The Goa Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007

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The Goa Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007 
 
The Goa Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007 (Goa Act 2 of 2007) 
[17-3-2007] published in the Official Gazette, Series I No. 50 (Extraordinary No.3) 
dated 21-3-2007 and came into force w.e.f. 01-06-2007. 
 
Arrangement of Sections 
 
1 Short title, extent and commencement 
2 Definitions 
3 Declaration of a person as a vexatious litigant 
4 Leave of Court necessary for vexatious litigant 
to institute or continue any civil or criminal 
proceedings 
5 Proceedings instituted or continued without 
leave to be dismissed 
6 Savings 
 
GOVERNMENT OF GOA 
Department of Law & Judiciary 
Legal Affairs Division 
__ 
Notification 
7/4/2007-LA 
 
The Goa Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007 (Goa Act 2 of 2007), 
which hasbeen passed by the Legislative Assembly of Goa on 25 -1-2007 and 
assented to by theGovernor of Goa on 17 -3-2007, is hereby published for general 
information of the public. 
 
Sharad G. Marathe, Joint Secretary (Law). 
 
Porvorim, 21st March, 2007. 
______ 
 
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The Goa Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007 
 
1(Goa Act 2 of 2007) [17-3-2007] 
AN 
ACT 
to prevent the institution or continuance of vexatious proceedings in Courts. 
 
BE it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Goa in the Fifty-
SeventhYear of the Republic of India as follows:— 
 
1. Short title, extent and commencement.— (1) This Act may be called the Goa 
Vexatious Litigation (Prevention) Act, 2007. 
(2) It shall extend to the whole of the State of Goa. 
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Government may, by notification in 
the Official Gazette, appoint. 
 
2. Definitions.— In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 
(a) “Government” means the Government of Goa; 
(b) “Notification” means a notification published in the Official Gazette; 
(c) “Official Gazette” means the Official Gazette of the Government. 
 
3. Declaration of a person as a vexatious litigant.— (1) Every application for 
declaring a person as a vexatious litigant, may be filed, either by,— 
(a) the Advocate General; or 
(b) the person against whom another person has instituted or conducted 
proceedings, 
civil or criminal. 
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(2) The application referred to in sub-section (1) shall set forth in detail the ground 
or 
grounds on which the application fo r declaring a person as a vexatious litigant is 
based. 
(3) If, on receipt of an application under sub-section (1), the High Court is satisfied 
that the person referred to in the application has habitually and without any 
reasonable 
ground instituted vexatious proceedings, civil or criminal, in any Court or Courts, 
whether against the same person or against different persons, the High Court may, 
after 
hearing that person or giving him an opportunity of being heard, declare that 
person to bea vexatious litigant. 
(4) In the case of an application filed under clause (b) of sub-section (1), the High 
Court may, if it so desires, also hear the views of the Advocate General on the 
application. 
 
4. Leave of Court necessary for vexatious litigant to i nstitute or continue any 
civil or criminal proceedings.— (1) If the High Court declares any person to be a 
vexatious 
litigant under section 3 of this Act, then, the High Court shall also order that— 
(a) no proceedings, civil or criminal, shall be instituted by the said person in 
the High Court or any other Court subordinate to the High Court; and— 
(b) no proceedings, civil or criminal, if already instituted by the said person 
in the  High Court or any other Court subordinate to the High Court, shall  be 
continued by him, without obtaining leave of the Court: 
 
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Provided that if such proceedings are proposed to be instituted or continued 
by the vexatious litigant in the High Court, then, the leave of the High Court shall 
be obtained and in the case of pr oceedings in any other Court subordinate to the 
High Court, the leave of the District and Sessions Judge shall be obtained. 
 
(2) Leave shall not be granted unless the High Court or the District and Sessions 
Judge, as the case may be, is satisfied that the proceedings are not an abuse of the 
process of the Court and that there is prima facie ground in the proceedings 
proposed to be  instituted or continued by the person declared to be a vexatious 
litigant. 
(3) No appeal shall lie against any order refusing leave for the institution or 
continuance of any proceedings by the person who is declared to be vexatious 
litigant under section 3 of this Act: 
Provided that nothing in this sub -section shall apply to any appeal which may 
lie to or any proceedings before the Supreme Court. 
(4) If it appears to the High Court that the person against whom an application is 
made under sub -section (1) of section 3, is unable, on account of poverty, to 
engage a pleader, the High Court may engage a pleader to appear for him. 
Explanation.— For the purpose of this section, “pleader” has the same meaning as 
in clause (15) of section 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908). 
(5) A copy of every order made under sub -section (1) of section 4 directing any 
person to obtain leave before instituting or continuing proceedings shall be 
published in the Official Gazette and may also be published in such other manner 
as the High Court may think fit. 
 
 
 
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5. Proceedings instituted or continued without leave to be dismissed.— Any 
proceedings instituted or continued in any Court by a person against whom an 
order under sub-section (1) of section 4 has been made, without obtaining the leave 
referred to in that section, shall be dismissed by the Court: 
    Provided that, this sectio n shall not apply to any proceedings instituted for the 
purpose of obtaining such leave. 
6. Savings. — The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in 
derogations of the provisions of any other law for the time being in force for 
prevention of vexatious  proceedings or other abuse of legal process, or which 
require consent, sanction or  approval in any form of any other authority for the 
institution or continuance of any proceedings. 
 
Secretariat,            U. V. BAKRE, 
Porvorim-Goa.        Secretary to the Govt. of Goa, 
Dated: 21-3-2007.              Law Department (Legal Affairs) 

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