Donsimange Kanchana vs Diyapaththugama Vidanelage Sirisena Samarasinghe – CA 1158/96-2012

In Diyapaththugama Vidanelage Sirisena Samarasinghe (Plaintiff-Respondent) v. Donsimange Kanchana (Substituted Defendant-Appellant), the court examined whether the District Judge’s order fixing the case for ex-parte trial was made per incuriam due to the prior filing of the defendant’s answer and whether such an order is appealable under the Civil Procedure Code. The finding established that the District Judge, unaware of the answer’s filing, acted mistakenly in fixing further dates for filing an answer and subsequently making an ex-parte order. It was reaffirmed that court acts made per incuriam should not prejudice a litigant, in line with the principle actus curiae neminem gravabit. The Civil Procedure Code sections 84, 85, 88(2), and 93 were considered, with a distinction drawn between