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Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870 in hindi

If an appeal or plaint, which has been rejected by the lower Court on any of the grounds mentioned in the 1Code of Civil Procedure, is ordered to be received, or if a suit is remanded in appeal, on any of the grounds mentioned in 2 section 351 of the same Code, for a second decision by the lower Court, the Appellate Court shall grant to the appellant a certificate, authorizing him to receive back from the Collector the full amount of fee paid on the memorandum of appeal: Provided that if, in the case of a remand in appeal, the order of remand shall not cover the whole of the subject-matter of the suit, the certificate so granted shall not authorize the appellant to receive back more than so much fee as would have been originally payable on the part or parts of such subject-matter in respect whereof the suit has been remanded. STATE AMENDMENT Orissa Amendment of section 13.--In the Court-fees Act, 1870 (7 of 1870),--

(a)For the marginal heading to section 13, the following marginal heading shall be substituted, namely:-- "Refund of fee paid on memorandum of appeal and in cases where compromise or settlement has been arrived at by a Lok Adalat.";
(b)Section 13 shall be renumbered as sub-section (1) thereof and --
1. (i)In sub-section (1) as so renumbered, for the words and figures " the Code of Civil Procedure" and "section 351 of the same Code", the words and figures " the Code Civil Procedure, 1908" and "rule 23 of Order XLI of the First Schedule to the said Code" shall respectively be substituted; and
2. (ii)After sub-section (1) as so renumbered, the following new sub-section shall be inserted, namely:-- "(2) Where a compromise or settlement has been arrived at, by a Lok Adalat in a case referred to it under sub-section (1) of section 20 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 (39 of 1987), the Court by which the case was so referred to the Lok Adalat shall grant a certificate to the party or every party to the case who paid any court-fee in that case, authorizing him to receive back from the Collector the full amount of the fee so paid.". [Vide Orissa Act 7 of 2002, s. 2]

Summary

This provision allows an appellant to get a refund of the court fee paid on their appeal document (memorandum of appeal) under specific circumstances.
A refund is triggered if a lower court had rejected a plaint or appeal based on Code of Civil Procedure grounds, but a higher court orders it to be received and heard.
A refund is also triggered if an appeals court remands (sends back) a suit to the lower court under section 351 of the same Code for a second decision.
When these triggers are met, the appeals court must give the appellant a certificate that authorizes them to get the full fee back from the Collector.
If the order sending the case back (remand) does not cover the entire subject-matter of the suit, the refund is limited to the fee paid for that specific portion.

Practical examples

1Meera files a lawsuit in a lower civil court, but on January 10, 2026, the judge rejects her lawsuit on a technical ground under the civil procedure rules. Meera appeals this rejection to a higher court, paying a court fee of 5,000 rupees on her appeal papers. The appeals court decides the lower court was wrong, reverses the rejection, and orders the lower court to receive and hear Meera's lawsuit. Under this section, the appeals court grants Meera a certificate so she can get her entire 5,000 rupees back from the Collector.

2Vikram is fighting a land dispute worth 100,000 rupees. The trial court rules against him, and he appeals. During the appeal, the higher court finds that the trial court failed to consider essential evidence and remands (sends back) the entire case for a fresh trial. Vikram is granted a certificate to get a full refund of his appeal court fee from the Collector. However, if the appellate court had sent back only the part of the case concerning a 30,000-rupees portion of his claim, Vikram would only get a certificate to refund the court fee corresponding to that 30,000-rupees portion.

FAQ

1. Under what conditions can an appellant get a refund of their appeal court fee under Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870?

Under Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870, a refund is allowed if a lower court rejected a lawsuit or appeal on Civil Procedure grounds and a higher court orders it to be accepted, or if a suit is sent back (remanded) by an appeals court under section 351 of the Code of Civil Procedure for a new decision by the lower court.

2. From whom does an appellant actually receive the refunded court fee under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act?

Under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act, the appellate court grants the appellant a certificate, which authorizes the appellant to receive the refunded money directly from the Collector.

3. What happens if an appeals court only sends back part of a lawsuit to the lower court under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act?

Under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act, if the order sending the case back (remand) does not cover the entire subject-matter of the suit, the refund certificate is limited and will only cover the portion of the court fee that was originally payable on the specific parts of the dispute sent back.

4. Is the refund of the court fee under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act automatic?

No, under Section 13 of the Court-fees Act, the appellant must be granted a certificate by the appellate court, which they must then present to the Collector to obtain their refund.

Test yourself

Q1.Under Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870, if a trial court rejects a plaint on grounds mentioned in the Code of Civil Procedure, and a higher court subsequently orders the plaint to be received, what is the appellant entitled to?

Q2.When a suit is remanded (sent back) in appeal for a second decision under Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870, which official is authorized to pay back the court fee to the appellant?

Q3.Under the proviso to Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870, what happens to the refund if an appellate court remands only a portion of the subject-matter of the suit back to the lower court?

Q4.Section 13 of The Court-Fees Act, 1870, allows a refund of court fees on an appeal when a suit is remanded for a second decision under which specific provision?

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