The word “Notice” is a word of everyday use. In a normal course of life, the following statements are always heard by us:-

“Return my money otherwise I will send you a notice and drag you in court” or “do not worry, wait for my notice” or   “ I will give you a notice and inform you” or “ see the notice board and read carefully the Notifications” or “every information is on Notice Board” or you have not deposited the monthly instalment of your school fees, hence this “Notice” or “electricity bill is not deposited by you for last three months, hence this notice to cut the electricity” or “ this notice to deposit your credit card bill” or  “ this invitation card is being given to you to attend the function in short notice” or “ show cause notice is issued against you in respect of your misconduct” or “ Invitation to attend the last ceremony of Soniya Ji” or “ this notice is pertaining to your loan amount which is due and payable to you” or “ the Police  has issued a notice to attend the police station” and “ this is the Notice sent by the Court to inform you attend the proceeding on the next date of the matter” etc.

Generally, we can to say that “the term Notice is self-defined and well known and hence does not ordinarily require any definition, in fact it is fairly not possible to define it correctly and completely.

But we shall strive our best to Define and discuss the nature, scope and kinds of the Notice.

It is said that the term “Notice” is derived from a Latin word “Notitiam” which means “Knowledge”.

Notice means and includes an information, intimation or direction, knowledge, etc.

The Word, “Notice” stands for information, announcement, “information, warning, a writing, etc.”[1]

Generally, the object of the notice is to give an opportunity to the other to reconsider his position before an action or any legal proceedings is started against him.

Word Notice may stand for any fact which would put an ordinary prudent person on enquiry. It may also signify knowledge or cognizance, intelligence and information. 

It would not be out of play to state that Notice means “Intimation or Announcement or information or Warning or a writing, placard, board etc. conveying and intimation or warning.

Notice means legal Notification required by law or agreement or imparted by operation of law as a result of some fact, (such as the recording of an instrument).

Notice means making something known to a person of which he was or might be ignorant.

Notice is a direct and definite statement of a thing as distinguished from supplying materials from which the existence of such thing may be inferred.[2]

Notice does not necessarily mean “Communication”, in writing, notice, notice according to the oxford Concise dictionary means “intimation”, “intelligence” , “warning” and has this meaning in expressions like ‘give notice, have notice’ and it also means ‘formal intimation of something, or instructions to do something’ and has such a meaning in expressions like ‘notice to quit, till further notice. [3]

Definition: – “although it is not tranquil to outline the term which is very ordinary and self- defined, yet the Notice can be outlined as under:-

“Notice”:- a person is said to have “notice” of a fact either when he actually knows that fact or when, but for wilful abstention from inquiry or gross negligence, he would have known it, or when information of the fact is given to or obtained by his agent, under the circumstances mentioned in the Indian Contract Act, 1872, section 229; and all expressions used herein and defined in the Indian Contract Act, 1872, shall be deemed to have the meanings respectively attributed to them by that Act.[4]

“A person is said to have notice” of a fact when he actually knows that fact, or when, but for wilful abstention from an enquiry or search which he ought to have made, or gross negligence, he would have known it”.[5]

“The nature and purpose of the notice must be gathered by reading the document as a whole and not from any words read out of context or from any omission to use the formal language of a solicitor”.[6]

The object of the Notice is to make aware or to make known the facts of the case or to give an opportunity to the other party to reconsider his position before a legal proceeding is started against him. Notice is the legal concept describing a requirement that a party be aware of legal process affecting their rights, obligations or duties. There are several types of notice

We shall not deal with the notices pertaining to any invitation, inauguration, ceremony or any social concerns as this opportunity shall be taken by us to deal and discourse with the notices concerning to the legal( i.e. litigation and non-litigation) characteristics.   

Nature and Scope: – Notice is the foundation of any legal dispute or settlement of the dispute amicably. In other words, it can be underlined by stating that “Notice is the first legal step to convey the grievance, information, intimation, warning, intelligence and /or announcement to concerned person/s in order to make him/her/them aware about his/her/their position. As per the nature there are three kinds of Notice which are underlined as under:-

1):- Statutory Notice:- The Notices which are issued under the provisions of any law, Act and/or rules and regulations as prescribed by the legislature for the same are known as “Statutory Notices. In other words it can be said that if a notice is given as required or permitted to be given under a statutory provision is known as “statutory Notice”. The factors, which are very necessary to follow during the course of issuance of the Statutory Notices are as follows:-

A):- The Notice must be given by the party by whom the statutory provision requires it to be given;

B):- The Notice must be given to party to whom it is to be given under the statutory provision in question;

C):- The Notice must contain the Particulars set out in the statutory provisions;

D):- The Notice must follow the language of the statutory provision, as far as possible;

E):- If the Statue prescribes a particular form, that form should be adhered to;

F):- The contents must be in conformity with the statutory requirements and

G):- The mode of service should be in conformity with the statutory provisions.

Some Example of Statutory Notices:-

1:- PART IV-SUITS IN PARTICULAR CASES Suits by or against the Government or public officers in their official capacity. Civil Procedure Code

1):- 80. Notice— (1)[7]Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (2), no suits shall be instituted against the Government (including the Government of the State of Jammu & Kashmir) or against a public officer in respect of any act purporting to be done by such officer in his official capacity, until the expiration of two months next after notice in writing has been delivered to, or left at the office of— (a) in the case of a suit against the Central Government, except where it relates to a railway, a Secretary to that Government;

 (b) in the case of a suit against the Central Government where it relates to railway, the General Manager of that railway;

(bb) in the case of a suit against the Government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir the Chief Secretary to that Government or any other officer authorised by that Government in this behalf;

(c) in the case of a suit against any other State Government, a Secretary to that Government or the Collector of the district; 23 and, in the case of a public officer, delivered to him or left at this office, stating the cause of action, the name, description and place of residence of the plaintiff and the relief which he claims; and the plaint shall contain a statement that such notice has been so delivered or left.

[8] (2) A suit to obtain an urgent or immediate relief against the Government (including the Government of the State of Jammu & Kashmir) or any public officer in respect of any act purporting to be done by such public officer in his official capacity, may be instituted, with the leave of the Court, without serving any notice as required by sub-section (1); but the Court shall not grant relief in the suit, whether interim or otherwise, except after giving to the Government or public officer, as the case may be, a reasonable opportunity of showing cause in respect of the relief prayed for in the suit :

2:- Notice issued under the provisions of section 138 of the Negotiable Instrument Act 2000(with amendment):-

[9]The essential ingredients of the offence as contemplated under section 138 of the Act were pointed out by the Hon’ble Supreme Court as under:-

• A person must have drawn a cheque on an account maintained by him in a bank for payment of a certain amount of money to another person from out of that account for the discharge of any debt or other liability;

• That Cheque has been presented to the bank within a period of Six month (as per RBI guidelines, with effect from April1, 2012, the validity period of Cheques, Demand drafts, Pay orders and Banker’s Cheques have been reduced from six months to Three months , from the date of mentioned in the instrument) from the date on which it is drawn or within the period of its’ validity, whichever is earlier;

• That cheque is returned by the bank unpaid. Either because of the amount of money standing to the credit of the account is insufficient to honour the cheque or that it exceeds the amount arranged to be paid from that account by an agreement made with the bank;

• The Payee or the holder in due course of the cheque makes a demand for the payment of the said amount of money by giving a notice in writing, to the drawer of the cheque, within 30 days of the receipt of information by him from the bank regarding the return of the cheque as unpaid;

• The drawer of such cheque fails to make payment of the said amount of money to the payee or the holder in due course of the cheque within 15 days of the receipt of the said notice.

3:- Notice under the relevant provisions of Section 164 of the Maharashtra Co-operative Society Act, 1960:-

No suit shall be instituted against a society, or any of its officers, in respect of any act touching the business of the society, until the expiration of two months next after notice in writing has been delivered to the Registrar or left at his office, stating the cause of action, the name, description and place of residence of the Plaintiff and the relief which he claims, and the plaint shall contain a statement that such notice has been so delivered or left.

4:- Notice Under Section 106 of the Railways Act 1989:-

106. Notice of claim for compensation and refund of overcharge.—

(1) A person shall not be entitled to claim compensation against a railway administration for the loss, destruction, damage, deterioration or non-delivery of goods carried by railway, unless a notice thereof is served by him or on his behalf,—

(a) to the railway administration to which the goods are entrusted for carriage; or

(b) to the railway administration on whose railway the destination station lies, or the loss, destruction, damage or deterioration occurs, within a period of six months from the date of entrustment of the goods.

(2) Any information demanded or enquiry made in writing from, or any complaint made in writing to, any of the railway administrations mentioned in sub-section (1) by or on behalf of the person within the said period of six months regarding the non-delivery or delayed delivery of the goods with particulars sufficient to identify the goods shall, for the purpose of this section, be deemed to be a notice of claim for compensation.

(3) A person shall not be entitled to a refund of an overcharge in respect of goods carried by railway unless a notice therefor has been served by him or on his behalf to the railway administration to which the overcharge has been paid within six months from the date of such payment or the date of delivery of such goods at the destination station, whichever is later.

5:- Section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882.

106. Duration of certain leases in absence of written contract or local usage.—

(1) In the absence of a contract or local law or usage to the contrary, a lease of immovable property for agricultural or manufacturing purposes shall be deemed to be a lease from year to year, terminable, on the part of either lessor or lessee, by six months’ notice; and a lease of immovable property for any other purpose shall be deemed to be a lease from month to month, terminable, on the part of either lessor or lessee, by fifteen days’ notice.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, the period mentioned in sub-section (1) shall commence from the date of receipt of notice.

(3) A notice under sub-section (1) shall not be deemed to be invalid merely because the period mentioned therein falls short of the period specified under that sub-section, where a suit or proceeding is filed after the expiry of the period mentioned in that sub-section.

(4) Every notice under sub-section (1) must be in writing, signed by or on behalf of the person giving it, and either be sent by post to the party who is intended to be bound by it or be tendered or delivered personally to such party, or to one of his family or servants at his residence, or (if such tender or delivery is not practicable) affixed to a conspicuous part of the property.

These are the few examples of the statutory Notices by which we can understand the importance of the notices under statutory provisions as “A statutory notice for filing of the suit is merely to put the Defendant on guard so that it can avoid the lis by complying with the demand of the Plaintiff based on the cause of action disclosed in the notice.”

2):- Constructive Notice:- constructive notice or implied notice may be defined to be “knowledge which the court imputes to a person from the circumstances of the case, upon a legal presumption, so strong that it cannot be allowed to be rebutted that the knowledge must be exist though it may not have been formally communicated.” In other words it can be said that “A notice is said to be constructive in circumstances where a party having knowledge of circumstances which would naturally lead him in enquiry, abstains from such enquiry in order to avoid acquiring the Knowledge in question”.

Constructive notice is the legal fiction (A legal fiction is a fact assumed or created by courts, which is then used in order to help reach a decision or to apply a legal rule. The concept is used almost exclusively in common law jurisdictions, particularly in England. An example of a legal fiction outside common law is that it is legally possible to have consumed an illegal substance without having owned it. )  that signifies that a person or entity should have known, as a reasonable person would have, of a legal action taken or to be taken, even if they have no actual knowledge of it. In a very simple way any prudent person can define the constructive notice as the Notice arising by presumption of law from the existence of facts and circumstances that a party had a duty to take notice of, such as a registered deed or a pending law suit; notice presumed by law to have been acquired by a person and thus imputed to that person.

The constructive notice is a legal entity shall have the knowledge or should be known, as a reasonable person would have known of a legal action taken or going to be taken, even if they don’t have any real or actual knowledge of it. Section 399 of the Companies Act, 2013 points out the rules and regulations governing the inspection, evidence of documents with the Registrar and production, it includes the doctrine of constructive notice.

3):- Actual Notice:- A notice is actual and express where notice of any fact is given to a person either orally or in writing where a fact is communicated to a person in such a way that his mind can  and does take cognizance of it. In the case of actual notice, knowledge of a fact is carried to a party by sending to him or by giving him a notice. In a very simple way, any prudent person can define the Actual Notice by stating that “A notice given directly to or received personally by, a party is known as “Actual Notice”.

Apart from the kinds of notices as mentioned hereinabove, [10]the other kinds of the Notices are follows as under:-

Commercial Law Notice:-under the UCC, Notice of a fact arising either as a result of actual knowledge or notification of the fact or as a result of circumstances under which a person would have reason to know of the fact.

Direct/ Positive Notice: – It is an actual notice of fact that is brought directly to a parties’ attention.

Due/ Adequate/ Notice: – Sufficient and proper notice that is intended to and likely to reach a particular person or the public;

Express Notice:-Actual knowledge or notice given a party directly, not arising from any inference, duty or inquiry.

Fair Notice: – Sufficient Notice apprising a litigant of the opposing party’s’ claim. The requirement that a pleading adequately apprise the opposing party of a claim.

Immediate Notice: – Notice given as soon as possible;

Implied Notice: – Notice that is inferred from facts that a person had a means of knowing and that is thus imputed to that person;

Imputed Notice: – Information attributed to a person whose agent having received actual notice of the information, has a duty to disclose it to that person;

Inquiry Notice: – A Notice to investigate the matter;

Personal Notice: – Oral or Written Notice, according to the circumstances, given directly to the affected person;

Public Notice: – Notices given to the Public or persons affected usu. by publishing in a Newspaper of general circulations;

Reasonable Notice, Record Notice, Caution Notice and Contractual Notice are also the kinds of Notices.

CONCLUSION: – Although Notice term is self-defined, yet we can define the term as per the circumstances required for the same. Notice can be defined on the basis of its’ nature. Needless to say that the Notice is the first step to initiate a legal proceedings against the Noticee. Notice is a foundation for initiation of any dispute on all the available legal platforms/ forums. Even in respect of the criminal matters such as mischief, Cheating, forgery, Criminal Breach of trust and  Defamation etc., the Notice is required before lodging the Complaint against the Accused person/s. In the aforementioned circumstances, it is crystal clear that the Notices must be drafted by any prudent person and/or Advocate with proper care caution and also as per the nature and requirement of the circumstances as well as the law is being enforced at that time.  

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[1]  Chamber’s 20^th Century Dictionary 1961(P. 731)

[2] The Judicial Dictionary, Second Ed. By F. Stroud at P. 1289.

[3] Nilkantha Sidramappa v/s. Kashinath, AIR 1962 SC 666

[4] Section 3 of Indian Trusts Act 1882

[5] Section 3(6) of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882.

[6] Ram Swarup v. Brij Nandan Prasad : AIR 1963 All 366

[7] Sec. 80 renumbered as sub-section (1) of that section by Act No. 104 of 1976 (w.e.f. 1.2.1977) &

  Subs. by Act No. 104 of 1976 for “No suit shall be instituted’ (w.e.f. 1.2.1977).

[8] Ins. by Act No. 104 of 1976 (w.e.f. 1.2.1977)

[9]Kusum Ingots and Alloys Ltd vs Pennar Peterson Securities Ltd, (2000) 2 SCC 745  

[10] Blacks’ law dictionary, seventh edition pp, 1087, 1088.