Courts
having unlimited jurisdiction regarding value to try suits against the State
and its servants in their official capacity.— (1) No Civil Court not having jurisdiction in
original suits without limit as regards value and no Court of the Small Causes
shall receive, entertain or register any suit in which Pakistan or any of its
provinces or any public officer as defined in clause (17) of section 2 of the
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908[22][22], in his official capacity is a party [23][23][:]
(2) In every such case the plaintiff shall be
referred to the Court of the Civil Judge having jurisdiction in original suits
without limit as regard value and such suit shall be instituted only in the
Court of such Civil Judge and shall be heard at the headquarters of the
district.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be deemed
to apply to a suit relating to the affairs of a Government Railway or to any
suit merely because a public officer is a party thereto, in his capacity as—
(a) a member of a local authority; or
(b) curator, guardian, manager or representative of
a private person or estate in virtue of an appointment, delegation, declaration
of exercise of powers under-
25. List of holidays.— (1) Subject to such general orders as may be
made by Government, the High Court shall prepare a list of days to be observed
in each year as holidays in the Civil Courts.
(2) Every such list shall be published in the
official Gazette.
26. Seal of the Court.— Every Court shall have and use, as the
occasion may arise, a circular seal two inches in diameter bearing round its
circumference the title of the Court in English and Urdu script and in the
centre a device and impression of a crescent moon with the horns pointing
upwards surmounted by a star, and the said seal shall be delivered to and kept
in the custody of the presiding officer of the Court.
27. Power to frame rules.— (1) The High Court may, with the approval of
Government, frame rules for the purposes of carrying into effect the provisions
of this Ordinance.
(2) In
particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, the
High Court may, with the approval of Government, frame rules for all or any of
the following purposes, namely:-
(a) the supervision of all Civil Courts and their
visitation and inspection;
(b) the exercise by the
District Judges of the general control vested in them over the Civil Courts in
their respective districts;
(c) the places and times for the holding of Civil
Courts;
(d) the fees to be charged for processes issued by
the Civil Courts or by any officer of any such Courts;
(e) the fees payable in any suit or proceeding in
any Civil Court by any party in respect of the fees of the pleader of any other
party; and
(f) the manner in which the proceedings of the
Civil Courts shall be kept and recorded, the manner in which the paper books
for the hearing of appeal shall be prepared and the granting of copies.
28. Repeal and savings.— (1) The enactments specified in the Schedule
are hereby repealed to the extent mentioned in the fourth column thereof.
(2) The districts and headquarters of
districts existing for the purposes of civil justice when this Ordinance comes
into force shall be deemed to have been made and determined under this
Ordinance.
(3) On the commencement of this Ordinance, if
any suit or appeal is pending in the High Court or any other Civil Court, which
under this Ordinance is to be tried or heard by some other Court, such suit or
appeal shall stand transferred to the Court competent under this Ordinance to
try or hear the same.
(4) (i) The
District Judges;
(ii) the Additional Judges,
the Joint Judges and the Assistant Judges; and
(iii) the First Class Subordinate Judges, the Second
Class Subordinate Judges, the Subordinate Judges, the Joint Subordinate Judges
and Civil Judges;
appointed under any of the enactments
repealed under sub-section (1) shall, on the commencement of this Ordinance,
become District Judges, Additional District Judges and Civil Judges respectively
under this Ordinance, and exercise powers and jurisdiction as such.
(5) Notwithstanding the repeal of the
enactments mentioned in the Schedule, everything done, action taken,
obligation, liability, penalty or punishment incurred, inquiry or proceeding
commenced, officer appointed or person authorised, jurisdiction or power
conferred, rule made and order issued under any of the provisions of the said
enactments shall, if not inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance,
continue in force and, so far as may be, be deemed to have been respectively
done, taken, incurred, commenced, appointed, authorised, conferred, made or
issued under this Ordinance.
THE SCHEDULE
[ENACTMENTS
REPEALED]
(See section
28)
Year
|
No.
|
Short title
|
Extent of repeal
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
1918
|
VI
|
The
Punajb Courts Act, 1918.
|
The
whole
|
1918
|
VI
|
The
Punajb Courts Act, 1918, as applicable to former Bahawalpur State.
|
The
whole
|
1926
|
VII
|
The
Sind Courts Act, 1926.
|
The
whole
|
1926
|
VII
|
The
Sind Courts Act, 1926, as applicable to the District of Karachi.
|
The
whole,except section 8.
|
1926
|
VII
|
The
Sind Courts Act, 1926, as applicable to the District of Khairpur.
|
The
whole
|
1931
|
I
|
The
North-West Frontier Province Courts Regulation, 1930.
|
The
whole
|
1939
|
VII
|
The
British Baluchistan Courts Regulation, 1939.
|
The
whole
|
1952
|
X
|
The
North-West Frontier Province Courts Act, 1952.
|
The
whole
|
1952
|
Dastoor-ul-Amal
Diwani, Riasat Kalat.
|
The
whole
|
|
1959
|
IV
|
The
Sind Acts (Extension to Khairpur District) Ordinance, 1959.
|
Entry
4 of the First Schedule.
|
1956
|
II
|
The
Karachi Courts Order, 1956.
|
The
whole, except Clause 4(2).
|
[1][1]This Ordinance was
promulgated by the Governor of West Pakistan on 10th November, 1961; published
in the West Pakistan Gazette (Extraordinary), dated 8th January, 1962, pages
87-96; saved and given permanent effect by Article 225 of the Constitution of
the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (1962).
[2][2]Substituted by the Punjab
Laws (Adaptation) Order, 1974 (Pb. A.O. 1 of 1974), for “West Pakistan”.
[8][8]The words “Dera Ismail Khan,
Hyderabad, Khairpur, Peshawar, Quetta and the District of Karachi”, deleted by
the Punjab Laws (Adaptation) Order, 1974 (Pb. A.O. 1 of 1974).
[11][11]Substituted by the Punjab
Laws (Adaptation) Order, 1974 (Pb. A.O. 1 of 1974), for “Government of West
Pakistan”.
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