The\nCode of Civil Procedure, 1908 contains a nimiety of procedures which involves\nfiling different kinds of documents with the Court for the conduct of a civil\nsuit. The Code also mentions the various rights available to the litigants\nwhile litigating a civil suit. The right to lodge a caveat petition is one such\nright which is provided under section 148A of the Code of Civil Procedure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nword \u2018caveat\u2019 has Latin origins and comes from the word \u2018cavere’, which loosely\ntranslates to \u201clet a person beware\u201d<\/em>. It generally refers to caution or\nwarning. In law, a caveat is a precautionary measure taken by a party to\nprevent any court proceeding from being heard, an action being taken, order or\njudgement being passed without the presence of the person giving notice of the\ncaveat or without giving such person an opportunity of being heard. The person\nwho files a caveat shall receive formal notice of initiating any legal\nproceeding or action involving such person or their interest in a court of law.\nThe person who files the caveat petition is called the caveator, and the person\nwho has already instituted a suit or might institute and file an application in\nsuch a suit is called a caveatee. By filing a caveat petition, a caveator\nclaims her right to appear before the Court and to be heard on matters\naffecting her interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Section\n148A was inserted by the Law Commission in the Code of Civil Procedure in 1976\nthrough an amendment act in pursuance of following the principle of natural\njustice and Audi Alteram Partem, which means \u201cboth sides be heard\u201d. It was\nintroduced with the aim of bringing an end to litigation by reducing the\nmultiplicity of court proceedings. The case of Nirmal Chand versus\nGirindra Narayan, 1978 <\/em><\/strong>defines a caveat as a warning granted by a\nperson to the Court of law that no judgement or order shall be passed without\nfurnishing a notice to the caveator or without giving an opportunity to the\ncaveator to be heard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nprime object of a caveat petition is to protect the interests of the caveator\nagainst whom an order or judgement might be passed based on an application\nfiled or which is expected to be filed by a party to the suit or any proceeding\nwhich has already been instituted or is yet to be instituted. The caveator need\nnot be a necessary party to the suit, but an order might still affect her\ninterests. It ensures that the Court does not pass any ex-parte orders that\nadversely affect the caveator’s interests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A\ncaveat petition can be filed in any suits, appeals, or other proceedings before\na civil court as per the Code of Civil Procedure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After\nthe caveat application has been filed, if the other party files any application\nin a suit or proceeding, the Court is mandated to serve a notice of the\napplication to the caveator. The Court is also required to send the caveat\npetition to the applicant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n