Specific Relief Act, 1963
Specific performance of contracts, recovery of property, substituted performance, rectification and cancellation of instruments, declaratory decrees and injunctions under Indian civil law.
Purpose of the Specific Relief Act
The Act defines and regulates certain forms of specific civil relief. Section 4 states that specific relief is granted for enforcing individual civil rights and not merely for enforcing penal laws. Depending on the facts and the statutory conditions, relief may include recovery of possession, specific performance of contracts, substituted performance, rectification or cancellation of instruments, rescission, declarations and injunctions.
Section 1: Short title, extent and commencement
(1) This Act may be called the Specific Relief Act, 1963.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It came into force on 1 March 1964 by Central Government notification.
Important changes made in 2018
The Specific Relief (Amendment) Act, 2018 materially changed the law relating to contractual remedies. Among the important changes reflected in the current statute are:
Section 10: specific performance is now framed as a remedy that shall be enforced, subject to the express statutory exceptions and bars.
Section 14: identifies contracts that cannot be specifically enforced.
Section 14A: permits the court to engage experts where expert opinion is necessary to assist it on a specific issue.
Section 20: introduces substituted performance of contracts, subject to the statutory procedure.
Sections 20A-20C: contain special provisions concerning contracts relating to infrastructure projects, designation of Special Courts and expeditious disposal of suits.
Specific Relief Act, 1963: Part and chapter-wise sections
Part I - Preliminary
Part II - Specific Relief
Chapter I - Recovering Possession of Property
Chapter II - Specific Performance of Contracts
- Sections 9-12 - Defences and specific performance
- Section 13 - Rights of purchaser or lessee against person with no title or imperfect title
- Sections 14, 14A, 15 and 16 - Non-enforceable contracts, experts and persons entitled to relief
- Sections 17-19 - Contracts involving imperfect title and relief against parties
- Sections 20, 20A, 20B and 20C - Substituted performance, infrastructure projects and Special Courts
- Sections 21-25 - Compensation and other relief connected with specific performance
Chapter III - Rectification of Instruments
Chapter IV - Rescission of Contracts
Chapter V - Cancellation of Instruments
Chapter VI - Declaratory Decrees
Part III - Preventive Relief
Chapter VII - Injunctions Generally
Chapter VIII - Perpetual Injunctions
Specific performance after the 2018 amendment
The present statutory scheme should not be described using the older proposition that specific performance is ordinarily a purely discretionary remedy. Section 10, as substituted in 2018, directs enforcement subject to the limitations expressly contained in the Act. Whether relief can be granted in a particular dispute still depends on the contract, the conduct and eligibility of the parties, statutory bars and the facts proved before the court.
Substituted performance under Section 20
Where a contract is broken, Section 20 permits the aggrieved party, after complying with the statutory notice requirement, to have the contract performed through a third party or by its own agency and recover the expenses and costs actually incurred from the party in breach. Once substituted performance has been obtained in accordance with the section, specific performance cannot thereafter be claimed against the party in breach, although compensation may remain available where legally recoverable.
Injunctions and declaratory relief
The Act also governs declaratory decrees and preventive relief. Temporary injunctions are regulated by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, while perpetual and mandatory injunctions are governed by the provisions of the Specific Relief Act. Section 41 specifies circumstances in which an injunction must be refused.