Dissolved partnership firm appeal maintainable where liability arose before dissolution and winding-up rights continued

An appeal filed in the name of a dissolved partnership firm through one partner was treated as maintainable where the liability arose during the firm's subsistence and the adjudication and demand followed dissolution. Section 47 of the Partnership Act was applied to preserve the partners' authority and mutual rights for winding up unfinished transactions. The appeal was regarded as a continuation of the departmental proceedings rather than a fresh proceeding begun after dissolution, so dissolution did not extinguish the right to challenge the adjudication in appeal. The objection to maintainability was rejected.

---

---

Issues: Whether an appeal filed in the name of a dissolved partnership firm, through one of its partners, was maintainable against adjudication proceedings initiated and concluded after dissolution.

Analysis: The liability in question arose during the subsistence of the partnership, and the adjudication and demand were made after dissolution. Section 47 of the Partnership Act preserves the authority of partners, and the mutual rights and obligations of the partners, so far as necessary to wind up the affairs of the firm and complete unfinished transactions. The appeal was treated as a continuation of the proceedings initiated by the department, not as a new proceeding commenced after dissolution. In that setting, the dissolution of the firm did not extinguish the right to challenge the adjudication in appeal.

Conclusion: The objection to maintainability was rejected, and the appeal by the dissolved firm through one partner was held maintainable.

---