Supreme Court Clarifies Lump-Sum Alimony Constitutes Full and Final Settlement; Family Court Maintenance Case Closed

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta disposed of a miscellaneous application arising out of Civil Appeal No. 6088 of 2024, in which the original appellant sought clarification and modification of this Court's judgment dated 06.05.2024. The application challenged the scope of a lump-sum permanent alimony award made while allowing the husband's appeal that had granted a decree of divorce on the ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage.

The Court dismissed the application and clarified that its earlier decree finally settled the lis between the parties, including maintenance. It recorded that the permanent alimony of Rs. 50,00,000/- (Rupees Fifty Lakhs) awarded by the judgment constituted the "full and final settlement of all claims, including any maintenance obligations," and that the maintenance proceeding pending before the Family Court, Dwarka stood closed. The Court noted, and parties accepted, that "the above amount of Rupees Fifty lakhs has been paid by the appellant." The Court, in its reasoning, observed: “it is accordingly clarified that this Court in its judgment dated 06.05.2024 had finally settled the lis pending between the parties, including the issue of maintenance, in its entirety. The present Miscellaneous Application is dismissed as being devoid of merit. This Court, vide its judgment dated 06.05.2024, has conclusively adjudicated all disputes between the parties, including the issue of maintenance. The permanent alimony of Rs. 50,00,000/- (Rupees Fifty Lakh only) granted to the respondent-applicant constitutes the full and final settlement of all claims, including any maintenance obligations. Consequently, the maintenance case M.A. DIARY NO. 30696/2024 pending before the Family Court, Dwarka, stands closed, and any arrears arising from orders passed therein shall not be included in the permanent alimony granted by this Court. The final order of maintenance passed by this Court shall be the full and final adjudication of any maintenance proceedings between the parties, leaving no scope for further claims in this regard.”

Background The appellant-husband had appealed to this Court; by its judgment dated 06.05.2024 the Court allowed the appeal, granted a decree of divorce on the ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage and directed payment of permanent alimony of Rs. 50,00,000/- in five instalments to the respondent-wife. Counsel for the parties informed the Court that the awarded amount had been paid by the appellant. Thereafter the appellant filed the present miscellaneous application seeking clarification and modification to include arrears in Maintenance Case No. 408 of 2017 pending before the Family Court, Dwarka as part of the permanent alimony and to obtain an order to close the maintenance proceedings. The Supreme Court found the application misconceived: once the lis was finally settled by the award of a lump-sum permanent alimony, "nothing further survives for consideration" and all pending inter se matters stood closed. The Court dismissed the application as devoid of merit, held that the permanent alimony was the full and final settlement of maintenance claims, and directed that pending applications, if any, stood disposed of. The order was delivered on February 17, 2025 and was marked non-reportable.

Case Details: Case No.: 2025 INSC 237 (Civil Appeal No. 6088 of 2024) Case Title: Jatinder Kumar Sapra v. Anupama Sapra Appearances: For the Petitioner(s): Not indicated in the order For the Respondent(s): Not indicated in the order