Extent and Applicability

This Doctrine of Res Judicata applies to civil Suits, execution proceedings, arbitration
proceedings, taxation matters, industrial adjudication, writ petitions, administrative orders,
interim orders, criminal proceedings, etc.
Res Judicata and Collateral Estoppel
Res Judicata, limits both the claims and the Issues that may be raised in subsequent
proceedings:
Claim Preclusion is the principle once a cause of action has been litigated, it may not be
relitigated.
• A losing or winning plaintiff is barred from re-Suing a winning defendant on the same
cause of action.
Issue Preclusion: Once an issue of a fact has been determined in a preceding between two
parties, the parties may not relitigate that issue even in a preceding on a different course of
action.
For Example, if you have filed 2 cases. If in one case more than one issue is involved.so if on
one issue court has given the judgement and subsequently one more case is filed. So, on the
same issue no another judgement would be given. The Judgement of the first case issue will
be the same for another similar issue of case 2. The same issue will not be judged by court
twice. If the same matter come in front of the court the Judge can say Res Judicata and can
withdraw it. Also, the defendant can take the defence of Res Judicata.
Suppose you are driving a car, and you have caused with an accident, you sued the person
who has been hit by car and the insurance company. So, if the court has said you were
drunk at the time of driving the car the same will be in the judgement for the similar issue of
another case. The court will adopt the Statement from the previous case

Res judicata and Stare decisis

Res judicata and Stare decisis are members of the same family. Both relate to adjudication
of matters. Both deal with final determination of contested questions and have the binding
effect in future litigation. Both the doctrines are the result of decisions of a competent court
of law and based on public policy.
There is , however, distinction between the two. Whereas res judicata is based upon
conclusiveness of judgement and adjudication of prior findings, stare decisis rests on legal
principles. 
• For making Res Judicata binding, several factors must be met up with:
• identity in the thing at suit; 
• identity of the cause at suit; 
• identity of the parties to the action; 
 • identity in the designation of the parties involved; 
• whether the judgment was final; 
• whether the parties were given full and fair opportunity to be heard on the issue.
• Res Judicata as a concept under Civil Procedure Code 1908
'Res Judicata' means a case or suit involving a particular issue between two or more parties
already decided by a court. Thereafter, if either of the parties approaches the same court for
the adjudication of the same issue, the suit will be struck by the law of 'res judicata'. Section
11 of Code of Civil Procedure deals with this concept.
 It enacts that once a matter is finally decided by a competent court; no party can be
permitted to reopen it in a subsequent litigation
• The pre-requisites which are necessary for Res Judicata are:
1) There must be a final judgment;
2) The judgment must be on the merits;
3) The claims must be the same in the first and second suits;
4) The parties in the second action must be the same as those in the first, or have
been
represented by a party to the prior action.

Conclusion
The Doctrine of Res Judicata can be understood as something which restrains the either
party to move the clock back during the pendency of the proceedings. The extend of Res
Judicata is very-very wide and it includes a lot of things which even includes Public Interest
Litigations. This doctrine is applicable even outside the Code of Civil Procedure and covers a
lot of areas which are related to the society and people. The scope and the extend has
widened with the passage of time and the Supreme Court has elongated the areas with its
judgments.