The Limitation Act, 1908 prescribes the period within which each kind of suit, appeal and application must be brought. More meritorious claims are lost to it than to any argument on the merits, and almost always because the claimant spent the period negotiating.
Section 3: the court's own duty
Section 3 provides that every suit instituted after the prescribed period shall be dismissed, although limitation has not been set up as a defence.
That wording matters. Limitation is not like other defences, which are waived if not pleaded. The court is obliged to apply it whether or not the defendant raises it, and an appellate court can take the point for the first time. There is no agreement between the parties that can revive a barred claim, and no undertaking by a defendant not to take the point that binds the court.
The periods that come up most
The Schedule to the Act contains over a hundred and eighty articles, but a handful account for most disputes:
- Suit on a contract - three years, generally from the date the contract was broken.
- Recovery of money lent - three years, from the date of the loan or, where repayable on demand, from the date of demand.
- Price of goods sold - three years.
- Specific performance of a contract - three years, from the date fixed for performance, or where none is fixed, from when the plaintiff has notice that performance is refused.
- Declaration - six years in the general residuary article, though the applicable article depends on what is being declared.
- Possession based on title - twelve years, from the date the possession of the defendant becomes adverse.
- Compensation for tort - generally one to three years depending on the article.
- Execution of a decree - three years from the date of the decree or the last step taken in aid of execution.
- Appeal to the District Court - thirty days; to the High Court - ninety days.
Section 9 states the principle that once time has begun to run, no subsequent disability or inability stops it.
When time starts
This is where the real arguments are, and it is usually more favourable than clients expect.
- Section 18 - fraud. Where the claimant has been kept from knowledge of their right by the fraud of the defendant, time runs from when the fraud was, or with reasonable diligence could have been, discovered. This is the provision that rescues inheritance and property claims where a mutation was entered secretly.
- Section 19 - acknowledgment. A written acknowledgment of liability signed by the party before the period expires starts a fresh period from the date of the acknowledgment. An email or letter admitting the debt resets the three years - which is why obtaining a written admission is worth doing before the period runs out.
- Section 20 - part payment. Part payment of a debt, or of interest on it, similarly starts a fresh period, provided the fact of payment appears in the handwriting of the person making it.
- Section 14 - proceedings in the wrong forum. Time spent bona fide prosecuting the same matter in a court without jurisdiction is excluded.
- Section 12 excludes the time taken to obtain a certified copy of the decree when computing an appeal period - which materially extends the thirty or ninety days.
Section 5: condonation of delay
Section 5 allows an appeal or application to be admitted after the period where the applicant satisfies the court that there was sufficient cause for not filing in time.
Note the limit: section 5 applies to appeals and applications. It does not apply to suits. A suit filed one day late cannot be saved by explaining the delay - the only routes are the sections that postpone the starting point.
What has been accepted as sufficient cause is fact-specific: serious illness, being misled by counsel, delay in obtaining certified copies. What has not: general negligence, waiting for a settlement, ignorance of the period.
The practical rules
- Identify the starting date at the outset, before doing anything else. It is a question of fact and it decides everything.
- Negotiate against the clock, not instead of it. If the period is close, file and then continue negotiating; a suit can always be withdrawn or compromised.
- Get the acknowledgment in writing. An email from the debtor admitting the amount, before the period expires, buys three more years.
- Do not rely on an assurance that the point will not be taken. The court takes it regardless.
- For appeals, apply for the certified copy immediately - the time taken is excluded, but only if you applied.
This article summarises general principles under the Limitation Act, 1908. The applicable article and starting point depend on the exact nature of the claim, and getting it wrong is fatal. It is not advice on any specific case; consult an advocate early.