Trial courts can reject time-barred suits on their own initiative: SC

• Courts should nip vexatious litigation in the bud to save judicial time, says Justice Mazhar • SHC order in Askari IV bungalow case set aside • Trial court directed to decide civil suit’s maintainability after giving both parties adequate opportunity of hearing ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has ruled that a trial court can reject a palpably vexatious or time-barred lawsuit on its own initiative at the earliest stage, without waiting for a formal application from the defendant. “There is no bar or embargo under Section 3 of the Limitation Act, 1908, or Order VII, Rule 11 of the Code of Civil…