Written Statement (Civil Reply)

IN THE [court_name] SUIT NO. [suit_number] IN THE MATTER OF: [plaintiff_name] ... PLAINTIFF VERSUS [defendant_name] [defendant_address] ... DEFENDANT WRITTEN STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE DEFENDANT UNDER ORDER VIII OF THE CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, 1908 MOST RESPECTFULLY SHOWETH: PRELIMINARY OBJECTIONS [preliminary_objections] A. That the suit as framed is not maintainable in law or on facts, and is liable to be dismissed in limine. B. That the Plaintiff has no cause of action against the Defendant, and the plaint is liable to be rejected under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. C. That the Plaintiff has approached this Hon'ble Court with unclean hands, having suppressed and misstated material facts. PARAGRAPH-WISE REPLY The Defendant deals with the averments in the plaint as follows. Save as expressly and specifically admitted herein, EVERY averment, allegation and contention in the plaint is DENIED as if the same were set out and traversed seriatim. [paragraph_wise_reply] THE DEFENDANT'S VERSION OF THE FACTS [defendant_version] ADDITIONAL PLEAS 1. That the Defendant has at all material times acted lawfully, in good faith, and in accordance with the obligations, if any, owed to the Plaintiff. 2. That the Plaintiff has suffered no loss or injury attributable to the Defendant, and the claim for damages is speculative, exaggerated and unsupported. 3. That the reliefs claimed by the Plaintiff are misconceived and not sustainable in law. 4. That the suit is barred by limitation under the Limitation Act, 1963. 5. That the Defendant craves leave of this Hon'ble Court to raise such further and other pleas as may be advised at the time of hearing. COUNTER-CLAIM [counter_claim] PRAYER It is therefore most respectfully prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to: (a) Dismiss the suit filed by the Plaintiff with exemplary costs throughout; (b) Grant the relief sought in the counter-claim, if any, set out above; and (c) Pass such other and further orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem just and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case. AND FOR THIS ACT OF KINDNESS, THE DEFENDANT SHALL AS IN DUTY BOUND EVER PRAY. Place: ______________ Date: [filing_date] [defendant_name] DEFENDANT Through ______________________ ADVOCATE FOR THE DEFENDANT VERIFICATION I, [defendant_name], the Defendant above named, do hereby verify that the contents of the preliminary objections and paragraphs of this written statement are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information and belief, and that nothing material has been concealed therefrom. Verified at ______________ on this [filing_date]. [defendant_name] DEFENDANT IMPORTANT — TIME LIMIT Under Order VIII Rule 1 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, a written statement must ordinarily be filed within thirty days of service of summons, extendable by the court for recorded reasons up to a maximum of ninety days. In commercial disputes governed by the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, the outer limit of one hundred and twenty days is mandatory, and the right to file is forfeited thereafter. Do not allow this period to lapse. An averment in the plaint that is not specifically denied is liable to be treated as admitted under Order VIII Rule 5. Deny each material allegation specifically.