Equity & SRA

Lecture 9
 Specific performance of Contracts

• Sections 12 to 20 of Specific Relief Act, 1877

discuss issues related to specific performance of
contracts.
• Specific performance is an equitable remedy in the
law of contract, whereby a court issues an order
requiring a party to perform a specific act, such as
to complete performance of the contract.
• Specific performance is commonly used in the
form of injunctive relief concerning confidential
information or real property.
 Purpose of Specific Relief
• Purpose of this remedy is to serve the ends of
justice.
• It consists of both, positive & negative
stipulation
• It means the defendant is either asked to do
or refrain from the performance of promised
Act.
• Negative stipulations are called injuctions
 Order for Specific performance
• According to Pollock :
“Order for Specific Performance falls into two
parts:
i. The first can be of declaratory nature
ii. The second contains consequential
directions”
 Enforceability

• Section 12 of Specific Relief Act, 1877 mentions that Court

has discretion to enforce specific performance in the
following cases:

• When the act being done is in part or whole, being done in

pursuance of performance in a trust. Under this sub-
section, trustees are bound to perform what they agreed in
the contracts otherwise Courts have discretion to intervene.
• When there is no way to understand and know certainly
what damage is actually done by non-performance of the
contract.
 Enforceability

• When monetary compensation due to non-performance

of the contract is not enough and does not amounts to
adequate relief.
• For example, if A desires to sell a house to B for 10
million rupees, it is necessary that a decree is delivered
from the Court to perform it as it is, i.e. A is to deliver
the house to B on the gigantic amount they agreed upon
in the contract.
• Furthermore, a situation can arise when monetary
compensation because of non-performance of contract
simply cannot be given.
 Case Law
• ABDUL AZIZ NOORISTANI----Petitioner
• Versus
• SHAMS-UL-MULK and 15 others----Respondents (2020 C
L C 23)
• Plaintiff had established execution of sale agreement
through evidence of scribe and one of the marginal
witnesses. Money trail had also been proved through
confidence inspiring evidence/Bank channel as well.
Scribe of the deed was to be considered as witness of
alleged transaction in the present case as he knew the
seller earlier.
 Case Law
• Decision:
Plaintiff had established agreement to sell
through two witnesses and had offered a
plausible justification for non-production of one
of the marginal witnesses being close relative of
defendant. Agreement to sell had been
established under the circumstances.
Subject Matter Partially Ceases to Exist
• Sec 13 of Specific Relief Act elaborates what
effect partial cessation of subject matter will
have on specific performance of a contract.
• This section mention that unless the contract
is about performance of an act which is
impossible, partial cessation of subject matter
will not make performance of contract wholly
impossible.
 Specific Performance when Part Unperformed is Small

• There can be a situation as mentioned in illustration of

section 14 of Specific Relief Act, 1877 when a very
small portion of a property belongs to any person other
than the one who contracted to sell it, is denied to be
sold by the stranger who owns it.
• Under such circumstances, Court can order on suit of
either party to award compensation for this small part
as it does not mainly effects enjoyment of such
property which is to be sold under the contract.
Compensation can be granted under these
circumstances.
 Specific Performance when Part
Unperformed is Large
• Contrary to the last section, this section discusses
when part unperformed under a contract is a
considerable part of the whole. In such a situation,
section 15 tells us that such party underperforming is
not entitled to get specific performance’s decree from
the Court.
• But on the suit and acceptance of other party, Court
can ask underperforming party to fulfill whatever part
of obligation it can perform under the contract
provided that the plaintiff relinquishes all of it’s claim
for further performance.
 Specific Performance of Independent Part
of Contract
• Section 16 of Specific Relief Act, 1877 asserts that when a part of
a contract can be specifically performed independently and
without prejudice to any other separate part of the same
contract which cannot be specifically performed, the Court can
allow specific performance of the first part of such contract on
independent footing.

• Like if it was mentioned in the contract that both selling and

registration of a car will be done between parties and the party
buying the car refuses to register it after it is sold, here
registration is an independent part of the contract which needs
to be decided separately from part of contract relating to selling.
 Special Circumstances
• It is important to mention here that such performance
pertains to special circumstances and cannot be seen
as a practice commonly exercised by the Courts
granting decree of specific performance on such
distinct grounds.

• Specific performance of part of a contract can be done

only in situations related to sections 14, 15 and 16 of
Specific Relief Act, 1877 and not otherwise under any
circumstances as per section 17 of SRA 1877.