THE CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, *Ss, 36, 39. An Act to consolidate and amend the Laws relating to the WHEREAS it is expedient to consolidate and amend the Preamble. is hereby enacted as follows: Short title. Commencement. PRELIMINARY. M. 1. (388) This Act may be cited as "The Code of Civil Procedure," and it shall come into force on the first day of October, 1877. This section and section 3 extend to the whole of British India. (a) The other sections extend to the whole of British India Local extent. except the Scheduled Districts as defined in Act No. XIV. of 1874. Interpretation-clause. the subject or context "chapter." "district," "District Court." M. 2. (386) In this Act, unless there be something repugnant in chapter" means a chapter of this Code: "district" means the local limits of the jurisdiction of a principal civil court (b) of original jurisdiction (hereinafter called a District Court), and includes the local limits of the ordinary original civil jurisdiction of a High Court: every Court of a grade inferior to that of a District Court and every Court of Small (c) Causes shall, for the purposes of this Code, be deemed to be subordinate to the High Court and the District Court: (d) *" pleader" means every person entitled to appear and plead for another in Court, and in"pleader." cludes an advocate, a vakil, and an attorney of a High Court: PRELIMINARY CHAPTER. A verbis legis non est recedendum. THIS preliminary chapter is devoted to the title and extent of the Code: it repeals several Acts which will be found enumerated in the First Schedule. Certain words are defined, while others are left open to general interpretation. Some of these words will be governed by the General Clauses Act; others again, such as "suit," "miscellaneous proceeding," and "cause of action," will not fail to trouble many minds. A very important change has been made in the constitution of Courts of Small Causes by which they are subordi nated to the District and High Courts. Certain enactments in Oudh, the Panjab, Central Provinces, and Burmah; certain local laws affecting landlord and tenant and partition questions; certain Courts as the Military Courts of Request, &c., and certain Jurisdictions peculiar to Bombay are declared not to be affected by the Code. The procedure in a limited form will guide Small Cause Courts in the Mofussil, and may be extended to similar Courts in the Presidency Towns. Suits instituted and appeals presented before October 1st, 1877, will not be affected in any procedure prior to decree. The reader will find all sections which are intended to govern Mofussil Small Cause Courts marked on the side with the capital letter M, while the figures within brackets refer to the corresponding sections in Act VIII. of 1859, as amended by subsequent enactments. (a) Territories for the time being (c) The High Court can now call on behalf of another to address the (High) Court in the exercise of its ordinary original civil jurisdiction or to examine witnesses, except when the Court shall have in the exercise of the power conferred by its charter authorized him so to do, or to interfere with the power of the High Court to make rules concerning advocates, vakils, and attorneys. #Ss. 198-204 571-577 +Ss. 205-217 579-583 $S5 562 SS. 1 n. a. IS. 14. C.f, s. 3 I. 1872. "Government Pleader." "Government Pleader" (e) includes also any officer appointed by the local Government to perform all or any of the functions expressly imposed by this Code on the Government Pleader: "Collector" means every officer performing the duties of a Collector of land-revenue: "Collector." *"judgment" means the statement given by the Judge as the grounds of the order or decree by which a suit or other judi "judgment." cial proceeding is determined: "decree." +"decree" means the formal order of the Court in which the result of the decision of the suit or other judicial proceeding is embodied. An order on appealt, remanding a suit for re-trial, is not within this definition: "Judge." "Judge" means the presiding officer of a Court: "judgment-debtor" means any person against whom a decree or order has been made: "judgment-debtor." "decree-holder" means any person in whose favour a decree or any order capable of execution has been made, and includes "decree-holder." any person to whom such decree or order is transferred: "written." "written" includes printed and lithographed, and" writing" in cludes print and lithography: "signed." signed" includes "marked" when the person making the mark is unable to write his name : foreign Court" means a Court situate beyond the limits of British India§ and not having foreign Court." authority in British India, nor established by the Governor-General in Council: "foreign judgment" means the judgment of a foreign Court: "foreign judgment." "public officer" means a person falling under any of the following descriptions (namely):--every "public officer." Judge; every covenanted servant of Her Majesty; every commissioned officer in the military or naval forces of Her Majesty while serving under Government; every officer of a Court of Justice (f) whose duty it is, as such officer, to investigate or report on any matter of law or fact, or to make, authenticate, or keep any T document, or to take charge or dispose of any property or to execute any (e) For the duties, remuneration, &c., of a Government pleader see (1) Chap. XXVII. of this Act. (2) In North-Western Provinces, see S. B. R, E. C., Vol. II. head VI. (3) In the Panjab see Barkley's Directions to Revenue Officers, App. XII. p. 333. (4) In Bombay. See Naime's Revenue Hand book Chap. XXIX. (f) This definition of a public ser vant is taken with some omissions from the Indian Penal Code, and in that Code a Court of Justice is defined as a Judge, who is empowered by law to act judicially alone, or a body of Judges which is empowered by law to act as a body, when such Judge or body of Judges is acting judicially, *S. 1 n. a. XIV. XIX. judicial process, or to administer any oath, or to interpret, or to preserve order in the Court, and every person specially authorized by a Court of Justice to perform any of such duties; every person who holds any office by virtue of which he is empowered to place or keep any person in confinement; every officer of Government whose duty it is, as such officer, to prevent offences, to give information of offences, to bring offenders to justice, or to protect the public health, safety or convenience; every officer whose duty it is, as such officer, to take, receive, keep, or expend any property on behalf of Government, or to make any survey, assessment, or contract on behalf of Government, or to execute any revenue process, or to investigate, or to report on any matter affecting the pecuniary interests of Government, or to make, authenticate, or keep any document relating to the pecuniary interests of Government, or to prevent the infraction of any law for the protection of the pecuniary interests of Government, and every officer in the service or pay of Government, or remunerated by fees or commission for the performance of any public duty. And in any part of British India in which this Code operates, "Government" includes the Government of India (g) as well "Government." as the local Government (h). Enactments repealed. Acts. column of the same schedule. Nothing herein contained shall affect the procedure prior M. 4. (385) Save Burmah. as provided in the second paragraph The Central Provinces Courts Act, 1865: |