Someone owes you money, the promises have stopped and now the calls go unanswered. What follows is the route that actually recovers it, and the two mistakes that sink most otherwise sound claims: waiting far too long before acting, and having nothing in writing to prove the debt.
First, fix your evidence
A court decides on documents, not on how certain you are. Before anything else, assemble:
- Whatever created the debt — an agreement, a purchase order, an invoice, a chat message agreeing the amount.
- Proof you actually parted with the money: bank transfers are worth far more than cash, which is why lending in cash is the single most expensive habit in these disputes.
- Any written acknowledgement of the balance. A message saying “I will pay the remaining amount next month” is powerful, both as an admission and because it restarts limitation.
- Your running account or ledger, and any part payments received.
Send a proper legal notice
A notice is not a formality. It fixes the amount claimed, puts the debtor on record, and starts interest and costs running in your favour. Send it through a method that proves delivery, state the sum, state the basis, and give a short, definite deadline. Keep the dispatch receipt.
A surprising share of debts are paid at this stage, simply because the debtor realises the matter has stopped being informal.
Choose the right suit
Summary suit under Order XXXVII CPC. Where the claim rests on a negotiable instrument — a cheque or promissory note — or on a written contract for a fixed sum of money, you can use the summary procedure. The defendant must obtain leave to defend before they are allowed to contest, and must show a real defence to get it. This is dramatically faster than ordinary litigation and is the route to aim for.
Ordinary recovery suit. Where the debt is not documented in a form that supports summary procedure, you file an ordinary suit for recovery. Slower, and it is decided on evidence, which is why the documents you gathered at step one matter so much.
Two things to get right in the plaint: the correct court (pecuniary and territorial jurisdiction), and the right defendant. Suing an individual when the obligation was a company's, or a company when a partner gave the personal guarantee, wastes a year.
Watch limitation, closely
The Limitation Act, 1908 gives short windows for money claims — commonly three years, running from the date the money became due, not from the day you gave up asking. Time can be extended by a written acknowledgement or a part payment, and by little else. A claim that is otherwise unanswerable is simply dismissed if it is time-barred, and no amount of merit rescues it.
Ask for interim protection
If there is a real risk the debtor will dispose of assets or leave, ask for it early. The CPC allows attachment before judgment and other interim orders where the conditions are met. A decree against someone who has already sold everything is a piece of paper.
Plan for execution before you file
This is the step everyone skips. Winning gives you a decree; execution proceedings under Order XXI convert it into money, by attaching bank accounts, salary, or property, or by sale of attached assets. Execution is only as good as your knowledge of what the debtor owns, so start identifying assets while you are still drafting.
Consider settling on paper
A negotiated settlement recorded as a consent decree is often better than a contested win: it is enforceable immediately, it takes months rather than years, and it removes the risk of appeal. Do not accept an informal promise where a consent decree is available.
General information about Pakistani civil procedure, not advice on your claim. The right suit, the right forum and the limitation position all depend on your documents. Take advice from an advocate before filing — and do it early, because delay is the one problem no lawyer can fix.