Cynthia De Alwis v. Marjorie D’Alwis and Two Others – sllr 1997 volume 3 page 113

The case between Cynthia De Alwis (Plaintiff) and Marjorie D’Alwis and others (Defendants) concerned whether the absence of a statement of claim from the Commissioner of National Housing precluded consideration of issues regarding title and interests in property under the Ceiling on Housing Property Law and Partition Act. It was held that in partition actions, the trial judge bears a duty to investigate title comprehensively, not limited to the pleadings, and may adopt critical points of contest raised by parties even if not mirrored in the Commissioner’s submissions. This principle was reinforced through reliance on authorities such as Kumarihamy v. Weeragama and Mather v. Thamotheram Pillai. The District Court’s refusal to adopt relevant issues due to procedural omissions by the Commissi