An investor acquiring redevelopment land or a developer purchasing a disputed township parcel confronts the same concealed legal risk: transfer during pending litigation. Unresolved title defects, partition suits, mortgage enforcement actions, and easement claims routinely impact Indian real estate transactions. 

Land and property disputes constitute a major portion of India’s court backlog, about 66% of all civil cases pending nationwide, illustrating why Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act is decisive in governing how immovable property can be dealt with while a case is before the court. 

This article explores the s cope, application, exceptions, and real-world impact of the Doctrine of Lis Pendens under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act and why it remains essential for informed property decisions in India.

Key Takeaways

• Section 52 protects court authority over disputed immovable property during litigation.

• Transfers during pending suits remain valid but are subject to final court decrees.

• Lis pendens is a major risk marker in title due diligence across India.

• The doctrine supports regulatory goals under RERA and organised real estate markets.

• Judicial discretion can relax lis pendens in limited, equity-driven circumstances.

What Is Section 52 of TOPA?

Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act codifies the doctrine of lis pendens. The term lis pendens literally means “a pending suit". The provision restricts parties to a legal dispute from transferring or otherwise dealing with immovable property that is directly under litigation if such a transfer affects the rights of the other party.

Section 52 states that during the pendency of any suit or proceeding in a competent court where rights to immovable property are directly and specifically in question, the property cannot be transferred or dealt with by any party to affect the rights of any other party under any decree or order that may be passed.

For developers and institutional investors, this provision does not prohibit transfer entirely but makes such transfer subordinate to the final court outcome, increasing commercial and financing risks.

Once the statutory base is clear, the focus shifts to the conditions that trigger its application.

Also Read: Top 5 New Real Estate Projects in Navi Mumbai

What Are the Essentials of Lis Pendens?

For the doctrine under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act to apply, six essential conditions must be satisfied.

i. There Must Be Pendency of a Suit or Proceeding

There must be an active suit or proceeding in existence. Pendency begins from the date of institution of the suit and continues until final disposal, including appeals. For buyers, this underscores the importance of checking court records beyond just title deeds.

ii. The Suit or Proceeding Must Be Pending in a Court of Competent Jurisdiction

The litigation must be before a legally competent court. Proceedings before unauthorised bodies do not trigger lis pendens. Developers acquiring large land parcels must verify jurisdiction to assess enforceability risk.

iii. A Right to Immovable Property Must Be Directly and Specifically Involved

The dispute must concern rights in immovable property itself, ownership, possession, partition, mortgage, or easement. Suits involving incidental references to property do not attract Section 52.

iv. The Suit or Proceeding Must Not Be Collusive

Collusive suits filed merely to defeat third-party rights are excluded. Courts examine intent closely, which is particularly relevant for lenders and institutional investors conducting legal audits.

v. The Property in Dispute Must Be Transferred or Dealt With

The doctrine applies only if the property is transferred, sold, mortgaged, leased, or otherwise dealt with during litigation. Mere intention to transfer is insufficient.

vi. The Transfer Must Affect the Rights of the Other Party to Litigation

If the transfer prejudices or alters the rights of another litigating party, lis pendens applies. This condition protects plaintiffs from losing effective relief due to intervening transactions.

Stay updated on how property laws like Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act can affect real estate transactions, with insights drawn from BCD India’s success in structured, compliant, and large-scale developments across residential, commercial, and township projects.

With these elements in place, the intent behind restricting property transfers during litigation becomes clearer.

Also Read: How to Pay PMC Pune Property Tax Online?

What Is the Purpose of Lis Pendens?

The doctrine embodied under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act exists to preserve legal certainty in a market where immovable property disputes are frequent and often prolonged. With land and property disputes forming a significant share of India’s civil litigation backlog, lis pendens operates as a preventive legal safeguard rather than a punitive rule.

Key purposes of the doctrine include:

• Preserving Court Authority Over Property: Once litigation involving immovable property is instituted, the court acquires control over the subject matter. Lis pendens ensures that no private transaction dilutes or defeats the court’s eventual decree.

• Protecting Judicial Outcomes: Without section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act, parties could alienate property mid-litigation, forcing successful litigants to initiate fresh proceedings against transferees, increasing judicial burden and enforcement delays.

• Binding Third-Party Purchasers to Litigation Outcomes: Any transferee acquiring property pendente lite takes the asset subject to the final judgment, reinforcing the principle of constructive notice and protecting judicial finality over transactional convenience.

• Deterring Collusive Transfers: The doctrine discourages distressed or strategic sales aimed at defeating legitimate claims, a risk especially relevant in high-value urban markets and redevelopment zones.

• Stabilising Property Titles: For institutional investors, REIT sponsors, lenders, and developers, lis pendens supports title continuity by ensuring that disputed assets cannot circulate freely and create layered ownership risks.

• Limiting Multiplicity of Proceedings: By binding all subsequent interests to the same litigation, the doctrine curbs parallel suits, a key concern highlighted by the Law Commission of India in its analysis of civil procedure efficiency.

• Supporting Due Diligence and Risk Assessment: Brokers, legal advisors, and lenders rely on lis pendens as a risk marker during title searches, enabling more informed underwriting, pricing, and transaction structuring.

• Aligning with Broader Regulatory Intent: The doctrine complements modern compliance frameworks such as RERA, which emphasise transparency, disclosure, and buyer protection across India’s real estate sector.

These legal objectives directly influence how property transactions unfold while disputes remain unresolved.

Also Read: How to Pay Property Tax Online in Andhra Pradesh

Impact of Lis Pendens on Property Transactions in India

The doctrine under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act has direct transactional, financing, and title-enforcement consequences within India’s regulated real estate system, particularly in high-value urban and redevelopment markets.

Key impacts include:

• Subordinate Transfer Rights: A transfer executed pendente lite is not void per se but remains subordinate to the decree passed under the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, binding the transferee to the litigation result.

• No Title Enhancement for Purchasers: Under settled Supreme Court jurisprudence, a transferee during pendency acquires no superior right than the transferor, reinforcing the principle of constructive notice embedded in property law.

• Financing and Lending Restrictions: Scheduled banks and housing finance companies regulated by RBI and NHB typically decline project or retail lending where lis pendens is disclosed, citing enforcement risk and SARFAESI limitations.

• Redevelopment and JDA Risk: Lis pendens materially affects redevelopment projects under RERA, where unresolved title disputes can delay registration, project approvals, and escrow-linked fund disbursement.

• Court-Permitted Transfers: Courts may permit alienation during litigation through specific orders, often requiring security deposits or undertakings, as recognised in Vinod Seth v. Devinder Bajaj (2010).

• Binding Effect on Subsequent Buyers: Even if a purchaser is not impleaded under Order I Rule 10 of CPC, the final decree operates against the property, not merely the original parties.

• Institutional Investment Exclusion: Assets subject to lis pendens are excluded from REIT and SM-REIT portfolios under SEBI norms due to unresolved title and litigation exposure.

• Important Due Diligence Trigger: As reflected in National Judicial Data Grid classifications, land and property disputes constitute the largest segment of civil litigation in India, making lis pendens a risk flag for buyers, investors, and lenders.

Also Read: How to Pay NMC Property Tax Online?

To understand this impact fully, one must examine how the law treats transfers made during pending suits.

What is the Concept of Void Transfer Under Lis Pendens?

A common misconception is that transfers under lis pendens are void ab initio. In reality, under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act, such transfers are void as against the rights declared by the court, not void per se.

If a property is transferred during the pendency of a suit and another party later acquires rights through a decree, the earlier transfer becomes unenforceable against that decree holder. The transfer is deemed void from the date of institution of the suit for that purpose.

This legal effect is best understood by looking at examples where Section 52 is commonly invoked.

7 Examples of Cases Where Section 52 Applies

Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act applies across a wide range of property-related disputes where immovable assets are directly under judicial consideration. These cases highlight how lis pendens safeguards court authority and transactional certainty during ongoing litigation.

1. Suits for Specific Performance

Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act applies when courts adjudicate contractual obligations to transfer immovable property under the Specific Relief Act, 1963. With property-related civil suits forming a significant share of India’s pending cases recorded on the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG), lis pendens prevents dilution of decrees through interim transfers.

2. Partition and Family Settlement Disputes

In partition suits under the Hindu Succession law or personal laws, lis pendens restrains co-owners from alienating undivided shares during litigation. Such disputes are common in urban redevelopment corridors, where fragmented ancestral titles pose execution risks for developers and institutional buyers.

3. Pre-emption Rights Litigation

Section 52 applies where statutory or customary pre-emption rights are asserted, particularly in agrarian or peri-urban land transactions governed by state land laws. The doctrine ensures that pendente lite sales do not defeat preferential purchase rights recognised by courts.

4. Easement and Access Right Claims

Litigation involving easements under the Indian Easements Act, 1882, directly attracts lis pendens when access rights affect property usability and valuation. For lenders and developers, unresolved access disputes materially impact project feasibility and mortgage enforceability.

5. Mortgage Enforcement and Redemption Suits

In suits concerning foreclosure, sale, or redemption under the Transfer of Property Act, Section 52 binds any transferee during litigation. Banks and housing finance companies rely on lis pendens to preserve security interests amid India’s outstanding housing loans, which crossed ₹33.53 lakh crore in outstanding housing credit (RBI data).

6. Hindu Widow Maintenance Claims Linked to Property

Maintenance claims charging immovable property under Hindu personal law invoke lis pendens to prevent alienation that could defeat statutory entitlements. Courts treat such charges as property-linked rights, making interim transfers subject to final judicial determination.

7. Application in Land Aggregation and Development

Developers face lis pendens risks during land aggregation for large projects, especially where multiple titleholders or pending civil suits exist. Given India’s push toward large-scale urban redevelopment under state development authorities, title diligence around Section 52 remains a key risk-control tool.

At the same time, the doctrine operates within defined boundaries and does not apply universally.

Also Read: 10 Real Estate Branding Tips to Stand Out in the Market

What Are the Exceptions to Lis Pendens?

The doctrine under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act does not apply in certain clearly defined situations where immovable property rights are not directly prejudiced by pending litigation.

1. Execution of Uncontested Decrees

Where a decree, judgment, or order is not under challenge, its execution is governed by Order XXI of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. Transfers made in execution of such decrees fall outside lis pendens, as no competing property rights remain sub judice.

2. Suits Involving Unidentifiable Property

Lis pendens applies only when the immovable property is clearly defined and capable of identification. Courts have consistently held that vague descriptions, common in poorly drafted partition or boundary disputes, cannot trigger section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act.

3. Collusive or Sham Litigation

The doctrine does not protect proceedings instituted to defeat lawful transfers through artificial disputes. Indian courts scrutinise collusion closely, especially in intra-family property suits, to prevent misuse of lis pendens as a blocking tactic.

4. Pure Money Recovery Suits

Where litigation concerns recovery of debt without asserting rights over immovable property, section 52 does not operate. Such cases are treated as personal claims under contract or tort law, not property law.

5. Claims for Damages Without Property Rights

Suits seeking compensation or damages, even if arising from property-related transactions, do not attract lis pendens unless a direct proprietary interest is claimed. This distinction is important for lenders and developers managing contractual exposure.

6. Movable Property Disputes

The Transfer of Property Act applies exclusively to immovable property. Disputes involving shares, equipment, inventory, or other movable assets are governed by contract law and the Sale of Goods Act, 1930, not section 52.

7. Rent Recovery or Accounting Cases

Actions for arrears of rent or rendition of accounts do not involve transfer or determination of ownership rights. As a result, lis pendens does not restrict dealings with the underlying property unless the title itself is in dispute.

Judicial interpretation has played a critical role in clarifying these boundaries over time.

3 Landmark Cases on the Doctrine of Lis Pendens

Judicial interpretation has played a decisive role in shaping how Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act operates in practice. These landmark rulings clarify the scope, rationale, and limits of lis pendens, offering guidance to courts, homebuyers, investors, and developers alike.

1. Bellamy v. Sabine (1857)

This English decision laid the doctrinal foundation of lis pendens, which Indian courts later adopted and codified. Justice Turner observed that if alienation pendente lite were permitted, no litigation involving property could ever reach finality.

The ruling established that the doctrine is rooted not in notice but in public policy, ensuring courts retain effective authority over disputed immovable property until adjudication concludes.

2. Rajendra Singh v. Santa Singh (1973)

In this case, the Supreme Court of India authoritatively explained the meaning and scope of lis pendens under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act. The Court held that once a suit is instituted, the property comes under the court’s control for the duration of the proceedings.

Any transfer during this period remains valid in form but is fully subject to the final decree, binding transferees irrespective of their awareness of the litigation.

3. Vinod Seth v. Devinder Bajaj (2010)

This judgment demonstrated the Court’s discretionary power to balance equity with commercial realities. The Supreme Court exempted the suit property from the application of lis pendens upon the furnishing of security worth ₹3,00,000.

The ruling clarified that while lis pendens is mandatory in principle, courts may relax its rigour in appropriate cases to prevent undue hardship, especially in complex development or financing arrangements.

Beyond judicial rulings, expert perspectives help bridge doctrine with transactional realities.

Also Read: How to Pay Property Tax Online in Chennai

Ashwinder R. Singh’s Insights on Managing Property Disputes

Ashwinder R. Singh brings a unique combination of legal awareness, real estate expertise, and PropTech experience, making him a trusted voice on the doctrine of lis pendens and its implications for property transfers. His senior leadership roles in banking, housing finance, and India’s leading real estate platforms have given him hands-on insight into risk management, regulatory compliance, and investor protection, core elements for understanding Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act.

Through his transition from banking to real estate entrepreneurship, Singh has addressed real-world property disputes, title verification challenges, and litigation risk for homebuyers, investors, developers, and advisors. As co-founder of IndiaHomes and later CEO at JLL Residential India and ANAROCK, he institutionalised legal due diligence, advisory standards, and tech-enabled decision-making, offering practical lessons for managing property during pending litigation.

Today, as Vice Chairman and CEO of BCD Group, Singh oversees large-scale residential and mixed-use developments, integrating compliance-first practices and dispute mitigation frameworks. His broader influence extends into policy and public education through roles with CII, NAR-India, and RICS School of Built Environment, where he consistently highlights legal safeguards, transparency, and the rights of buyers and investors during ongoing property disputes.

The Legacy of Colonel Sirinder Raj Singh

Underlying this approach is the legacy of discipline, moral authority, and public service exemplified by his father, the late Colonel Sirinder Raj Singh, whose leadership during the 1971 Indo–Pak War and UN service in Cambodia set a standard for duty, accountability, and ethical decision-making. This enduring philosophy continues to guide Ashwinder R. Singh in building trust, safeguarding property rights, and educating stakeholders in India’s real estate system.

Read Ashwinder R. Singh’s Biography to understand how principled leadership, legal rigor, and long-term vision are helping investors, homebuyers, and developers handle property disputes and utilize Section 52 effectively.

Conclusion

In an Indian real estate market marked by high litigation volumes, delayed adjudication, and layered ownership structures, Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act plays a stabilising role. It protects litigating parties, preserves judicial authority, and enforces transactional discipline without completely freezing property transfers.

For homebuyers, it reinforces the need for litigation checks beyond title deeds. For investors and developers, it underscores legal risk pricing and funding feasibility. For brokers, lenders, legal professionals, and students, lis pendens remains a foundational doctrine that connects property law with real-world transaction outcomes.

Subscribe to Ashwinder R. Singh’s newsletter to gain insights on property regulations and risk management strategies for buyers, investors, and developers entering India’s real estate market.

FAQs

1. Does lis pendens affect home loan eligibility?

Yes, banks usually treat lis pendens properties as high risk, restricting loans until disputes conclude or courts grant permission, to protect the enforceability of the mortgage security.

2. Does RERA registration override lis pendens?

RERA registration does not override lis pendens; developers must disclose litigation, and buyers should verify court records, as RERA approvals do not cure title disputes.

3. When does lis pendens legally come to an end?

Lis pendens ends after final judgment or lawful withdrawal of the suit, but interim court orders or appeals can extend its effect until proceedings conclude.

4. How does lis pendens affect redevelopment or joint development projects?

In redevelopment or joint development agreements, lis pendens can restrict transfers of development rights during disputes, affecting funding timelines and requiring escrow protections or permissions.

5. How can buyers or investors detect lis pendens during due diligence?

Title searches, court cause lists, and e-courts databases help detect lis pendens, making legal due diligence essential before signing agreements or releasing advances to buyers.