Skip to content
Friday, 13 November 2026 Judgments, law jobs and study notes, written by a practising advocate
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 · Order IX: Appearance Of Parties And Consequence Of Non-appearance

Order IX Rule 4 CPC: Plaintiff may bring fresh suit or Court may restore suit to file

Bare Act text

4. Plaintiff may bring fresh suit or Court may restore suit to file.—Where a suit is dismissed under rule 2 or rule 3, the plaintiff may (subject to the law of limitation) bring a fresh suit; or he may apply for an order to set the dismissal aside, and if he satisfies the Court that there was sufficient cause for [such failure as is referred to in rule 2], or for his non-appearance, as the case may be, the Court shall make an order setting aside the dismissal and shall appoint a day for proceeding with the suit.

Amendment notes

  1. Subs. by Act 104 of 1976 s. 59, for certain words (w.e.f. 1 -2-1977).

Text of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Act No. 5 of 1908), First Schedule, as amended, including the changes for commercial disputes made by the Commercial Courts Act, 2015. Source: India Code, Government of India.

In simple words

Where a suit is dismissed under rule 2 or rule 3, the plaintiff may, subject to the law of limitation, bring a fresh suit. Alternatively he may apply to set aside the dismissal, and if he satisfies the Court there was sufficient cause for the failure referred to in rule 2 or for his non-appearance, the Court must set it aside and appoint a day to proceed with the suit.

Order IX: Appearance Of Parties And Consequence Of Non-appearance

  1. 1 Parties to appear on day fixed in summons for defendant to appear and answer
  2. 2 Dismissal of suit where summons not served in consequence of plaintiff’s failure to pay costs
  3. 3 Where neither party appears suit to be dismissed
  4. 4 Plaintiff may bring fresh suit or Court may restore suit to file
  5. 5 Dismissal of suit where plaintiff after summons returned unserved, fails for seven days to apply for fresh summons
  6. 6 Procedure when only plaintiff appears
  7. 7 Procedure where defendant appears on day of adjourned hearing and assigns good cause for previous non-appearance
  8. 8 Procedure where defendant only appears
  9. 9 Decree against plaintiff by default bars fresh suit
  10. 10 Procedure in case of non-attendance of one or more of several plaintiffs
  11. 11 Procedure in case of non-attendance of one or more of several defendants
  12. 12 Consequence of non-attendance, without sufficient cause shown, of party ordered to appear in person
  13. 13 Setting aside decree ex parte against defendant
  14. 14 No decree to be set aside without notice to opposite party
ShareWhatsAppTelegramLinkedInX