The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ruled that courts cannot allow plaintiffs to withdraw civil cases and file fresh suits without recording clear legal reasons for granting such permission.
Justice Raheel Kamran issued the judgment while deciding a constitutional petition challenging the decisions of a civil court and an additional district judge in Wazirabad.
The case involved Muhammad Arshad, who had filed a civil suit seeking a declaration, possession of property and a permanent injunction against the petitioner and another party.
According to court records, the plaintiff sought permission to withdraw the case after issues had already been framed and the matter had reached the evidence stage. He argued that the original plaint contained legal defects and had been prepared on incorrect facts.
The trial court accepted the request, allowed the plaintiff to withdraw the suit with permission to file a fresh case, and imposed a cost of Rs3,000.
However, the Lahore High Court held that granting permission for a fresh suit is a significant judicial decision because it removes the legal bar against filing another case based on the same cause of action.
Justice Raheel Kamran observed that such permission must be supported by a reasoned judicial order explaining the legal grounds that justify allowing a fresh suit.
The court emphasised that judges must carefully examine whether sufficient legal reasons exist before permitting the withdrawal of a case with liberty to institute a new one, ensuring that the process is not misused and that judicial discretion is exercised transparently.
The ruling reinforces the principle that courts must provide detailed legal reasoning whenever they allow litigants to withdraw a civil suit and pursue fresh proceedings on the same matter.
