Lester D'Souza 23 February 2017

Unregistered partnership firm suing its employee for fraud

Ours is a partnership firm started by my parents and registered by them in 1990. Subsequently I joined the firm as the Managing Partner (continuing under the same name an title and same business) after my studies in 2004. However, the amended partnership has not been registered nor has any intimation of the change in constitution of the partnership been given to the Registrar of Firms. We detected a fraud by one of our managers in connivance with some staff working under him in one of our branches and immediately filed a criminal complaint against them in the jurisdictional police station. We now want to file a civil suit also against them. Is this possible? Is our firm considered as an unregistered firm now since the amended partnership has not been registered?

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4 Replies

Adv. Yogen Kakade (+ 91 9225510883) 23 February 2017

The details of the facts need to be seen.. but with the help of information given it can certainly be advised that a criminal complaint as well as a civil suit can be initiated by the partnership company against the illegal act done by its employee.

Adv. Yogen Kakade

Jurycon Incorporation

Advocates & Consultants
Email: juryconincorporation@gmail.com
Web: www.juryconn.in Call: 020-65248888 / 09225510883

Sudhir Kumar, Advocate (Advocate) 24 February 2017

if the firm is not registered then partners have to sue them as individuals.

R Trivedi (advocate.dma@gmail.com) 28 February 2017

Criminal case does not require any registration. If your parents are still partner, then they can sue with the help of original registration certificate. The fraud was perpetuated on the firm, so firm must be the comainant/plaintiff through partners or through authorized person. Pl consult the registrar office for inclusion of your name. Any changes must be intimated to them within 30 days or so, otherwise there is a penalty. Read about partnership act on this and approach the concerned registrar of firms.

Lester D'Souza 07 March 2017

Thank you Sir. My lawyer was saying that the judge will insist on the new partnership deed being registered as I have been shown as the managing partner in the case documents (both criminal and civil) based on the copy of the amended partnership deed. I also read that there is a supreme court verdict in a similar case which states that no registration of partnership firms with Registrar of firms is required in case of filing a case against anybody based on common law. The criminal case will not have any problem as the state is fighting th case based on criminal complaint/FIR filed with police and theis independent investigation - chargesheet has been filed. My major concern is the civil suit whether legally it can be thrown out for not being a registered firm.