Section 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC): The Doctrine of Res Judicata Explained with Real Examples
In law, once a dispute has been decided by a competent court, it should not be reopened or tried again. Justice requires finality , not repetition. This principle forms the core of Section 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 , which lays down the rule of Res Judicata — a Latin term meaning “a matter already judged.” This section ensures that no person is harassed twice for the same issue and that judicial time is not wasted revisiting settled questions. What Section 11 CPC States “No Court shall try any suit or issue in which the matter directly and substantially in issue has been directly and substantially in issue in a former suit between the same parties, or between parties under whom they or any of them claim, litigating under the same title, in a Court competent to try such subsequent suit or the suit in which such issue has been subsequently raised, and has been heard and finally decided by such Court.” In Simple Terms Section 11 CPC means that once a m...