Specific Relief Act (SRA)
Application to Certain Awards and Testamentary Directions: Section 25
The whole of Chapter II is written about contracts. Section 25, the last section of the chapter, extends its reach to two obligations that are not, strictly, contracts but are close enough in nature to be treated alike: the terms of certain awards, and a direction in a will or codicil to execute a particular settlement. This note explains what Section 25 applies to, how the contract rules are carried over, and how it reads after the 2018 Amendment.
Figure: Section 25: the provisions of Chapter II applied to certain awards and to testamentary directions to execute a settlement
1. The Provision
Section 25 ▪ The rule. The provisions of Chapter II as to contracts shall apply, so far as they can be made applicable, to awards to which the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 does not apply, and to directions in a will or codicil to execute a particular settlement. ▪ The effect. The law of specific performance of contracts is extended to these two obligations, as if they were contractual. |
2. The Two Obligations Covered
What Section 25 reaches ▪ Certain awards. Awards to which the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 does not apply. Where such an award directs a party to do or not to do something, the obligation may be specifically enforced on the principles of Chapter II. ▪ Testamentary directions to execute a settlement. A direction in a will or codicil that a particular settlement be executed. The person bound may be compelled to execute the settlement, as if under a contract to do so. |
3. How the Contract Rules Are Carried Over
- So far as they can be applied. The contract provisions apply with the necessary changes; requirements that make no sense for an award or a will, such as mutual consideration, are simply not carried over.
- What is enforced. The specific obligation the award or the will creates, treated for the purpose of the remedy like a contractual duty.
- The reason. An award and a testamentary direction to settle property are close in nature to a promise to do a defined act; the same principles of specific enforcement fit them.
4. Section 25 After the 2018 Amendment
Section 25 itself was not substantively rewritten by the 2018 Amendment. But because it borrows the provisions of Chapter II, the changes the amendment made to that chapter carry through: the general shift from a discretionary remedy to specific performance as the rule, subject to the bars in Sections 11(2), 14 and 16, informs the enforcement of these obligations too, so far as those provisions can be applied.
5. Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What does Section 25 apply the contract rules to?
A. To awards to which the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 does not apply, and to directions in a will or codicil to execute a particular settlement.
Q. Can an award be specifically enforced under the Act?
A. Yes, where the award is one to which the Arbitration and Conciliation Act does not apply; Section 25 applies the Chapter II provisions to the obligations it imposes, so far as they can be applied.
Q. Can a testamentary direction to make a settlement be enforced?
A. Yes. Section 25 applies the specific-performance provisions to a direction in a will or codicil to execute a particular settlement, so the person bound may be compelled to execute it.
Q. Was Section 25 changed by the 2018 Amendment?
A. The section itself was not substantively rewritten, but because it borrows Chapter II, the amended principles of that chapter carry through to the obligations it covers.
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