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Supreme Court of India· 21 April 2025

Under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, does an appeal lie against a consent decree?

MANJUNATH TIRAKAPPA MALAGI AND ANR v. GURUSIDDAPPA TIRAKAPPA MALAGI (DEAD THROUGH LRS)
2025 INSC 517
Coram: Sudhanshu Dhulia; Ahsanuddin Amanullah
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Answer

No. Section 96(3) contains a specific bar, so no appeal is maintainable against a consent decree, and none is maintainable against the order of the court recording or refusing to record a compromise in view of the deletion of clause (m) of Rule 1 of Order 43. A consent decree operates as an estoppel and is valid and binding unless it is set aside by the court which passed it, because it is nothing but a contract between parties superimposed with the seal of approval of the court.

Headnote

Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Or. 23 rr. 3, 3A — Or. 2 r. 2 — s.96(3) — Compromise decree — Consent decree — Recall application — Res judicata — Joint family property — Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Or. 23 r. 3A — Compromise decree — Bar to a fresh suit — Held: No suit lies to set aside a decree on the ground that the compromise on which the decree is based was not lawful; the only remedy is a recall application before the court which recorded the compromise. (¶11, 12) Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Or. 23 r. 3 — s.96(3) — Consent decree — Estoppel — Held further: Before passing a decree on a compromise the Court must satisfy itself that the suit has been adjusted by a lawful compromise; a consent decree then operates as an estoppel and is valid and binding until set aside by that court. (¶10, 12) Joint family property — Purchase in the name of a member from family funds — Held further: Property purchased in the name of a member out of family funds is joint family property, and a son whose interest was represented by his father in that partition cannot afterwards call the compromise an act of fraud. (¶7, 8) Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — Or. 2 r. 2 — Res judicata — Re-agitating a partitioned claim — Held further: A later suit which omits properties that were part of the earlier suit is barred under Order 2 Rule 2, and a claim to property already partitioned cannot be re-agitated; appeal dismissed. (¶14, 15)

In the Court's own words
Paragraph 10Let us discuss the law governing a consent decree. Order 23 Rule 3 of CPC, which deals with compromise decree, reads as follows:
Paragraph 12The only remedy against a compromise decree is to file a recall application. This Court in Pushpa Devi Bhagat v. Rajinder Singh, (2006) 5 SCC 566 summed up the position of law as follows:
Acts & Sections
Or.23 r.3A Code of Civil Procedure, 1908Or.23 r.3 Code of Civil Procedure, 1908s.96(3) Code of Civil Procedure, 1908Or.2 r.2 Code of Civil Procedure, 1908Or.43 r.1 Code of Civil Procedure, 1908Indian Contract Act, 1872

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Also decided in this judgment
Under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, can a compromise decree be challenged by filing a fresh suit?Under Order 23 Rule 3 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, what must a court satisfy itself of before passing a compromise decree?Is property bought in the name of one member of a joint family necessarily his separate property?Under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, when is a later partition suit barred by Order 2 Rule 2 and by res judicata?
Plain-language answer prepared by the LexStreak Editorial Desk — verify against the judgment. Source: Supreme Court of India. Corrections