Foreign judgment on immovable property is limited by lex situs and cannot bar fresh adjudication elsewhere.

Section 13 CPC gives conclusiveness to a foreign judgment only on matters directly adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction and only within the statutory exceptions. A determination of title to immovable property is confined to the property situated within that court's territorial jurisdiction, because rights in immovables are governed by the lex situs. The distinction between res judicata under Section 11 and conclusiveness of foreign judgments under Section 13 means a foreign decision on land outside the present suit's situs cannot bar fresh adjudication on the merits. The foreign judgment was therefore not conclusive as to the suit property and did not operate as res judicata.

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Issues: Whether a foreign judgment deciding title to immovable property situated within the foreign court's jurisdiction is conclusive under Section 13 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and can operate as res judicata in a subsequent suit concerning different immovable property situated outside that jurisdiction.

Analysis: Section 13 gives conclusiveness only to matters directly adjudicated upon by a foreign court of competent jurisdiction and subject to the statutory exceptions. The conclusiveness of such a judgment is confined to the property or matter within the territorial jurisdiction of the foreign court. A decision on title to immovable property cannot have extra-territorial effect, because title to immovables is governed by the lex situs and must be adjudicated by the court of the country where the property is situated. The distinction between res judicata under Section 11 and the conclusiveness of a foreign judgment under Section 13 was applied to hold that a foreign decision on property outside the present suit's situs could not bar fresh adjudication on the merits.

Conclusion: The foreign judgment was not conclusive as to the suit property and did not operate as res judicata in the present suit.

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