---
title: "Supreme Court: Courts Cannot Relax Time Limit for Filing Written Statement in Commercial Disputes"
date: 2019-03-14
author: "Nidhi Singh"
url: https://www.indialaw.in/blog/civil/supreme-court-courts-cannot-relax-time-limit-for-filing-written-statement-in-commercial-disputes/
---

# Supreme Court: Courts Cannot Relax Time Limit for Filing Written Statement in Commercial Disputes

Posted On - 14 March, 2019 •

By - [Nidhi Singh](https://www.indialaw.in/people/adv-nidhi-singh/ "Posts by Nidhi Singh") and [Rahul Sundaram](https://www.indialaw.in/people/rahul-sundaram/ "Posts by Rahul Sundaram")

[![|](https://www.indialaw.in/wp-content/uploads/img5.jpg)](https://www.indialaw.in/wp-content/uploads/img5.jpg)

The Supreme Court of India in a recent judgment, in *SCG Contracts India Pvt. Ltd. v. K.S. Chamankar Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. & Ors.[**[1]**](#_ftn1),*held that written statement can’t be filed in commercial disputes after 120 days from the date of issue of summons. The Supreme Court was considering legality of the written statement filed by the defendant after the statutory period of 120 days.

**Background**

In the present case, the defendant didn’t file the written statement within 120 days from the date of issue of summons to suit. Instead, it filed an application for rejection of the plaint under Order VII Rule 11 of the Civil Procedure Code 1908 (“CPC”). The learned Single Judge of the Delhi High Court rejected this application and provided an additional time to  the the defendant to file the written statement, beyond the prescribed 120 days. The defendant filed the written statement within this extended time.

The Plaintiff raised objection before the High Court on the ground that filing of written statement after 120 days is barred under Order VIII Rule 10 of the CPC as amended by the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 (“Act”). The High Court rejected this contention and took the written statement on record.

The plaintiff petitioner approached the Supreme Court against this order.

**Judgement**

The Honorable Supreme Court examined the amendments brought to CPC by the Act especially amendments to Order V Rule 1 (1), Order VIII Rules 1 and 10 of the CPC.

Originally, there was no distinction between commercial disputes and other disputes under the CPC. Courts allowed filing of written statement even after the prescribed statutory period of 30 days and the grace period 90 days. The Act brought about certain amendments to CPC, which are exclusively applicable to commercial suits, with the object of laying down certain stringent time line for timely disposal of commercial suits.

After examining the provision of Act, the Supreme Court held that the amendments provide a time period of 30 days from the date of service of summons to file written statement. Courts may extend this time period for reason to be recorded and on payment of cost for another period of 90 days. However, no extension shall be allowed beyond 120 days and on expiry of this period, the defendant shall forfeit the right to file the written statement.

The Supreme Court held that courts have no power to take the written statement on record after the expiry of 120 days. Hence, the ground that pendency of an application to reject the plaint under Order VII Rule 11 is no ground for extension of time line for filing written statement. Similarly, courts cannot resort to its inherent power under CPC to extend the time line

[[1]](#_ftnref1) Civil Appeal No. 1638 Of 2019

[Download PDF](https://www.indialaw.in/blog/civil/supreme-court-courts-cannot-relax-time-limit-for-filing-written-statement-in-commercial-disputes//pdf/)

---

# IndiaLaw LLP — Offices & Contact Details

---

## General Contact

| | |
|---|---|
| **Website** | https://www.indialaw.in |
| **Primary email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Primary phone** | +91 836-9995919 |
| **Contact form** | https://www.indialaw.in/connect/ |
| **Careers (separate channel)** | https://www.indialaw.in/careers/ |


---

## All Offices (9 locations across 8 cities)

### 1. Mumbai — Registered Office & Head Office (Apeejay Chambers)

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | Apeejay Chambers, Ground Floor, Wallace Street, Fort, Mumbai – 400 001 |
| **Phone** | [022-6924-7400](tel:02269247400) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/mumbai/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Arbitration · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Corporate · Banking · Real Estate · IP |
| **Notes** | The HQ. 5 partners based here. Handles PAN-India litigation, arbitration, corporate, banking, IP and real estate practice. Largest team across all offices. |

### 2. Mumbai — Non-Litigation Office (Excelsior, Fort)

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | 4th Floor, New Excelsior Theatre Pvt. Ltd., Amrit Keshav Nayak Marg, Fort, Mumbai – 400 001 |
| **Phone** | [022-697-40500](tel:022-697-40500) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/mumbai/ |
| **Practice focus** | Non-litigation only — consultations, negotiations, transactional work |
| **Notes** | Opened 2024. Litigation and arbitration remain at the Apeejay Chambers head office. |

### 3. Delhi

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | Flat No. 1107 & 1108, Prakashdeep Building, Tolstoy Marg, Connaught Place, New Delhi – 110 001 |
| **Phone** | (general line: +91 836-9995919) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/delhi/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Arbitration · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Corporate · Banking · Real Estate |
| **Notes** | 3 partners based here. Located near the Supreme Court of India, Delhi High Court and other appellate bodies. |

### 4. Kolkata

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | Centre Point Building, Room No. 214, 2nd Floor, Premises No. 21, Hemanta Basu Sarani, Opp. Great Eastern Hotel, P.S. Hare Street, Kolkata – 700 001, West Bengal |
| **Phone** | [+91 33 4813 1001](tel:+913348131001) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/kolkata/ |
| **Practice focus** | Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Commercial & Civil Litigation · Arbitration · Banking Litigation · Real Estate · Labour & Employment · Consumer |
| **Notes** | Advises banks, NBFCs, MSMEs and corporates on transactions and dispute resolution. Works in close coordination with the Mumbai HO. |

### 5. Chennai

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | GF-A, 19 Casa Major Road, Egmore, Chennai – 600 008 |
| **Phone** | (general line: +91 836-9995919) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/chennai/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Real Estate |
| **Notes** | Full-fledged office with experienced legal team. Supported by Mumbai HO. |

### 6. Bengaluru (Bangalore)

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | INDIALAW LLP, No. 7 Chinnaswamy Mudaliar Road, Shivaji Nagar, Bangalore – 560 051 |
| **Phone** | [080-4167-2444](tel:08041672444) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/bengaluru/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Real Estate · Family Laws · Labour |
| **Notes** | Located near Bangalore High Court. Handles corporate, commercial, banking and matrimonial disputes. |

### 7. Hyderabad

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | 403, 4th Floor, Sanatana Ecstasy Building, beside Tanishq Show Room, Himayathnagar, Hyderabad – 500 029, Telangana |
| **Phone** | [040-6666-5166](tel:04066665166) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/hyderabad/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Banking · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Real Estate |
| **Notes** | Particularly well known for complex banking matters and real estate transactions. |

### 8. Cochin (Kochi)

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | Second Floor, Pulikkal Building, K.K. Padmanabhan Road, Ernakulam North – 682 018, Kerala |
| **Phone** | [0484-3583961](tel:04843583961) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/cochin/ |
| **Practice focus** | Litigation · Insolvency & Bankruptcy · Real Estate |
| **Notes** | Commercial disputes, property litigation, financial-claim arbitrations and real estate transactions. |

### 9. Noida (NCR)

| | |
|---|---|
| **Address** | No. 16 & 17, Silver Offices, 17th Floor, Wave One, Sector 18, Noida – 201 301 |
| **Phone** | (general line: +91 836-9995919) |
| **Email** | contact@indialaw.in |
| **Page** | https://www.indialaw.in/noida/ |
| **Practice focus** | Aviation · Insurance · Mergers & Acquisitions · Corporate |
| **Office head** | **Mr. Dinesh Gupta** (joined August 2025 to lead and expand the corporate practice) |
| **Notes** | Newest office. Sector-focused on highly regulated industries serving NCR-based clients. |

---

## Quick-Dial Phone List

| Office | Phone |
|---|---|
| Mumbai HO (Apeejay) | 022-6924-7400 |
| Mumbai Excelsior | 022-697-40500 |
| Kolkata | +91 33 4813 1001 |
| Bengaluru | 080-4167-2444 |
| Hyderabad | 040-6666-5166 |
| Cochin | 0484-3583961 |
| **General / Marketing line** | **+91 836-9995919** |

Delhi, Chennai and Noida route through the general number.

---

## Social Channels

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/indialaw
- X / Twitter: https://twitter.com/Indialawmumbai
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/indialawllp/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/indialawllp

---