Drafting, pleading and conveyancing by amanpreet kaur at lexcliq

Drafting –

• It is the primary stage of writing.
• Drafting, in legal sense, is an act of preparing the legal documents like agreements, contracts and deeds.
• Drafting is writing any legal document, it can be pleading for civil court or Complaint to a Criminal court or petitioning before High Court or drafting a Will.
• It involves conciseness
• It should be clear and not filled with ambiguity.
• It must have an element of completeness
• It must be in precise form
• correct words should be used while drafting
• It must be in regard with clear and firm thinking
• There must be a sense of politeness while reading a draft .
• It must be logical
• Sentence formation should be short and attractive.
• A proper understanding of drafting cannot be realized unless the nexus between the law, the facts and the language is fully understood and accepted.

Pleading –

• plaint or written statement
• Pleading is Complaint in written form before a judicial forum and again pleading is answering the Complaint by filing a statement(written) in written form.
• A pleading includes claims and counterclaims but not the evidence by which the litigant intends to prove his case.
• Memo of Appeal is also pleading.
• Order 6 Rule 1 of 1^st schedule of CPC, 1908
• Object – so both parties should know the exact point of dispute so that they can prepare their facts / to bring parties to the real issue of the dispute
• Fundamental rules of pleading –

1. Facts and not law
2. Pleading of material facts
3. Pleading of material facts and not evidence
4. Pleading to be concise and precise

• Amendment of pleading –

1. at any stage of proceeding on the direction by the court
2. power of court under Order 6 rule 16, CPC
3. party can make a request to court to strike down or amend the objectionable matter in pleading of the opposite party
4. no application of party after trial unless court thinks fit { ORDER 6 RULE 17 }
5. addition of any inconsistent ground is not permissible

• alternative pleas –

1. no variation in the cause of action
2. object behind it is to avoid unnecessary litigation

• alternative reliefs – permitted but not in contrary claim.

Conveyancing –

• It is an instrument which transfers property from one person to another.
• Generally Conveyance means to convey [ to move]
• According to Indian Stamp Act, 1899 “Conveyance includes a conveyance on sale and every instrument by which property, whether movable or immovable, is transferred inter vivos and which is not otherwise specifically provided for by Schedule”
• It involves alienation of property
• An object of conveyancing is that – deed must contain all relatable particulars
• deed poll – there is one party only expressing its active intention. It is  not a contract
• indentures – A deed in which two or more persons are parties and the documents which evidences certain acts or agreement between them / a legal contract written in duplicate on the same sheet, with the copies separated by cutting along a jagged (toothed, hence the term “indenture”) line so that the teeth of the two parts could later be refitted to confirm authenticity (chirograph).
• The Requirements involved in this are  – knowledge of law , intention , language, material facts, interpretation of documents