LexThe Kerala Civil Courts Act, 1957 (President's Act No.1 of 1957)
Kerala · state statute
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THE KERALA CIVIL COURTS ACT, 1957
(Prestdent's Act No. I of 1951)
CONTENTS
PART I
Preltmtnary
Short title, extent and commencement
PART II
Establtshment and Constttutton of Subordtnate
Cwtl Courts
2. Classes of Subordmate Civil Courts.
3. Establishment of District Courts.
4. Appointment of Additional District Judges.
5 Estabhshment of Subordinate Judge's Courts and
Munsiff's Courts.
6. Principal and Additional Subordmate Judge and
Munsiff.
i. Court's location
8. Seal of Court
PART III
:J Local Limits of jurisdiction of Subordinate Judge's
Courts.
10 Local hmits of jurisdiction of Munsiff's Courts.
11. Junsdiction of District Court and Subordinate
Judge's Court In original smts.
12 Appeals from decrees and orders of District Court or
Subordinate Judge's Court.
13 Appellate junsdiction of District Court and Subordi-
nate Judge's Court
14. Power to require witness or party to make oath or
affirmation.
15 Judges not to try suits m which they are mterested;
16.
17.
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19.
20.
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nor to try appeals from decrees passed by them in
other capacities.
PART IV
M tscellaneo us
Temporary discharge of duties of District Judge.
District Judge to control Civil Courts of District
Investiture of District or Subordinate Judge or
Munsiff with small cause junsdiction
Adjournment of Civil Court.
Duties of mimsterial officers
Amendment of Acts XI of 1089 and XV of 1~50.
Repeal and savmgs.
THE KERALA.CIVIL.COURTS.ACT, 1957
No. 1 of 1957
Enacted by the President in the Seventh Year of the
Republic of India
An Act to consoltdate and amend the law relatmg to civil
courts tn the State of Kerala, subordmate to the "
Htgh Court of Kerala
ln exercise of the powers conferred by section 3 of the -Q
Kerala State Legislature (Delegation of Powers) Act, Hi56
(75 of 1956)', the President IS pleased to enact as follows:-
PART I
PRELIMINARY
l. Short tttle, extent and commencement.- (1) This Act may
be called the Kerala CIVil Courts Act, 1957.
(2) · It extends to the whole of the State of Kerala
(3) It shall come mto force on such date as the Govern
ment may, by notification m the Gazette, appomt.
PART II
ESTABLISHMENT AND CONSnTUTION OF SUBORDINATE
CIVIL CouRTs
2 Classes of subordmate civtl courts.-In addition to the
courts established under any other law for the time being in
force, there shall be the followmg classes of civil courts m the
State, namely:-
(I) the court of a District Judge (heremafter referred
to as the District Court);
(u) the court of a Subordinate Judge (heremafter refer
red to as the Subordmate Judge's Court);
(til) the court of a Muns1ff (hereinafter referred to as
the Musiff's Court)
3. Establtshment of Dtstnct Court.- (1) For the purposes
of this Act, the Government may, by notification in the Gazette,
divide the State mto CIVIl districts (hereinafter referred to as
districts) and alter the limits or the number of such districts
(2) The Government shall establish a D1stnct Court for
each dtstrict and a Judge (heremafter called the District Judge)
shall be appomted to such court.
Pubhshcd m th" Gazettt' Extraordmary dated 12-1-1957.
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4. Appomtment of Addthonal Dtstnct Judges.-(!) When
the state of busmess pending before a District Court ~o requires,
one or more Additional District Judges may be appointed to
that court for such period as IS deemed necessary.
(2) An AdditiOnal District Judge shall discharge all or any
of the functwns of the District Judge under this Act m respect
_of all matter~ which the District Judge may ass1gn • to h1m, or
.which under the provisions of sectiOn 7 may be mstltuted before
h1m, and m the discharge of those functions he shall exercise
the same powers as the D1strict Judge.
5. Establtt.hment of Subordmate Judges Courts and
MunstfJ's Courts.-(1) The Government may, m consultation
with the H1gh Court, establish m each d1stnct such number of
Subordmate Judge's Courts and Munsdi's Courts. as ·they deem
necessary.
(2) The Government may, m consultation w1th the High
Court, fix, and from time to time vary, by notification 1n the
Gazette, the number of Subordinate Judges to be appointed for
a Subordinate •Judge's Court or the number of Munsiffs to be
appointed for a Muns1ff's Court
6. Princtpal and Addtttonal Subordmate Judge and Munsiff.
(1) When more than one Subordmate Judge is appointed to
a Subordmate Judge's Court, or more than one Munsiff ,1s
· appointed to a Munsdt's Court, one of the Subordinate Judges
or Munsiffs shall be appomted the Princ1pal Subordmate Judge
or the Pnnc1pal Munsdi and the others Additional Subordmate
Judges or Additional Munsiffs, as the case may be
(2) Each of the Judges or Muns1ffs appointed to a Sub
ordinate Judge's Court or a Muns1ff's Court may exercise all ,or
any of the powers conferred on the court by this Act or .any
o'her law for the time bemg m force.
(3) Subject to the general or ~pec1al order:, of the Distnct
Judge, the Prmc1pal Subordinate Judge or the Princ1pal Mun~tff
may from time to time make such arrangements as he thmks
fit for the distribution of the busme~s of the court among the
various Judges or Mun.>iff::. thereof
7. Court'.> locatwn.-(1) The place or places at whiCh any
court referred to in sechon 2 shall be held, may be fixed, and
may from time to time be altered, by
(a) the Government m the case of a District Court or a
Subordmate Judge's Court, and
(b) the High Court m the case of a Mun:,iff's Court .
(2) The High Court may, with the approval of the Govern
ment, direct by notlficatwn In the Gazette that all or any class
of proceedings arbmg m a spec1fied local area m a district
wh1ch would ordmarlly be mst1tuted m the Dhtrict Court, may
be instituted before an Additional District ·Judge of that court
sitting in a place othe,.r than the place where the D1strict Judge
sits.
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8. Seal of court.-Every court under tlus Act shall use a seal
of such form and dimensions as are for the time bemg pre'>cribed
by the Government.
PART III
JURISDICTION
9. Local limits of 3urisdtction of Subordinate Judge's
Courts -The Government shall fix, and may from time to time
vary, the local hmits of the jurisdiction of any Subordinate
Judge's Court in consultation with the Htgh Court.
10. Local limits of 3urisdiction of Munsiff's Courts.-The
High Court shall fix, and may from time to time vary, the local
hmits of the jurisdiction of any Munsiff's Court.
11. Jurisdiction of Distrct Court and Subordinate Judge's
Court in original suits.- (1) The jurisdiction of a District
Court or a Subordinate Judge's Court extends, subject to the
provisions of the Code of Ctvtl Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), to
all origmal su1ts and proceeding of a ctvtl nature.
(2) The jurisdiction of a Munstff's Court extends to all like
suits and proceedmgs not otherw1se exempted from its cognis
ance of which the amount or value of the subject-matter does
not exceed five thousand rupees.
12. Appeals from decrees and orders of District Court oT
Subordmate Judge's Court -Save as provided in section 13.
regular and spectal appeals shall, when such appeals are allowed
by law, lie from the decrees or orders of a Dtstnct Court or a
Subordmate Judge's Court to the High Court.
13. Appellate Junsdiction of Distsict Court and Subordinate
Judge's Court.-Appeals from the decrees and orders of a
Munsiff's Court and where the amount or value of the subject
matter of the smt does not exceed seven thousand and five
hundred rupees, from the onginal decrees and orders of a Sub
ordinate Judge"s Court sh&ll, when such appeals are allowed by
law, lie to the Distnct Court :
Provided that whenever a Subordmate Judge's Court is
estabhshed in any dbtnct at a place other than the place where
the District Court 1s stat10ned, the Htgh Court may, with the
approval of the Government, dtrect that appeals from the decrees
or orders of Munsiff's Courts w1thm the local hmtts of the juris
diction of such Subordinate Judge's Court be preferred m such
Subordmate Judge's Court:
Provided further that the District Court may remove to
Itself from time to time appeals so preferred and dtspose of them
itsel!: or may, subject to the orders of the High Court, refer any
appeals from the decree~ and orders of Munsiff's Courts prefer
red m the District Court to any Subordmate Judge's Court with
In the distnct
14 Power to require witness or party to make oath or affirma
tion.-Every court under this Act may require a witness or party
to any suit or other proceeding pendmg In such court to make
such oath or affirmation as IS prescribed by the law for the time
being in force.
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15. Judges not to try sutts in whtch they are mterested; nor
to try appeals from decrees passed by them m other capaci~
ties.-(1) No District Judge, Subordinate Judge or Munsiff shall
try any smt, proceedmg or other case to.which he IS a party or
in v.hich he Is personally interested.
(2) No Distnct Judge or Subordinate Judge shall hear any
appeal agamst a decree or order passed by himself.
(3) When any such suit, proceeding, case or appeal as lS
-referred to m ~ub-sectwn (1) or sub-section (2) comes before any
:mch officer, he shall transmit forthwith the record of such suit,
proceedmg, case or appeal, as the case may be, to the court to
which he is immedtately subordm :~te with the report of the cir~
cumstances attendmg the reference.
(4) The !:>uperior court may transfer the suit, proceeding,
case or appeal either to Itself or to any court under 1ts admini5-
tratlve control competent to decide It.
PART IV
MISCELLANEOUS
16 Temporar11 discharge of duties of District Jucige.-In the
event of the death of the DI!:>trict Judge or of his bemg mcapa
Cltated by 1llness or otherwise for the performance of his duties,
or of his ab!:>ence from the statwn m whtch his court IS held, the
senwr Additional District Judge or the Additional District Judge
or the semor Subordmate Judge or the Subordmate Judge, as the
case may be, shall, without mterruptwn to hts ordmary
duties, a~sume charge of the District Judge's office and shall
discharge such of the current duties thereof as are connected wtth
the filing of suits and appeals, the execution of processe!:> and the
like and shall contmue in charge of the office until the same 1s
resumed or assumed by an officer duly appointed thereto.
17. District Judge to control civil courts of district.-Subject
to the other provisions of this Act and to the rule!> for the llme
bemg in force and prescnbed by the Htgh Court m this behalf,
the general control over all the civtl courts under this Act in
any dtstrict is vested m the District Judge.
18. Investiture of District or Subordinate Judge or MunsifJ
with small cause junsdiction.-The Htgh Court may, by notifi
cation in the Gazette, invest wtthm such local hmits as 1t shall
from time to time appoint, any Dtstnct or Subordmate Judge
with the jur1sdtctlon of a Judge of a Court of Small Causes for
the trial of suits cogmsable by such courts up to the amount of
one thousand rupees, and any Muns1ff w1th the same jurisdic·
tion up to the amount of five hundred rupees.
19. Adjournment of civil court.-(1J The H1gh Court may
permit the civtl courts under 1ts control to adjourn from t1me to
t1me for periods not exceeding m the aggregate stxty days in
each year.
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(2) During the adjournment of a ciVil court, the Htgh Court
shall havt> the power t.) make provisional orders m all urgent
matters and for such purpose to receiVe appeah., plamts
and petition!:> whiCh would ordmarily be presented to such civil
court and any such order shall remam m force only until the
matter has been heard and decided by the court having Jurbdic-
tion. •
20. Duties of ministeriaL officers.-The mm1sterial officer., of
a court shall periorm such dut:es as may from i1me to time .be
imposed upon them by the presidmg officer of the court. Q ·
21. Amendment of Acts XI of 1089 and XV of 1950.-(1) In
·the Land 'Acquisition Act, (XI of 1089)-
(a) for the words ''District Court'' wherever they occur,
the word ''court" .shall be substituted ;
(b) 10 Section 3, after clause (c-1), the following clause
shall be inserted, namely:-
'(c-2) The expressiOn "court'' means the DI:;tnct Court
unless the Government have appointed (as they are
hereby empowered to do) a special judiCial officer
within any specified local hm1ts to perform the func
tions of the court under thi3 Act;'.
(2) In the Travancore-Cochin Hmdu 'Religious Institutions
Act, 1950 (XV of 1950), sub-sPction (2) of sectiOn 55 and •sub
section (2) of !:>ectwn 124 shall be omitted; and ~ub-.section (1) of
section 55 and sub-section (1) of section 124 shall be renumber
Jed as section 55 and section 124 respectively .
• 22. Repeal and savzngs.- (1) The Madras Civil Courts Act,
1873 (Madras Act III of 1873), as in force in the Malabar district
referred tom sub-section (2) of section 5.of the States Reorgani
satiOn Act, 1956 (37 of 1956), and the Travancore-Cochin -Civil
.Courts Act;l951 (XXII of 195]), are hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstandmg anyihmg conta10ed 10 sub-section
(1), all courts constituted, appointments made, limits fixed and
jurisdition and powers conferred under any Act hereby repeal
ed shall, so far as may be consistent with th1s Act, be deemed
to have been constituted, made, fixed •and conferred under this
.Act.
(3) Notwith<;tandmg anything conta10ed in sub-section (1)
or sub-section (2), all DistriCt JudgE's, Subordmate Judges and
District Munsiffs, who immediately before the commencement
.of this Act, were empowered by or under the Travancore-Cochm
Civil Courts Act, 1951, to hear and determme certam classes
of suits as small causes shall cont10ue to exercise such power
in•re5pect of such classes of slllts m accordance with the pro·
.visions·of the srud C1vil Courts Act as if such provisiOns were
t:not repealed.
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