https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=314353 Sufficient cause under Order 9 Rule 13 CPC is to be construed liberally to advance substantial justice where the absence is not mala fide or intentional. The relevant inquiry is the explanation for non-appearance on the date the ex parte proceedings were taken up, and the court may prefer a merits-based hearing where the application is within limitation and the opposite party can be compensated by costs. On the stated facts, the appellant's absence was supported by the death of counsel's nephew, personal illness, and posting away from station, so rejecting the medical explanation merely because it came from a private doctor was unduly technical. Sufficient cause was therefore established and the ex parte decree was liable to be set aside. en-us Fri, 03 Mar 2000 00:00:00 +0530 Mon, 03 Jun 2024 14:22:41 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=314353 Sufficient cause under Order 9 Rule 13 CPC is to be construed liberally to advance substantial justice where the absence is not mala fide or intentional. The relevant inquiry is the explanation for non-appearance on the date the ex parte proceedings were taken up, and the court may prefer a merits-based hearing where the application is within limitation and the opposite party can be compensated by costs. On the stated facts, the appellant's absence was supported by the death of counsel's nephew, personal illness, and posting away from station, so rejecting the medical explanation merely because it came from a private doctor was unduly technical. Sufficient cause was therefore established and the ex parte decree was liable to be set aside. Case-Laws Indian Laws Fri, 03 Mar 2000 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=314353