Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction
Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 deals with relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction. A final judgment, order or decree of a competent Court, in the exercise of probate, matrimonial, admiralty or insolvency jurisdiction, which confers upon or takes away from any person any legal character, or which declares any person to be entitled to any such character, or to be entitled to any spe The Act came into force on 01 Sep 1872. Repealed by section 170 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (47 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
A final judgment, order or decree of a competent Court, in the exercise of probate, matrimonial, admiralty or insolvency jurisdiction, which confers upon or takes away from any person any legal character, or which declares any person to be entitled to any such character, or to be entitled to any specific thing, not as against any specified person but absolutely, is relevant when the existence of any such legal character, or the title of any such person to any such thing, is relevant. Such judgment, order or decree is conclusive proof –– that any legal character which it confers accrued at the time when such judgment, order or decree came into operation; that any legal character, to which it declares any such person to be entitled, accrued to that person at the time when such judgment [order or decree] declares it to have accrued to that person; that any legal character which it takes away from any such person ceased at the time from which such judgment, [order or decree] declared that it had ceased or should cease; and that anything to which it declares any person to be so entitled was the property of that person at the time from which such judgment, [order or decree] declares that it had been or should be his property.
Section 41, The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Act 1 of 1872).
Now in the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam
BSA 35 Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction Text carried over almost unchanged 99%
Measured by comparing the text of the two provisions, not taken from an official correspondence table — there is no machine-readable one. See both texts side by side before relying on it.
Both regimes are live. The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force. We never redirect one to the other.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Vishnu Dutt Sharma vs Daya Sapra
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The principle of res judicata and the concept of abuse of process of law do not operate to bar continuation of a civil suit merely because the accused has been acquitted in a related criminal proceeding arising from the same transaction. A judgment in a criminal proceeding, even if it results in acquittal, does not have binding effect on a parallel civil suit as the standards of proof, burden of proof, causes of action, and legal issues are fundamentally different between criminal and civil proceedings. The applicability of reverse burden provisions and statutory presumptions in criminal law must be strictly interpreted and applied with due regard to the presumption of innocence and constitutional rights of the accused, whereas in civil proceedings no such strict compliance is required. A creditor has the right to pursue both criminal and civil remedies concurrently, and the continuation of such proceedings is neither barred by law nor constitutes an abuse of process, provided the civil suit was not barred at the time of its filing.
On this section: Provides when judgments between the same parties are conclusive proof. The court noted that this section does not make criminal judgments conclusive in civil proceedings.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… A judgment is a formal expression of conclusive adjudication of the rights and liabilities of the parties. The judgment may operate in <span id="page-32-0"></span><sup>20</sup> (2000) 4 SCC 368 two ways, in rem or in personam . Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 on the question of relevancy of judgments in the context of conclusiveness of a judgment, order or decree provides: > " 41. Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction.— A final judgment, order or decree of a competent Court, in the exercise of probate, …
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… A judgment is a formal expression of conclusive adjudication of the rights and liabilities of the parties. The judgment may operate in <span id="page-32-0"></span><sup>20</sup> (2000) 4 SCC 368 two ways, in rem or in personam . Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 on the question of relevancy of judgments in the context of conclusiveness of a judgment, order or decree provides: > " 41. Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction.— A final judgment, order or decree of a competent Court, in the exercise of probate, …
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… A judgment is a formal expression of conclusive adjudication of the rights and liabilities of the parties. The judgment may operate in <span id="page-32-0"></span><sup>20</sup> (2000) 4 SCC 368 two ways, in rem or in personam . Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 on the question of relevancy of judgments in the context of conclusiveness of a judgment, order or decree provides: > " 41. Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction.— A final judgment, order or decree of a competent Court, in the exercise of probate, …
Questions about Section 41
What have the courts held on Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act?
Vishnu Dutt Sharma vs Daya Sapra (05 May 2009) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Provides when judgments between the same parties are conclusive proof. The court noted that this section does not make criminal judgments conclusive in civil proceedings.
How do I find court cases under Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: IEA 41, section 41 IEA, section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Vishnu Dutt Sharma vs Daya Sapra (05 May 2009).
What should I read with Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, and has it changed?
2 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BSA 35 (Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act come into force?
Section 41 of the Indian Evidence Act, cited as IEA 41, came into force on 01 Sep 1872, having been enacted on 15 Mar 1872. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 32. Cases in which statement of relevant fact by person who is dead or cannot be found, etc., is relevant1207 words
- 14. Facts showing existence of state of mind, or of body of bodily feeling1080 words
- 92. Exclusion of evidence of oral agreement809 words
- 8. Motive, preparation and previous or subsequent conduct773 words
- 65B. Admissibility of electronic records743 words
- 3. Interpretation-clause667 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Recovered from the consolidated text published by India Code (item e51341fa-7528-4327-9a57-5d194e16db6f). This page is not a substitute for legal advice.