Order 13 — Parties Generally

All persons may be joined in one action as Claimants in whom any right to relief is alleged to exist whether jointly or severally and Judgement may be given for such one or more of the Claimants as may be found to be entitled to relief and for such relief as he or they may be entitled to, without any amendment.

Where an action has been commenced in the name of the wrong person as Claimant or where it is doubtful whether it has been commenced in the name of the right Claimant, a Judge may order the correction of the name of the Claimant, the substitution or addition of any other person as Claimant on such terms as may be just.

Where in commencing an action, any person has been wrongly or improperly included as a Claimant and a Defendant has set up a Counterclaim or Set-off, such Defendant may establish his Counterclaim or Set-off as against the parties other than a Claimant so included notwithstanding the inclusion of such Claimant or any proceeding based thereon.

Any person may be joined as Defendant against whom the right to any relief is alleged to exist, whether jointly, severally or in the alternative. Judgement may be given against one or more of the Defendants as may be found to be liable, according to their respective liabilities, without any amendment.

Where an action has been instituted against a wrong Defendant or where the name of a Defendant has been incorrectly stated, a Judge may upon application, order the substitution or addition of any person as Defendant or correction of any such name on any term as may be just.

(1) It shall not be necessary that every Defendant shall be interested as to all the reliefs prayed for or as to every cause of action included in any proceeding against him.

(2) A Judge upon considering the defence filed by any Defendant may, on application by that Defendant, make such Order as may appear just to prevent him from being embarrassed or put to expense by being required to attend any proceedings in which he may have no interest.

A Claimant may at his option join as parties to the same action, all or any of the persons severally or jointly and severally liable on any one contract, including parties to bills of exchange and promissory notes.

Where a Claimant is in doubt as to the person from whom he is entitled to redress, he may in such manner as hereinafter mentioned or as may be prescribed by any special Order, join two or more Defendants to the extent that the question as to which, if any, of the Defendants shall be liable and to what extent, may be determined as between all parties.

(1) Persons under legal disability may sue or defend by their guardians appointed for that purpose.

(2) At any time during the proceedings pursuant to any Judgement or Order, the Judge may, if he deems fit, require a guardian to be appointed for any person under legal disability not adjudged a lunatic, who has been served with notice of such Judgement or Order.

(3) Where any person’s name is to be used in any action as guardian of a person under legal disability or other party or as relative, a written authority for that purpose signed by that person shall be filed in the Registry.

(1) Trustees, Executors and Administrators may sue and be sued on behalf of or as representing the property or estate of which they are Trustees, Executors and Administrators, without joining any of the persons beneficially interested in the trust or estate and shall be considered as representing such person, but a Judge may at any stage of the proceedings, order any of such persons to be made parties in addition to or in lieu of the previously existing parties.

(2) The Rule shall also apply to Trustees, Executors and Administrators in proceedings to enforce a security by foreclosure or otherwise.

(1) Where more persons than one have the same interest in one suit, one or more of such persons may sue or be sued on behalf of or for the benefit of all persons so interested.

(2) Where more persons than one have the same interest in one suit and they seek to defend the action, a Judge may allow one or more of such persons to defend the action on behalf of all persons so interested.

(1) Where in any proceedings concerning:
(a) the administration of an estate; or
(b) property subject to a trust; or
(c) land held under Customary Law as family or community property; or
(d) the construction of any written instrument, including a statute, a Judge is satisfied that:
(i) the person, the class or some members of the class interested cannot be ascertained or cannot readily be ascertained;
(ii) the person, the class or some members of the class interested, if ascertained, cannot be found; and
(iii) though the person or the class and the members thereof can be ascertained and found, it is expedient for the purpose of efficient procedure that one or more persons be appointed to represent that person, class or member of the class, the Judge may make the appointment. The decision of the Judge in the proceedings shall be binding on the person or class of persons so represented.

(2) Notice of appointment made by a Judge under this Rule and all processes filed in Court shall be served on a person so appointed.

(3) Where, in any proceedings mentioned in sub-rule (1) of this Rule, several persons having the same interest in relation to the matter to be determined attend the hearing by separate Legal Practitioners, then, unless the Judge considers that the circumstances justify separate representation, not more than one set of costs of the hearing shall be allowed to these persons and the Judgement or Order shall be framed accordingly.

(4) In this Rule, the word “class” includes the persons recognised by customary law as members of a family or as members of a land-owning community.

Where in any proceedings mentioned in sub-rule (1) of Rule 12 of this Order, a compromise is proposed and some of the absent persons who are interested in or may be affected by the compromise are not parties to the proceedings (including unborn or unascertained persons) but where:
(a) there are some other persons having the same interest before the Court who assent to the compromise or on whose behalf the Court sanctions the compromise; or
(b) the absent persons are represented by a person under Rule 12 of this Order who so assents, a Judge if satisfied that the compromise will be for the benefit of the absent persons and that it is expedient to exercise this power, may approve the compromise and order that such compromise shall be binding on the absent persons and they shall be bound accordingly, except where the Order has been obtained by fraud or non-disclosure of material facts.

(1) Where in any proceedings it appears to a Judge that any deceased person who was interested in the proceedings has no legal personal representative, the Judge may proceed in the absence of any person representing the estate of the deceased person or may appoint some person to represent his estate for the purpose of the proceedings, on such notice to such persons, if any, as the Judge shall deem fit, either specifically or generally by public advertisement and the Order so made and any Order consequent thereon shall bind the estate of the deceased person in the same manner in every respect as if a duly constituted legal personal representative of the deceased had been a party to the proceedings.

(2) Where a sole or sole surviving Claimant or Defendant in a proceeding dies and the cause of action survives, but the person entitled to proceed fails to proceed, a Judge may on the application of either the deceased’s Legal Practitioner or the opposing party, order any person to take the place of the said deceased and proceed with the suit.

(3) In default of such application or where the person substituted fails to proceed, Judgement may be entered for the Defendant or, as the case may be, for the person against whom the proceedings might have been continued.

(1) No proceedings shall be defeated by reason of misjoinder or nonjoinder of parties, and a Judge may deal with the matter in controversy so far as regards the rights and interests of the parties actually before him.

(2) A Judge may at any stage of the proceedings, either upon or without the application of either party and on such terms as may appear to the Judge to be just, order that the names of any parties improperly joined be struck out.

(3) A Judge may order that the names of any party who ought to have been joined or whose presence before the Court is necessary to effectively and completely adjudicate upon and settle the questions involved in the proceedings, be added.

(4) No person under legal disability shall be added as a Claimant suing without a guardian, and no person shall be added as the guardian of a Claimant under legal disability without his own consent in writing.

(5) Every party whose name is added as Defendant shall be served with the Originating Processes or Notice in the manner prescribed in these Rules or in such manner as may be prescribed by a Judge and the proceedings against such person shall be deemed to have commenced on the service of such Originating Processes or Notice.

(1) Any application to add, strike out, substitute or vary the name of a Claimant or Defendant may be made to a Judge by Motion.

(2) The application shall be accompanied by the Statement of Claim or Defence as the case may be, copies of the documents intended to be used and the Witness Statements on Oath of all the witnesses: Provided that where the application is to substitute a deceased party with another person, the application may not be accompanied by the document specified above.

(1) Where a Claimant or Defendant is added or substituted, the Processes shall be amended accordingly and the party that made the application for the addition or substitution shall, unless otherwise ordered by a Judge, file amended Processes and cause the new parties to be served in the same manner as the original Claimant or Defendant.

(2) All parties in the action shall also amend all pending processes and serve the same on the new Claimant or Defendant.

(1) Where it appears to a Judge that any person not a party in the proceedings may bear eventual liability either in whole or in part, the Judge may upon an ex-parte application, allow that person to be joined as a third party by any of the Defendants. The application shall state the grounds for the Applicant’s belief that such Third Party may bear eventual liability.

(2) The Order and existing processes shall be served on the Third Party within the time prescribed for delivering the defence.

Where a party is joined to any proceedings as a Third Party, he may after service, enter appearance within five days, or within thirty days if he resides or carries on business outside jurisdiction, or within such further time as a Judge may order.

If a Third Party duly served with the Order and all existing processes does not enter an appearance or defaults in filing any pleading, he shall be deemed to admit the validity of the Claim and shall be bound by any Judgement given in an action, whether by consent or otherwise.

A party joined as a Third Party in ny proceedings may join any other party in the same manner as he was joined and the expression “Third Party” shall apply to and include every person so joined.

A Defendant may in his pleading make a claim against a co-defendant.

Any two or more persons claiming or alleged to be liable as partners and doing business within the jurisdiction may sue or be sued in the name of firms, if any, of which they were partners when the cause of action arose and any party to an action may in such case apply to the Judge for a statement of the names and addresses of the persons who were partners in the firm when the cause of action arose, to be furnished in such manner and verified on oath or otherwise as the Judge may direct.

(1) When an Originating Process is issued by partners in the name of their firm, the Claimants or their Legal Practitioner shall, on demand in writing by or on behalf of any Defendant, declare in writing the names and residential addresses of all the persons constituting the firm on whose behalf the action is brought.

(2) Where the Claimants or their Legal Practitioner fail to comply with such demand, the action may, upon an application for that purpose, be struck out or dismissed as the Judge may consider appropriate.

(3) Where the names of the partners are so declared, the suit shall proceed in the same manner and the same consequences in all respects shall follow as if they had been named as Claimants on the Originating Process provided that the proceedings may continue in the name of the firm.

(1) Where persons are sued as partners in the name of their firm, they may enter appearance individually in their own names; but all subsequent proceedings shall continue in the name of the firm.

(2) Where an Originating Process is served upon a person having the control or management of the partnership business, no appearance by him shall be necessary unless he is a member of the firm sued.

The above Rules in this Part shall apply to proceedings between a firm and one or more of its partners and between firms having one or more partners in common provided such firm or firms carry on business within the jurisdiction.

Any person carrying on business wthin the jurisdiction in a name or style other than his own name may sue or be sued in such name or style as if it were a firm’s name and so far as the nature of the case will permit, all Rules relating to proceedings against firms shall apply.

No proceedings shall abate by reason of death or bankruptcy of an of the parties, if the cause of action survives and shall not become defective by the assignment, creation or devolution of any estate or title pendente lite and whether the cause of action survives or not, there shall be no abatement by reason of the death of either party between the finding on issues of fact and Judgement, but Judgement may in such case be entered notwithstanding the death.

(1) Where by reason of death or bankruptcy or any other event occurring after the commencement of a proceedings and causing a change or transmission of interest or liability or by reason of any person interested coming into existence after the commencement of the proceedings, it becomes necessary or desirable that any person not already a party should be made a party or that any person already a party should be made a party in another capacity, an Order that the proceedings shall be carried on between the continuing parties and such new party or parties may be obtained ex-parte upon an allegation of such change, transmission of interest or liability or of any such person interested having come into existence.

(2) An Order obtained under this Rule shall be served upon the continuing party or parties or their Legal Practitioner and also upon such new party unless the person making the application is the new party.

(3) Every person served who is not already a party to the proceedings shall where applicable, enter an appearance thereto, within the same time and in the same manner as if he had been served with the Originating Process. He shall thereupon be served with the originating and all existing processes.

(4) Any party served under this Rule who was not already a party to the proceedings, shall file his pleading and other documents as if he had been an original party in the proceedings.

In case of an assignment, creation or devolution of any estate or title pendente lite, the cause or matter may be continued by or against the person to or upon whom such estate or title has come or devolved.

Where any person who is under no legal disability or being under any legal disability but having a guardian in the proceedings is served with an Order under Rule 29 of this Order, such person may apply to a Judge to discharge or vary such Order at any time within fourteen days from the service of the Order.

Where any person under any legal disability and not having a guardian in the proceedings is served with an Order under Rule 29 of this Order, such a person may apply to a Judge to discharge or vary such Order at any time within fourteen days from the appointment of a guardian for such party and until such period of fourteen days has expired, such Order shall have no force or effect as against the person under legal disability.