English Court Summary Judgment vs Section 13 CPC
The dispute arose out of the JV company of the appellant foreign company and the respondent Indian company in terms of Share Purchase & Cooperation Agreement dated 12.5.1995 governed by English Law and jurisdiction of English Courts. It was agreed that judgment of English Court in case of enforcement in India would be subject to Section 13 CPC
On 7.2.2006, the English Court passed the summary judgment after rejecting the application of the respondent for leave to defend.
In this context, section 13(2) CPC assumes importance that the foreign judgment is not conclusive where it has not been given on the “merits of the case”.
In our considered view, triable issues were disclosed. The respondent sought leave to defend, adduced contemporaneous documents in support of its defence. It was incumbent upon the English Court to refrain from disposing of the case by way of summary judgment. The grant of summary judgment resulted in premature adjudication of disputed questions of fact and effectively denied the respondent a meaningful opportunity to establish its case through oral evidence and cross-examination.
Judgment dated 21.4.2026 of the Supreme Court in SLP (Civil) No.4774 of 2023 of Messer Griesheim Gmbh (now called Air Liquide Deutschland Gmbh) vs. Goyal MG Cases Private Limited
