Maharashtra act 014 of 1869 : The Maharashtra Civil Courts Act

¹[1. Short title and extent.- (1)This Act may be called ²[ The Maharashtra Civil Courts Act].

[Repeal of enactments.] Rep. by Act XIV of 1870.

The ¹[ ²[State] Government] may from time to time, by a notification in the ³[Official Gazette], alter ⁴[the limits of existing zillas] (which shall hereafter be called districts) and create new districts for the purposes of this Act.

The ¹[ ²[State] Government] may also from time to time, by notification in the ³[Official Gazette], alter the position of the sadr station in any district, and fix the position of the sadr station in any new district.

There shall be in each district a District Court presided over by a Judge to be called the District Judge ¹[***]. ²[** * * * * *]

The District Judge shall ordinarily hold the District Court at the sadr station in his district, but may, with the previous sanction of the High Court, hold it elsewhere within the district.

The District Court shall be the Principal Court of original civil jurisdiction in the district, within the meaning of the ¹[Code of Civil Procedure.]

Except as provided in sections 16,17 and 26 the District Court shall be the Court of Appeal from all decrees and orders passed by the subordinate Courts from which an appeal lies under any law for the time being in force.

The District Judge shall have general control over all the Civil Courts and their establishments within the district, and it shall be his duty to inspect, or to cause one of his assistants to inspect, the proceedings of all the Courts subordinate to him, and to give such directions with respect to matters not provided for by law as he may think necessary.

The District Judge shall obey all writs, orders or processes issued to him by the High Court, and shall make such returns or reports thereto under his signature and the seal of the Court as the exigencies of the case require.

The District Judge shall use a circular seal, two inches in diameter, which shall bear thereon ¹[the Asoka Capital Motif], with the following inscription in English and the principal language of the district :-

¹[12A. Power to appoint District Judge or ²[Additional District Judge] in one district to be ³[Joint district Judge] in another district.- The ⁴[State] Government may appoint the District Judge or the ⁵[Additional District Judge] in any district to be also a ⁶[Joint District Judge] in another district. Such ⁷[Joint District Judge] may hold his Court and transact civil business at such place or places in either district as he may deem fit.

13. Enactments applied to ¹[Joint District Judges, Joint District Judges] seal.- All Regulations and Acts now or hereafter in force and applying to a District Judge shall be deemed to apply also to the ²[Joint District Judge] and the seal of the ³[Joint District Judge] shall be the same as is used by the District Judge.

15. Situation of ¹[Additional District Judges] court.- An ²[Additional District Judge] shall ordinarily hold his Court at the same place as the District Judge, but he may hold his Court elsewhere within the district, whenever the District Judge shall, with the previous sanction of the High Court, direct him so to do.

16. Original Jurisdiction of ¹[Additional District Judges.].- The District Judge may refer to any ²[Additional District Judge] subordinate to him ³[any original suits and proceedings of a civil nature], ⁴[applications or references under special Acts,] and miscellaneous applications ⁵*.

¹[17. Appellate jurisdiction of ²[Additional District Judge].- An ³[Additional District Judge] shall have jurisdiction to try such appeals from the decrees and orders of the subordinate Courts as would lie to the District Judge and as may be referred by him to the ⁴[Additional District Judge].

18. [Continuance of ¹[Additional District Judges] appellate jurisdiction.] Deleted by Bom. XCIV of 1958, s. 6.

19. Power to invest ¹[Additional District Judge] with powers of district Judge.- The ²[ ³[State] Government] may, by notification in the ⁴[Official Gazette], invest an ⁵[Additional District Judge] with all or any of powers of a District Judge within a particular Part of a district, and may, by like notification, from time to time determine and alter the limits of such part. The jurisdiction of an ⁶[Additional District Judge] so invested shall protanto exclude the jurisdiction of the District Judge from within the said limits. Every ⁷[Additional District Judge] so invested shall ordinarily hold his Court at such place within the local limits of his jurisdiction as may be determined by the ⁸[ ⁹[State] Government], and may, with the previous sanction of the High Court hold it at any other place within such limits.

20. ¹[Additional District Judge] to use seal of District Judge.- Every ²[Additional District Judge] shall use the seal of the District Judge to whom he is ³[Additional District Judge].

22. Appointment of ¹[Civil Judges].- The Judges of such Subordinate Courts shall be appointed by the

¹[22A. Power to fix local limits of Jurisdiction of ²[Civil Judges].- The ³[ ⁴[State] Government] may, by notification in the Official Gazette, fix, and, by a like notification, from time to time, alter the local limits of the ordinary jurisdiction of the ⁵[Civil Judges].

The ¹[Civil Judges] shall hold their Courts at such place or places as the ²[ ³[State] Government] may from time to time appoint within the local limits of their respective jurisdiction :

24. Classes of ¹[Civil Judges].- The ²[Civil Judges] shall be of two classes.

25. Special Jurisdiction of ¹[Civil Judge (Senior Divisions)].- A ²[Civil Judge (Senior Division)] in addition to his ordinary jurisdiction, shall exercise a special jurisdiction in respect of such suits and proceedings of a civil nature, ³[* * * ]as may arise within the local jurisdiction of the Courts in the district presided over by ⁴[Civil Judge (Junior Division)] ⁵[and wherein the subject-matter exceeds the pecuniary jurisdiction of the ⁶[Civil Judge (Junior Division)] as defined by section 24.]

In all suits decided by a ¹[Civil Judge] ²[* * * *] of which the amount or value of the subject-matter exceeds ³[one crore rupees] the appeal from his decision shall be direct to the High Court.

27. Appellate jurisdiction of ¹[Civil Judge (Senior Division)] or Judge of Court of Small Causes.-

¹[28. Power to invest Civil Judges with small causes powers.- (1) The High Court may invest any Civil Judge with the jurisdiction of a Court of Small Causes for the trial of suits cognizable by such Courts upto such amount as it may deem proper, not exceeding in the case of a Civil Judge (Senior Division) ²[twelve thousand rupees] and in the case of a Civil Judge (Junior Division) ³[six thousand rupees].

¹[28A. Power to invest ²[Civil Judges] with jurisdiction under certain Acts.- (1) The High Court may by general or special order invest any ³[Civil Judge] within such local limits and subject to such pecuniary limitation as may be prescribed in such order, with all or any of the powers of a District Judge or a District Court as the case may be, under the Indian Succession Act, 1865(X of 1865), ⁴[the Probate and Administration Act, 1881 (V of 1881)], or paragraph 3 of Schedule III to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908(V of 1908).

¹[28B. Transfer of pending suits and appeals.- On the commencement of the Bombay Civil Courts (Amendment) Act, 2011 (Mah. XLIV of 2011),-

¹[28C. Transfer of pending appeals.- On the commencement of the Maharashtra Civil Courts (Amendment) Act, 2015(Mah. XXII of 2015), all appeals in which the amount or value of the subject matter does not exceed one crore rupees and pending before the High Court immediately before such commencement, shall stand transferred to the concerned District Court and such District Court may deal with such appeal from the stage which was reached before such transfer or from any earlier stage or de-novo as such court may deem fit :

29. Seal of ¹[Civil Judge].- Each ²[Civil Judge] shall use a seal one inch and-a-half in diameter, bearing ³[the Asoka Capital Motif] with the following inscription in English and the principal language of the district:-

[First Subordinate Judges; Pending proceedings.] Rep. Act XII of 1876.

[First Subordinate Judges; Pending proceedings.] Rep. Act XII of 1876.

¹[32. Governments suits.- (1) No subordinate Court other than the Court of ²[Civil Judge (Senior Division)] and no court of small causes shall receive or register any suit in which ³[the Crown] or any officer of the ⁴[Government] in his official capacity is a party.

[Commission of inquiry into alleged misconduct.] Omitted by the Adaptation of Indian Laws Order in Council.

[Suspension of Subordinate Judges by High Court ; By District Judge Saving power of Government to suspend or dismiss.] Omitted by the Adaptation of Indian Laws Order in Council.

¹[35. Temporary vacancy in office of District Judge.- In the event of the death of the District Judge or of his absence from his district on leave or of his becoming incapable of acting, the first in rank of the ²[Joint District Judge] in the district, or in the absence of any ³[Joint District Judge] the first in rank of the ⁴[Additional District Judge] in the district, or in the absence of any ⁵[Joint District Judge] and ⁶[Additional District Judge] the first in rank of the Civil Judges in the district, shall assume charge of the District Court without interruption to his ordinary jurisdiction, and while so in charge, shall perform the duties of a District Judge with respect to the filing of suits and appeals, receiving pleadings, execution processes, return of writs and the like and shall also dispose off any urgent suit, appeals and other proceedings (including any applications or references under any special Acts) which are or may be filed or pending before the District Judge. The Judge performing such duties and exercising such powers shall be designated ⁷[Joint District Judge], ⁸[Additional Judge] or Civil Judge, as the case may be, in charge of the district, and shall continue in such charge until the office of the District Judge may be resumed or assumed by an officer duly appointed thereto.]

Any District Judge leaving the said station and proceeding on duty to any place within his district may ¹[where on ²[Joint District Judge] is available] delegate to an ³[Additional District Judge], or in the absence of an ⁴[Additional District Judge] to ⁵[Civil Judge] at the said station, the power of performing such of the duties enumerated in section 35 as may be emergent; and such officer shall be designated, ⁶[Additional District Judge] or ⁷[Civil Judge], as the case may be, in charge of the said station.

In the event of the death, suspension or temporary absence of any ¹[Civil Judge], the District Judge may empower the Judge of any Subordinate Court of the same district to perform the duties of the Judge of the vacated Subordinate Court, either at the place of such court or his own Court; but in every such case the registers and records of the two Courts shall be kept distinct.

[Appointment etc. of ministerial officers] Omitted by the Adaptation of Indian Laws Order in Council.

The duties of ¹[the ministerial officers of the Civil Courts] shall be regulated by such rules as the High Court may from time to time prescribe.

¹[There may be appointed to any Civil Court under this Act] a clerk of the Court, who, in addition to such duties as may from time be prescribed by the High Court, may receive and register plaints, and shall refer such as he may consider should be refused for the orders of the Judge of the Court, and may sign all processes, an authenticate copies of papers.

[Powers to transfer clerks of the Court or ministerial officer.] Omitted by the Adaptation of Indian Laws Order in Council.

The proceedings of each Civil Court shall be kept and recorded according to such rules as the High Court may from time to time prescribe. The High Court shall also lay down rules under which copies of papers may be granted.

¹[41A. Licensed petition writers.- (1) The High Court may, from time to time, make rules consistent with this Act and any other enactment for the time being in force-

The High Court shall from time to time, with the sanction of the ¹[ ²[State] Government], prescribe and regulate the fees to be taken for any process issued by any Court the constitution of which is declared by this Act, or by an officer of such Court.

The District and Subordinate Courts shall sit from day to day except on Sundays, ¹[* * * *]and such other days as may be sanctioned for each or every district by the High Court.