Specific Relief Act (SRA)
The Specific Relief (Amendment) Act, 2018: A Complete Note
The 2018 Amendment is the most important change to the law of specific relief since the Act of 1963. Its object was to improve the ease of doing business by making the enforcement of contracts more certain and time-bound. It did so by turning specific performance from a discretionary exception into a general statutory remedy, adding a self-help route of substituted performance, and creating a special regime for infrastructure projects. This note sets out the object, every change section by section, and the vexed question of whether the amendment applies prospectively or retrospectively.
Figure: The object of the amendment, the changes section by section, and the question of prospective or retrospective application
1. The Object
Why the amendment was made ▪ Ease of doing business. The amendment aimed to make the enforcement of contracts more certain, quicker and less dependent on judicial discretion. ▪ A change of character. Specific performance became the rule, which the court shall enforce, and damages the alternative, reversing the earlier order in which damages were the norm and performance the exception. |
2. The Changes, Section by Section
Provision | What the amendment did |
|---|---|
Section 6 | Retained the summary possessory remedy, with drafting changes |
Section 10 | Substituted: specific performance shall be enforced, subject to Sections 11(2), 14 and 16; the adequacy-of-damages test removed |
Section 11 | Amended to align with the new scheme |
Section 14 | Substituted: four categories that cannot be enforced; the adequacy filter and the three-year supervision limb removed |
Section 14A | Inserted: power of the court to engage experts on technical issues |
Section 15 | Amended: a new LLP or company after amalgamation may obtain performance |
Section 16 | Amended: substituted performance added as a bar; 'aver and prove' changed to 'prove' in Section 16(c) |
Section 20 | Substituted: substituted performance of contract, a self-help remedy after a thirty-day notice |
Sections 20A to 20C | Inserted: the infrastructure regime, the injunction bar, special courts and the twelve-month timeline |
Sections 21 and 25 | Amended to fit the recast scheme |
Section 41(ha) | Inserted: no injunction that would delay an infrastructure project |
The Schedule | Inserted: the categories of infrastructure project |
3. Discretionary Remedy to Statutory Remedy
- Before. Specific performance was granted only where damages were inadequate, and even then in the court's discretion under the old Section 20.
- After. The court shall enforce the contract, subject only to Sections 11(2), 14 and 16; the wide discretion is gone and the adequacy test with it.
4. Prospective or Retrospective? The Open Question
Katta Sujatha Reddy v Siddamsetty Infra Projects (2022) 14 SCC 1 The Supreme Court held that the 2018 Amendment applies prospectively, and does not govern contracts executed before the amendment came into force on 1 October 2018. So a pre-2018 transaction is decided under the old, discretionary law, and a post-2018 transaction under the new, mandatory law. |
A caution to verify. This decision was carried to a review, and the point has been actively litigated since. The exact current position, including the outcome of any review, should be checked against the latest Supreme Court ruling before the note is published or relied on. The safe general statement, and the one an examiner will expect, is that the amendment is treated as prospective, so that pre-2018 contracts remain governed by the old law.
5. Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What was the object of the 2018 Amendment?
A. To improve the ease of doing business by making the enforcement of contracts more certain and time-bound, chiefly by making specific performance a general remedy rather than a discretionary exception.
Q. What is the single most important change made in 2018?
A. The substitution of Section 10: specific performance shall now be enforced by the court, subject only to Sections 11(2), 14 and 16, so it is the rule and not the exception.
Q. Does the 2018 Amendment apply to contracts made before it came into force?
A. In Katta Sujatha Reddy v Siddamsetty Infra Projects the Supreme Court held it applies prospectively, so pre-2018 contracts remain under the old law. The point was carried to review, so the latest ruling should be verified.
Q. What new remedies did the amendment introduce?
A. Substituted performance of a contract under Section 20, the court's power to engage experts under Section 14A, and the infrastructure regime under Sections 20A to 20C with the new Schedule.
SEO METADATA URL slug: specific-relief-amendment-act-2018-complete-note SEO title: The Specific Relief (Amendment) Act, 2018: A Complete Note Meta description: A complete note on the Specific Relief (Amendment) Act 2018: its object, the changes to Sections 10, 14, 15, 16, 20, 21 and 25, the new Sections 14A and 20A to 20C, and the prospective application held in Katta Sujatha Reddy. Keywords: Specific Relief Amendment Act 2018, Section 10 substituted, substituted performance, infrastructure Sections 20A 20C, Katta Sujatha Reddy prospective application, 2018 amendment changes |