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STUDENT BAR ASSSOCIATON, 2024-25 SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE – NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 MOOT PROPOSITION  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 NMS MOOT PROPOSITION 1. Kailasa is a country locat...

STUDENT BAR ASSSOCIATON, 2024-25 SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE – NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 MOOT PROPOSITION  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 NMS MOOT PROPOSITION 1. Kailasa is a country located in the southern part of the continent Fascia. Kailasa is a democratic welfare state with a written constitution. Kailasa is a beacon of progressiveness and values human rights and freedoms. It has signed and ratified almost all international treaties and conventions. Kailasa adopted a written constitution in the year 1950. 2. In 2018, the government of Kailasa launched a universal healthcare scheme designed to address significant disparities in healthcare access and quality across the country. A critical provision in the policy was compensation paid for no-fault accident under the accident insurance scheme. The scheme provided insurance for those who have physical damage, which included sprains, wounds, burns, fractures, dislocations and concussions as a result of an accident. The scheme has been hugely successful and it aids many citizens of Kailasa to recover from their injuries. 3. A consequence of the scheme has been that it has taken away the right of an individual to sue someone in court for injuries covered by the scheme. The relevant portion of the scheme provided by this legislation has been reproduced below: “Section 17 – Proceedings for personal injury (1) No person shall bring proceedings independently of this Act, in any court in Kailasa, for damages arising directly or indirectly out of— (a) personal injury covered by this Act; or (b) personal injury covered by the former Acts. (2) Subsection (1) does not prevent any person bringing proceedings relating to, or arising from, — (a) any damage to property; or (b) any express term of any contract or agreement (c) the unjustifiable dismissal of any person or any other personal grievance arising from a contract of service. SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE-STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION, 2024-25 3|Page  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 (3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), no court, tribunal, or other body shall award compensation in any proceeding for damages set forth in subsection (1). Section 19 – Exemplary damages (1) Nothing in this Act, and no rule of law, prevents any person from bringing proceedings in any court in Kailasa for exemplary damages for conduct by a defendant that has resulted in — (a) personal injury covered by this Act; or (b) personal injury covered by the former Acts.” 4. On 5th January 2024, Aman Agarwal was visiting a popular restaurant in Lane Number 7 in Koregaon Park in the city of Punero (which is based in the western part of Kailasa). When he had finished his meal at the restaurant, he walked down the lane with his friends to get ice cream from the famous Raskin Bobbins ice cream parlour. 5. On his walk to the parlour, Aman was engrossed in his conversation and he stepped into an open ditch, causing him to slip and fall. Aman was unable to stand up or walk, and he required the help of his friends to be removed from the ditch. An ambulance was called, and Aman was rushed to the hospital. Despite there being no external injury, Aman could not walk. After about a month of diagnosis and tests, the doctors came to the conclusion that his spinal cord had been affected due to his slip and fall. However, as a result of Kailasa’s no-fault insurance scheme, Aman was not required to pay for his ambulance transport, or any of his medical testing and treatment. 6. After six months of physiotherapy, Aman’s condition improved, although he could still not walk without the assistance of a crutch. Moreover, months of being in hospital caused him to lose his highly-paid job as a software developer with Mipro. 7. The circumstances of Aman’s injury received significant media attention. The media blamed Punero Municipal Corporation for not properly cordoning off a ditch, which caused such major injuries and losses to Aman. The Punero Municipal Corporation, in a press release, blamed M/s SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE-STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION, 2024-25 4|Page  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 P. Jain Contractors, who had been awarded the contract for the upkeep and maintenance of all 7 lanes of Koregaon Park. 8. M/s P. Jain Contractors is a sole proprietary concern run by Mr. Pranjal Jain and specialized in civil contracting. They had undertaken several contracts for the upkeep and maintenance of roads in all of Punero and were efficient at their job. The construction of the road in in Lane 7 of Koregaon Park was completed by M/s P. Jain Contractors on 20th February, 2019. 9. Upon seeing the press release, M/s P. Jain Contractors put out a press release of their own stating that they had been fulfilling all their obligations with respect to the upkeep and maintenance of the area in concern. However, according to the press release, they had not been maintaining the ditch from 1st January 2024 because their contract had come to an end on 31st December 2023 and that they were not obligated to do any work. Additionally, they shared a report by Broll Inc., a leading Construction Expert Services Firm, who inspected the road and stated that the construction quality shows that the roads shall remain intact for 5 years from the date of construction. The Punero Municipal Corporation had also appointed a new contractor for the same works with their contract beginning on 1st February 2024. 10. The Punero Municipal Corporation then responded with another press release pointing towards a clause of their contract with M/s P. Jain Contractors. The clause stated as follows: “34. Maintenance works to be continued after the expiry of the term (a) The Contractor (M/s P. Jain Contractors) shall be liable for the upkeep and maintenance even upon the expiry of this contract until the appointment of a new contractor subject to sub-clause (b) of this clause. (b) Punero Municipal Corporation shall inform the contractor in writing of any maintenance work to be done.” 11. Meanwhile, the Punero Municipal Corporation issued a legal notice to M/s P. Jain Contractors on 1st August 2024, asking them to perform the maintenance works on the ditch, which the Punero Municipal Corporation had since cordoned off. M/s P. Jain Contractors refused citing SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE-STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION, 2024-25 5|Page  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 that they were no longer obligated to do any work since their contract had come to an end on 31st December 2023. 12. During all of this back and forth with press releases, Punero Municipal Corporation filed a civil suit for breach of contract, alleging that by not completing the maintenance works in Lane 7 of Koregaon Park, M/s P. Jain Contractors had breached clause 34 of the contract. They also filed a civil suit for specific performance for the completion of maintenance work on the open ditch. 13. In the breach of contract case, the District Court, ruled in favour of M/s P. Jain Contractors. The Punero Municipal Corporation filed an appeal before the High Court and the High Court ruled in favour of Punero Municipal Corporation. M/s P. Jain Contractors then filed a Special Leave Petition before the Supreme Court of Kailasa. 14. In the specific performance case, the District Court ruled against M/s P. Jain Contractors. M/s P. Jain Contractors filed an appeal before the High Court, which overturned the decision of the District Court. Punero Municipal Corporation then filed a Special Leave Petition before the Supreme Court of Kailasa. 15. Simultaneously, Aman Agarwal had filed a suit for damages against Punero Municipal Corporation and M/s P. Jain Contractors before the Punero District Court, which was dismissed. Aman’s appeal before the High Court was also dismissed and he subsequently filed a Special Leave Petition before the Supreme Court of Kailasa. 16. The Supreme Court of Kailasa has admitted all of the three Special Leave Petitions and, taking note of their related nature, has combined the three petitions and listed them for hearing before an appropriate bench. The issues before the Supreme Court are as follows: I. WHETHER M/S P. JAIN CONTRACTORS IS LIABLE TO PAY DAMAGES TO AMAN AGARWAL. II. WHETHER PUNERO MUNICIPAL CORPORATION IS LIABLE TO PAY DAMAGES TO AMAN AGARWAL. SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE-STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION, 2024-25 6|Page  SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE - NOVICE MOOT SELECTION, 2024-25 III. WHETHER M/S P. JAIN CONTRACTORS IS LIABLE FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT. IV. WHETHER M/S P. JAIN CONTRACTORS IS LIABLE FOR SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE. Nota Bene: 1. All references are fictional. The legal system and legal history of India apply mutatis mutandis. 2. Participants are advised not to look into other legislations and restrict their arguments to the issues provided and to the subjects of Law of Tort and Contract Law. 3. Participants are advised to devise a strategy. The issues can be argued in the alternative/without prejudice and be divided into sub-issues but the participants cannot add or amend the issues. Some of the questions do not have a binary “for-against” argument, and as future lawyers, mooters are expected to think as officers of the court before taking a stand on any given issue. Written submissions/memorials must address all the issues. SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, PUNE-STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION, 2024-25 7|Page