General - Practice In The Trial Of Criminal Cases - Rules And Orders Of The Lahore High Court, Lahore

Rules framed by the High Court under section 3 of the Destruction of the Records Act, 1917, with the previous approval of the Provincial Government.

1. All judicial records, books and papers in respect of which the period, hereinafter prescribed, for their preservation has expired shall be destroyed in accordance with the directions contained in the rules next following:

Provided that the Deputy Registrar may order, for reasons to be specified, that any particular paper or the record of any particular case be preserved beyond such period.

2. The destruction of judicial records, books and papers shall be carried out from time to time as may be necessary; and, subject to the general superintendence of the Deputy Registrar, shall be supervised by such officer, hereinafter called the supervising officer, as may be appointed by the Chief Justice and the Judges for the purpose.

3. The destruction of judicial records, books and papers shall be effected by burning. All court-fee stamps affixed to documents which are to be destroyed shall first be removed therefrom and burnt by, or in the presence of, the supervising officer. *01

4. Every judicial record shall, for the purposes of these rules, consist of two parts, namely, (1) part A and (2) part B. Every document admitted to such records shall be marked with the letter A or the letter B according as it belongs to part A or part B and shall be placed with such file and shall without delay be entered in the general index prefixed to each such record.

5. Part A of a civil judicial record shall consist of the following documents, namely,-

(1) The tablak or envelope containing particulars of the case and a brief abstract of the orders in English.

(4) The plaint, together with any schedule annexed thereto, and all documents, whether original or copies, filed with the plaint.

Note: In miscellaneous cases the petition or written application of the party setting the Court in motion will take the place of the plaint.

(6) Applications of parties who are strangers to the suit, with the Court’s order thereon.

(11) All documents or certified copies thereof received by the Court during the trial as evidence between the parties.

(13) Commissions, proceedings held thereunder and reports and examination of Commissioners.

(16) Applications to refer to arbitration, references to arbitration, the award or other final return of the arbitrators, with the proceedings, depositions and documents submitted therewith, and any application to set aside the award, with the Court’s orders thereon.

(18) Orders of arrest or attachment before judgment with all documents relating thereto.

(21) The decree and all documents relating to the preparation or amendment thereof.

(23) Application for the re-admission of a suit dismissed for default or for the re-hearing of a suit decreed ex-parte.

(26) Petitions for substitution, addition or striking out of names of parties or for substitution of the names of the heirs of a deceased plaintiff or defendant, if allowed.

(b) In Appeals and Miscellaneous cases (including Reference and Revision proceedings).

(1) The tablak or cover containing particulars of the case and a brief abstract of orders in English.

(5) Memorandum of objections under Order XLI rule 22 or 26 of the Civil Procedure Code.

(6) The finding on issues referred to the lower court for trial under Order XLI rule 25 of the Civil Procedure Code.

(8) Petitions for substitution, addition or striking out of names of parties or for substitution of the names of the heirs of a deceased appellant or respondent, if allowed.

(9) Depositions of parties or witnesses taken in this Court or by the lower court on remand.

(11) Commissions, proceedings held thereunder and reports and examination of Commissioners.

(16) Applications to refer to arbitration, references to arbitration, the award or other final return of the arbitrators, with the proceedings, depositions and documents, submitted therewith, and any application to set aside the award with the Court’s orders thereon.

(19) The Court’s judgment, translation thereof (if any), or other final order.

(20) The decree and all documents relating to the preparation or amendment thereof.

(21) Application for the re-admission of an appeal, application or petition dismissed for default, or for the re-hearing of an appeal, application or petition decreed ex-parte with final order thereon.

(23) Application for revision under section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.

(25) Reference under Order XLVI rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Code or other law, with the final order.

(26) Three copies of the printed record of civil appeals heard by the High Court.

6. Subject to any direction by the Court to the contrary, part B of a civil judicial record shall consist of all documents in such records as are not indicated in the preceding rule as belonging to part A.

7. Part A of a criminal judicial record shall consist of the following documents, namely,-

(1) The tablak or envelope containing particulars of the case and a brief abstract of the orders in English.

6. Subject to any direction by the Court to the contrary, part B of criminal judicial record shall consist of all documents in such records as are not indicated in the preceding rule as belonging to part A.

9. The following documents belonging to part A of a judicial record shall be preserved permanently, namely, -

(5) One copy of the printed paper book in all cases in which a paper book is printed and in other cases copies of the judgments of the courts below and the memorandum of appeal presented in the High Court.

10. Subject to the provisions of rule 9, the following records shall be preserved for thirty years, namely,-

(2) Part A of all appeals involving title to immovable property as defined in section 3, clause 25 of Act X of 1897.

(3) Part A of all appeals relating to the succession to an office or to establish or set aside an adoption or otherwise determine the status of an individual, and of all appeals relating to trusts or religious endowments.

(4) Part A of proceedings under Guardians and Wards Act VIII of 1890 and Succession Act XXXIX of 1925 and all cases connected with the custody and disposal of intestate property.

(6) Judgments of Supreme Court of Pakistan in appeals preferred from orders of the High Court.

(9) Part A of criminal appeal and reference cases relating to cases decided by the Courts of Session, or by Magistrates empowered under section 30, Criminal Procedure Code, and of all cases coming under Chapters XII and XVII, Pakistan Penal Code, to which section 75 of the Pakistan Penal Code is applicable:

Provided that in the cases referred to in (9), (10) and (11), if the sentence has not been fully executed, the record shall be preserved until the return of the warrant, and shall then be destroyed.

(10) Part A of appeals or reference under Chapter XXXII, Criminal Procedure Code, in which the orders of the courts below have been interfered with.

(12) Records relating to the disposal of immovable property forfeited to Government under section 62, Pakistan Penal Code.

(13) Part A of cases heard, in the exercise of insolvency jurisdiction other than that conferred by Act V of 1920.

(14) Part A of criminal cases in which a lunatic is concerned unless the lunatic shall have been subsequently tried or have died.

11. Subject to the provisions of rule 9, the following records shall be preserved for twelve years, namely,-

Part A of civil and criminal appeals and civil and criminal reference cases not mentioned in rule 10.

12. Subject to the provisions of rule 9, the following records shall be preserved for six years, namely,-

Part A of the record in applications for the exercise by the Court of its revisional jurisdiction under the Civil Procedure Code or the Code of Criminal Procedure.

13. Part B of a judicial record and applications of a miscellaneous character filed with such record shall be destroyed before such record is consigned to the record-room:

Provided that, where an appeal lies to the Supreme Court of Pakistan, part B of the record of such appeal shall be preserved until the period for the presentation of an appeal has expired, or where an appeal has been made, till the judgment of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, has been communicated to the High Court:

Provided also that when a case in this Court has been dismissed for default or heard ex-parte, part B of the record shall not be destroyed until the expiry of six months from the date of the decision:

Provided further that a power of attorney filed in a civil appeal in which Intra Court Appeal lies to the High Court shall be preserved until the period for the presentation of an Intra Court Appeal has expired, or where an appeal has been made till the judgment therein has been pronounced. *01

14. The period prescribed by rules 10, 11 and 12 of these rules for the preservation of a judicial record shall be reckoned from the date of the final order of the Court in the case.

15. A note of every judicial record destroyed under the provisions of these rules shall be made, under the signature of the supervising officer, at the time of destruction in the register in which the case is entered, and also in the general index prefixed to such record.

16. (i) Documents belonging to private persons or to Government as a party to the proceedings or which have been impounded in the cases in which they were produced shall not be destroyed, but shall be dealt with in the manner provided by the clauses of this rule next following.

(ii) When the period prescribed by rules 10, 11 and 12 of these rules for the preservation of part A of a judicial record has expired, and before such part is destroyed all documents of the nature specified in clause (i) of this rule shall be removed therefrom and kept till application is made for their return.

(iii) A document shall not be returned within the period specified in Order XIII rule 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure, until a certified copy thereof has been delivered to be substituted for the original, nor shall a document be returned which has been ordered to be impounded or which has, by force of a decree or order of the Court, become void or useless, or which is required by law to be filed and preserved, e.g., a will under section 294 of the Succession Act XXXIX of 1925.

17. The registers of the Court shall, for the purposes of these rules, be divided into three classes, namely,-

18. (i) The primary registers are those which have to do directly with cases filed in court, and which form an abstract of the progress and disposal of such cases.

(ii) The following primary registers shall be maintained and shall be preserved for the period specified against each:-

No.of Register.	Name of register.	Branch.	Period for which to be kept.
1	Civil First Appeals (Regular and Executions).	Civil	For ever.
2	Civil Second Appeals (Regular and Executions).	Ditto	Ditto.
3	Civil First Appeals from Orders.	Miscellaneous	Ditto.
4	Civil Second Appeals from Orders.	Ditto	Ditto
5	Civil Revisions.	Ditto	Ditto.
6	Civil Miscellaneous.	Ditto	Ditto.
7	Ditto.	Civil	Ditto.
8	Civil Originals.	Miscellaneous	Ditto.
9	References under the Punjab Tenancy Act and Order XLVI, Civil Procedure Code.	Ditto	Twelve years.
10	Original Matrimonial cases.	Ditto	For ever.
11	Matrimonial References.	Ditto	Ditto.
11-A	Matrimonial Appeals	Ditto	Ditto.
12	Probate and Administration.	Miscellaneous.	For ever.
13	Letters Patent Appeals or Intra Court Appeals.**01	Ditto	Ditto.
14	Criminal Appeals.	Criminal	Ditto.
15	Criminal Revisions.	Ditto	Ditto.
16	Criminal Miscellaneous.	Ditto	Ditto.
17	Murder References.	Ditto	Ditto.
18	Criminal Originals.	Ditto	Ditto.
19	Trial of European British Subjects.	Ditto	Ditto.
20	Roznamcha.	Civil	Twelve years.
21	Ditto.	Miscellaneous	Ditto.
22	Ditto.	Criminal	Ditto.
23	Civil Regular and Execution First Appeals (by districts).	Civil	For ever.
24	Civil Regular and Execution Second Appeals (by districts).	Ditto	Ditto.
25	First Appeals from Orders (by districts).	Miscellaneous	Ditto.
26	Second Appeals from Orders (by districts).	Ditto	Ditto.
27	Civil Revisions (by districts).	Ditto	Ditto.
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CHAPTER 5 Records --- their inspection, grant of copies and destruction

CHAPTER 5
Records --- their inspection, grant of copies and destruction