In short. If someone owes you more than Rs 2 crore and the claim has a link to Delhi, you can sue for recovery on the Delhi High Court's original side. Depending on the paperwork, it is an ordinary suit, a summary suit under Order 37 CPC or a commercial suit. The usual time limit is three years. A summary suit on a cheque or written contract can end within months if the defendant has no real defence; a contested suit takes years. Send a legal notice, check limitation and secure your documents first.
Is this your situation?
- You lent more than Rs 2 crore to a business associate or friend and repayment has stopped.
- A buyer owes you for goods or services worth crores and keeps promising to pay next month.
- You paid a large advance for a property, a supply contract or a business deal that never went through.
- Cheques given to you for repayment have bounced and you want the money, not only a criminal case.
- A company has confirmed its outstanding balance to you in writing but will not pay.
- You have received summons in a recovery suit in the Delhi High Court and need to respond.
- You fear the debtor is selling off assets before you can get a decree.
What a money recovery suit on the original side is
A recovery suit asks a civil court to pass a decree directing the defendant to pay a sum of money, usually with interest and costs. Once you hold a decree, you can enforce it by attaching bank accounts, property and receivables. In Delhi, civil suits valued above Rs 2 crore are filed directly in the Delhi High Court, which hears them on its original side as a trial court. A proposal to raise that limit is pending, so check the current limit before filing. Below the limit, the suit goes to a district court.
The value of a money suit is the amount claimed, including interest calculated up to the date of filing. A claim of Rs 1.8 crore principal with Rs 40 lakh of accrued interest is a suit above Rs 2 crore. Court fee is ad valorem on that value, so the figure in the plaint has a cost, and inflating it to reach the High Court is a poor idea.
This page is about lenders, suppliers, investors and others who are owed money. The kind of suit you file depends on the documents you hold and the nature of the transaction, and that choice is the first real decision in any recovery case.
Ordinary suit, summary suit or commercial suit
Summary suit. Order 37 CPC provides a fast track for suits on bills of exchange, cheques and promissory notes, and for suits to recover a debt or liquidated sum arising on a written contract, an enactment or a guarantee. The defendant cannot defend as of right: he must apply for leave to defend and show a real, triable defence. If he cannot, the court can pass a decree without a full trial. Our page on summary suits in the Delhi High Court covers this route in detail.
Commercial suit. If the dispute arises out of a commercial transaction, such as a loan by a financier, an inter-corporate deposit, a supply or service contract between businesses, or a trading relationship, it is a commercial dispute under Section 2(1)(c) of the Commercial Courts Act 2015. Above Rs 2 crore it goes to the Commercial Division of the High Court, with pre-institution mediation, a strict 120-day limit for the written statement, case management hearings and summary judgment under Order 13A. A summary suit can also be filed as a commercial suit. Our page on commercial suits in the Delhi High Court explains those rules.
Ordinary suit. Everything else, for example a friendly loan between individuals without a written agreement, or a claim for damages that is not a fixed sum, goes as an ordinary original side suit under the CPC and the Delhi High Court (Original Side) Rules 2018. When Advocate B.K. Singh is asked which route to take, his first question is not the amount but what the client can actually prove on paper: a signed acknowledgment, a cheque or a contract changes the choice entirely.
Claims that are commonly recovered this way
- Loans. Friendly loans, business loans and inter-corporate deposits, especially where there is a loan agreement, promissory note, bank transfer record or written acknowledgment.
- Unpaid invoices. Price of goods sold and delivered, or fees for services rendered, backed by invoices, delivery challans, ledgers and email confirmations.
- Refund of advances. Money paid for a property, a supply or a joint venture that failed, where the agreement or the law entitles you to a refund.
- Security deposits. Deposits for commercial premises or contracts that the other party refuses to return after the arrangement ends.
- Guarantees. Claims against a guarantor who personally guaranteed a borrower's debt.
- Settlement defaults. A written settlement or memorandum of understanding acknowledging a fixed sum that the debtor has not paid.
- Dishonoured cheques. The civil claim for the cheque amount and interest, which can run alongside a criminal complaint.
The law behind a recovery suit
Order 37, CPC
Summary procedure for claims on negotiable instruments and written contracts for a liquidated sum. The defendant must enter appearance within ten days of service and, after the summons for judgment is served, apply for leave to defend within ten days. In IDBI Trusteeship Services v. Hubtown (2016), the Supreme Court set out when leave should be refused, granted on conditions such as a deposit, or granted unconditionally.
Order 38 Rule 5, CPC
Attachment before judgment where the defendant, with intent to obstruct or delay execution of any decree, is about to dispose of or remove his property. The Supreme Court has described this as a drastic power to be used sparingly and only on specific material (Raman Tech. and Process Engineering v. Solanki Traders, 2008).
Order 12 Rule 6 and Order 13A, CPC
Order 12 Rule 6 lets the court pass judgment on admissions, in whole or in part, at any stage. In commercial suits, Order 13A allows summary judgment where the defendant has no real prospect of successfully defending the claim.
Section 34, CPC
Interest from the date of suit to the decree at a rate the court thinks reasonable, and future interest from decree to payment not exceeding 6 per cent a year, except that in a commercial transaction it may go higher, up to the contractual rate or, without one, the rate at which nationalised banks lend for commercial transactions.
Limitation Act 1963
Three years for most money claims: from the date the loan was made (Articles 19 and 21), from delivery of goods where no credit period was fixed (Article 14), or from when the right to sue accrues (Article 113). Section 18 gives a fresh period from a written, signed acknowledgment made before the period expires, and Section 19 does the same for a part payment acknowledged in writing.
Which court: value, place and forum bars
A money suit can be filed where the defendant resides or carries on business, or where the cause of action wholly or partly arose, under Section 20 CPC. For a loan, that includes where the agreement was signed, where the money was paid or where repayment was due. A lender in Delhi who transferred funds from a Delhi bank account to a borrower in Mumbai usually has a basis to sue in Delhi, but an exclusive jurisdiction clause in the contract choosing a particular city's courts will generally bind the parties if that court also has some connection to the transaction.
Some claims cannot go to a civil court at all. Banks and financial institutions recovering Rs 20 lakh or more must go to the Debts Recovery Tribunal under the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act 1993. If the contract has an arbitration clause, the other side can ask the court to refer the dispute to arbitration under Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, and the court will usually do so; in that case your route is arbitration, with urgent protection through our page on arbitration petitions in the Delhi High Court.
If the claim is below the pecuniary limit, the suit goes to the district court where the defendant lives or the cause of action arose, and to the district commercial court if it is a commercial dispute of Rs 3 lakh or more. Our guide on pecuniary jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court explains how the line is drawn. This firm's website is not the court's official site; filing details, case status and cause lists are on the Delhi High Court's own website.
Saving an old claim: limitation in practice
Most failed recovery suits fail on limitation, not on merits. Three years passes quickly when a debtor keeps paying small amounts and promising more. What saves the claim is paper: a signed letter, an email from the debtor's official account, a balance confirmation in a ledger, a WhatsApp message admitting the amount, or a part payment through a bank with a written note. Each valid acknowledgment made before the period ends starts a fresh three years.
An acknowledgment must relate to the debt and show a jural relationship of debtor and creditor; it need not state the exact amount. A bare promise to look into the matter may not be enough. Where the period has already expired, a written and signed promise to pay the time-barred debt is itself enforceable under Section 25(3) of the Indian Contract Act 1872, so a fresh settlement document signed by the debtor can revive a dead claim.
In commercial suits, the time spent in pre-institution mediation under Section 12A is excluded when computing limitation. Even so, do not plan a filing for the last week of limitation. Courts are strict, and a single missing document can take longer to find than expected.
Legal notice and pre-institution mediation
A legal notice is not mandatory in most private recovery suits, but it is almost always worth sending. It fixes the amount demanded and the date of default, often triggers a reply that admits part of the debt, and shows the court that the defendant was given a chance. For a dishonoured cheque, a notice within 30 days of the bank's return memo is also needed for the criminal remedy under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.
For a commercial suit that does not seek urgent interim relief, Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act makes pre-institution mediation mandatory, as the Supreme Court held in Patil Automation v. Rakheja Engineers (2022). For High Court suits this is conducted through the legal services institutions attached to the court. The mediation is to be completed within three months, extendable by two months with consent. If the defendant does not turn up, a non-starter report issues and you can file.
Do not draft the notice loosely. Overstating the amount, mixing in unrelated claims or using abusive language gives the defendant material to attack your credibility. A short, accurate notice with the key documents listed is better than a long one.
Step by step: a recovery suit in the Delhi High Court
Audit the claim
Gather every document showing the debt, compute principal and interest up to the filing date, and fix the limitation date. Decide whether the suit is summary, commercial or ordinary.
Notice and mediation
Send a legal notice. In a commercial suit without urgent relief, apply for pre-institution mediation and wait for a settlement or a non-starter report.
Draft and file
The plaint is filed with the documents relied on, the court fee and, in commercial suits, a statement of truth. Interim applications, such as for attachment before judgment or a direction to disclose assets, are filed with it.
First hearing
The single judge decides whether to issue summons and whether any interim protection is needed. In a summary suit, summons in the prescribed form is issued and the defendant must enter appearance within ten days.
Defence stage
In a summary suit, the defendant applies for leave to defend and the court decides whether to refuse it, grant it on conditions or grant it unconditionally. In other suits, the written statement is filed within the time allowed and the plaintiff files a replication.
Admission and denial, issues
Before the Joint Registrar, each side admits or denies the other's documents. The court then frames issues, and admitted amounts can lead to a decree on admissions.
Evidence and arguments
Witnesses file affidavits and are cross-examined, often before a Local Commissioner appointed by the court. Final arguments follow and the court delivers judgment.
Decree and execution
The decree states the sum, the interest and the costs. If it is not paid, you file an execution petition to attach and sell the defendant's assets.
Securing the money before judgment
A decree is worth what you can collect. If the debtor is moving money out, transferring property to relatives or winding up a company, the time to act is at the filing stage. Order 38 Rule 5 allows the court to direct the defendant to furnish security or to attach specified property before judgment, but only on concrete material showing an intent to defeat a future decree: a sale advertisement, a notice of transfer, a sudden closure of business. General fear that the defendant may not pay is not enough.
Courts in Delhi also routinely direct defendants in recovery suits to file affidavits disclosing their assets, and in summary suits can make leave to defend conditional on depositing the whole or part of the amount. In Rahul S. Shah v. Jinendra Kumar Gandhi (2021), the Supreme Court gave directions to speed up execution and criticised the years decree holders spend chasing assets, and courts now ask for asset disclosure earlier than they once did.
Advocate B.K. Singh's practice is to run a property and company search on the debtor before filing, so that any application for attachment before judgment names actual assets. A request to attach unspecified property rarely succeeds; a request naming a flat in Vasant Kunj that is listed for sale often does.
Typical time and cost of a recovery suit
| Stage | Typical time | Court fee and costs (general) |
|---|---|---|
| Claim audit, notice | Two to six weeks | Notice and document charges only |
| Pre-institution mediation (commercial, no urgent relief) | Up to three months, extendable by two | Nominal mediation fee; check current rules |
| Filing to first listing | A few days to two weeks | Ad valorem court fee on the amount claimed, which on a multi-crore suit is substantial; check the current calculation |
| Summary suit: leave to defend decided | Several months from service, varies with the list | Small fixed fees on applications |
| Ordinary or commercial suit: pleadings and issues | Six months to a year and a half | Process fees, filing and copying charges |
| Evidence and judgment | Two to five years from filing in a contested suit | Local Commissioner's fee if appointed; costs may be awarded |
| Execution | Months to years, depending on the debtor's assets | Fees on the execution petition and for attachment and sale |
Documents a recovery suit is built on
Proof of the debt
- Loan agreement, promissory note, invoices, purchase orders or contract
- Bank statements showing the transfer of funds or receipt of goods
- Delivery challans, e-way bills, GST returns showing the sale
- Ledger extracts and account statements for the defendant's account
Proof of admission and limitation
- Written acknowledgments, balance confirmations and emails admitting the debt
- Records of part payments with the dates
- Any settlement, MoU or post-dated cheques given for repayment
- Bank return memos for dishonoured cheques
Notices and correspondence
- Legal notice, postal and courier receipts, email delivery proof
- The defendant's reply, if any
- Mediation non-starter or failure report in commercial suits
About the defendant
- Company master data, directors and registered office from ROC records
- Known properties, bank accounts and receivables
- Any guarantee or security given for the debt
Interest: what you can realistically claim
Interest is often a large part of a recovery claim and needs to be pleaded properly. There are three periods. Before the suit, interest is payable if the contract provides for it, if a statute does, or if there is a trade usage or a notice demanding it. From filing to decree, and from decree to payment, Section 34 CPC gives the court discretion, with the 6 per cent cap on post-decree interest lifted for commercial transactions.
If you are a micro or small enterprise registered under the MSMED Act 2006 and the buyer did not pay within the agreed period (which cannot exceed 45 days), Section 16 gives compound interest with monthly rests at three times the bank rate notified by the RBI. That is a powerful claim, but it applies only to supplies made while you held registration, and the MSME Facilitation Council under Section 18 is a separate forum for it.
Courts do not always award the contractual rate. A rate of 24 or 36 per cent written into a friendly loan agreement may be reduced as penal. Claim what the contract supports and be prepared to justify it.
If you are the defendant in a recovery suit
The first deadline is the one that matters most. In a summary suit, you have ten days from service to enter appearance and, after the summons for judgment, ten days to apply for leave to defend. Miss either and the plaintiff can get a decree. In a commercial suit, the written statement must be filed within 120 days of service, and the Supreme Court has held that the court has no power to extend it beyond that. In an ordinary original side suit, the Original Side Rules allow 30 days, extendable to an outer limit of 120 days from service, and the Delhi High Court upheld that rule in Manhar Sabharwal v. High Court of Delhi (2024).
A real defence is one that raises a triable issue: payment already made, the amount was an investment and not a loan, the goods were defective and rejected, limitation has expired, the plaintiff is a moneylender without a licence where the law requires one, or the signature on the acknowledgment is disputed. A bare denial will not get leave to defend in a summary suit.
Consider a counter-claim if you have your own claim against the plaintiff, and set-off if the amounts are ascertained. If the plaintiff is a bank, check whether the suit should have been in the DRT. If there is an arbitration clause, apply under Section 8 before filing your first statement on the substance of the dispute, or you may lose the right.
Parallel and alternative routes
Cheque bounce. A complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act can run alongside a civil suit on the same debt. The criminal case adds pressure and allows interim compensation, but it does not by itself put money in your hands quickly, and it has strict notice and filing deadlines. Our page on cheque bounce matters in the Delhi High Court covers challenges at that court.
Insolvency. If the debtor is a company owing a default of Rs 1 crore or more, an operational or financial creditor can apply to the NCLT under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016. This is not a recovery forum in the ordinary sense: once admitted, the company goes into a resolution process and you become one creditor among many. A genuine pre-existing dispute will defeat an operational creditor's application. The sister site ncltlawyers.in explains that route.
Criminal complaints. Many creditors file cheating complaints when a debtor does not pay. Failure to repay a loan is not cheating unless there was a dishonest intention from the start, and the Delhi High Court often quashes FIRs that dress up a commercial default as fraud. A complaint of that kind delays your civil recovery and can lead to costs.
Mistakes that sink recovery suits
- Lending in cash. Cash loans are hard to prove, and cash transactions above the limits in tax law cause separate problems. Lend through banking channels and get a written acknowledgment.
- Letting limitation lapse. Taking part payments in cash without any written note means the period may run from the original date.
- Picking the wrong track. Filing an ordinary suit when an Order 37 suit was available wastes time; filing a summary suit on a claim that is not for a liquidated sum invites dismissal of that form.
- Ignoring Section 12A. A commercial suit filed without pre-institution mediation, and without a genuine need for urgent relief, can be rejected.
- Suing the wrong person. If the loan went to a company, the directors are not personally liable without a personal guarantee or other basis.
- Not thinking about execution. A decree against a shell company with no assets is a piece of paper. Investigate assets before filing.
A made-up example: an inter-corporate deposit
Here's a made-up example. A Delhi-based trading company places an inter-corporate deposit of Rs 2.5 crore with a Gurugram company for one year at 12 per cent interest, under a written agreement signed in Delhi and paid from a Connaught Place bank account. At maturity, the Gurugram company pays Rs 25 lakh and sends an email from its finance head confirming the balance and asking for six months.
Six months pass with no payment. The lender's lawyers note that the transaction is between businesses and commercial, the claim is a liquidated sum on a written contract, and the email is a fresh acknowledgment. They send a legal notice, go through pre-institution mediation (the borrower does not appear), and file a commercial summary suit under Order 37 in the Commercial Division of the Delhi High Court, with an application asking the borrower to disclose its assets.
The borrower applies for leave to defend, saying the deposit was really an equity investment. The court finds this inconsistent with the agreement and the email, and grants leave only on deposit of a large part of the claim. The borrower does not deposit, and a decree follows for the balance with interest. Execution against the borrower's receivables begins. On different facts, such as a loan in cash or no written acknowledgment, the same claim could have taken years.
After the decree: appeal and execution
A decree passed by a single judge on the original side can be appealed to a Division Bench of the High Court. In a commercial suit, the appeal lies under Section 13 of the Commercial Courts Act within 60 days, as explained on our page on commercial appeals. An appeal does not automatically stay the decree, and the Division Bench usually asks the appellant to deposit the decretal amount or furnish security before granting a stay.
Execution is filed in the same court. You can ask for attachment of bank accounts, salary, receivables, movable property and immovable property, and in some cases for detention of the judgment debtor in civil prison under Section 51 CPC where he has the means to pay and refuses. Our page on execution of decrees in the Delhi High Court covers the process. If the debtor's assets are in another State, the decree can be transferred to the court there.
How we take on a recovery case
We begin with the documents and limitation, not the amount. We check what you can prove on paper, choose the track (summary, commercial or ordinary), confirm the right court and any arbitration or DRT bar, and look at the debtor's assets before deciding whether to ask for attachment at the start. For defendants, we look first at the deadline for appearance, leave to defend or written statement.
Fees are discussed at the first meeting and agreed in writing, stage by stage, and we tell you the likely court fee before filing. Meetings can be held at our Dwarka office in Sector 7 near Ramphal Chowk, at our Vaishali office in Ghaziabad, or online for clients elsewhere in India and abroad. Our guide on filing a recovery suit for a friendly loan may help if the amount is smaller or the loan was informal.
If you are owed a large sum or have been sued for one in the Delhi High Court, contact Advocate B.K. Singh for advice on your papers or for updates on the law.
Frequently asked questions
Can I file a recovery suit in Delhi High Court for Rs 1.5 crore?
Not on the original side at present, because the pecuniary limit is above Rs 2 crore. A claim of Rs 1.5 crore, including interest up to filing, goes to the district court, or to the district commercial court if it is a commercial dispute. Check the current limit, as a proposal to raise it is pending.
What is the time limit to file a suit for recovery of money lent?
Generally three years from the date the loan was made or the right to sue accrued. A written, signed acknowledgment of the debt or a part payment acknowledged in writing before the period ends gives a fresh three years.
Is a summary suit faster than a normal recovery suit?
Usually, because the defendant needs the court's leave to defend. If he cannot show a triable defence, the court can pass a decree without a full trial. If leave is granted, the suit then proceeds much like an ordinary suit.
Do I need a written agreement to recover a loan through court?
Not strictly, but it makes a large difference. Bank transfers, messages and emails acknowledging the loan can prove it. Without a written contract or instrument, an Order 37 summary suit may not be available and an ordinary suit will be needed.
Can the court freeze the debtor's property before the case is decided?
Yes, under Order 38 Rule 5 CPC, if you show specific material that the defendant is about to dispose of or remove property to defeat a decree. Courts treat this as an exceptional remedy and want named assets and real evidence.
Can I file a cheque bounce case and a recovery suit together?
Yes. The criminal complaint under Section 138 and the civil suit for the money are separate remedies and can run at the same time. Amounts recovered in one are taken into account in the other.
What interest will the court award in a recovery suit?
Interest before the suit depends on the contract or law. From filing onwards, the court decides a reasonable rate, and post-decree interest is capped at 6 per cent except in commercial transactions. MSME suppliers may claim higher statutory interest in some cases.
Is pre-institution mediation required before a recovery suit in Delhi High Court?
Only for commercial suits, and only where no urgent interim relief is sought. Ordinary money suits, such as a friendly loan between individuals, do not need it.