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Friday, 13 November 2026 Judgments, law jobs and study notes, written by a practising advocate
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 · Preliminary: Sections 1 To 8

Section 3 CPC: Subordination of Courts

Bare Act text

3. Subordination of Courts.—For the purposes of this Code, the District Court is subordinate to the High Court, and every Civil Court of a grade inferior to that of a District Court and every Court of Small Causes is subordinate to the High Court and District Court.

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

In simple words

For the purposes of the Code, the District Court is subordinate to the High Court. Every Civil Court of a grade lower than a District Court, and every Court of Small Causes, is subordinate to both the High Court and the District Court. The section thus sets out the hierarchy of civil courts that governs appeals, transfers and supervision under the Code.

Preliminary: Sections 1 To 8

  1. 1 Short title, commencement and extent
  2. 2 Definitions
  3. 3 Subordination of Courts
  4. 4 Savings
  5. 5 Application of the Code to Revenue Courts
  6. 6 Pecuniary jurisdiction
  7. 7 Provincial Small Cause Courts
  8. 8 Presidency Small Cause Courts
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