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2018 (12) TMI 1970 - HC - Indian LawsRecovery of outstanding dues alongwith interest - demand of interest after 120 days - Order XXXVII Rule 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - HELD THAT:- It is not disputed even in the Affidavit in Reply to the Summons for Judgment that the parties did have, and indeed continue to have, business dealings. The 1st Defendant is a partnership firm that does business in offset printing. Defendants Nos. 2 and 3 are partners of the 1st Defendant. The Plaintif periodically supplied diferent types of papers, cards and other material to the 1st Defendant. The business and commercial relationship was of considerable longevity and continued for over two decades. The 1st Defendant purchased art paper, bond paper, card paper and so on from the Plaintif. Some of these requests were oral or telephonic but in this case that is not an issue that would arise because the Defendants do not dispute the existence of this business relationship or the supplies made to the 1st Defendant - Payments from the 1st Defendant were not on a back-to-back basis with the invoices. From September 2016 to February 2017, the Plaintif’s lawyers demanded payment from the Defendants. The Plaintif received about Rs.9 lakhs in that period (the correspondence inadvertently mentioned a slightly lower figure of Rs.7.5 lakhs but that furnishes no defence). The aggregate amount, according to the Plaintif, due to it on 3rd February 2017 was Rs.1,78,08,676/-. The Plaintif sent the Defendants a legal notice demanding payment and, in default, threatened recovery proceedings. The Writ of Summons having been served, the Defendants entered appearance. The Plaintif then filed present Summons for Judgment to which there is an Affidavit in Reply and an Affidavit in Rejoinder. The Affidavit in Reply says very many things, non of them persuasive. The oral submissions have been advisedly more subtle, and the argument before me today is that while the business relationship is not in dispute the Defendants do dispute that all 140 invoices are unpaid - What the Defendants are unable to show is that any payments were made in respect of any particular invoice. The law in this regard is well settled. If a party makes payment to his creditor against a specified bill and that payment is accepted it can only be applied towards satisfaction of the claim under that bill. If no particular invoice is specified, the creditor is entitled to apply the payment to the earliest unpaid bill. This hardly admits of any dispute, especially in the commercial division of a High Court in the commercial capital of the country and I do not propose to spend any more time in addressing this. The Plaintiff has claimed interest after 120 days - HELD THAT:- The Defendants were entitled to at least 450 days’ credit and, having regard to their relationship, over 800 days’ credit. This is why I said the submission was fantastic. I do not believe that there is a single commercial entity in this city who (being of sound mind) would aford anybody 450 days’ credit let alone 800 days’ (over two years) credit. If no credit period is specified, a reasonable period will be taken. That may be 30 days, 60 days or, as in this case, 120 days. In no case is 450 days or 800 days a commercially reasonable period. The argument is actually against the Defendants because if the invoice does not specify a credit period, then it clearly means that the invoice is payable on presentation, and then there is no credit period whatsoever. There is no warrant in law to demand any minimum credit period absent a specific contract to the contrary. The result is that the Plaintif has possibly made a lower claim in interest by granting 120 days rather than computing interest from the date of invoice. The Defendants cannot demand that that claim be reduced even further by insisting on an interest-free credit period stretching into years on end for each invoice. As an exceptional case an order of conditional deposit today is considered for one reason only and that is because the parties have had a business relationship stretching back several decades and will give the Defendants, therefore, an opportunity to secure the Plaintif’s claim as a condition precedent to being able to defend the suit. In default, and on obtaining a non-deposit certificate, the Plaintifs would be entitled to apply for an ex parte decree. The Defendants will deposit the amount of Rs.2,64,19,454.56 with the Prothonotary and Senior Master on or before 18th January 2019. Upon that deposit being made, the Defendants will be entitled to leave to defend and will then file their Written Statements on or before 22nd February 2019 - The suit will be listed for framing issues thereafter on 1st March 2019.
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