Definition
The profits received by a person who wrongfully holds possession of property — the profits that the true owner or entitled possessor would have received during the period of wrongful possession, recoverable from the wrongful occupant.
Mesne profits under Section 2(12) of the CPC are the profits received by or receivable by a person who is in wrongful possession of immovable property — profits that the person entitled to possession would have received had they been in possession. In a suit for recovery of possession, the plaintiff may also claim mesne profits for the period during which the defendant wrongfully held possession. Mesne profits are distinct from: (a) rent — which is contractually agreed; and (b) compensation — which is for loss of use. Mesne profits are the wrongful holder's actual or notional earnings from the property.
Statutory Definition
Section 2(12), Code of Civil Procedure, 1908: '"mesne profits" of property means those profits which the person in wrongful possession of such property actually received or might with ordinary diligence have received therefrom, together with interest on such profits, but shall not include profits due to improvements made by the person in wrongful possession.'
Etymology & Origin
From Old French 'mesne' (intermediate, middle, from Latin 'medianus') — 'mesne' in this context means 'intermediate' (profits during the intermediate period of wrongful possession). The term is particularly used in common law conveyancing and property law.
Full Legal Analysis
Mesne Profits: Accountability for Wrongful Possession
A wrongful possessor profits from their wrong — they use or earn income from property to which they have no right. Mesne profits are the law’s mechanism for making them account for those profits: the true owner or entitled possessor is entitled not only to recover possession but also to receive the profits that were earned (or could have been earned) from the property during the wrongful occupation.
What Mesne Profits Include
(a) Actual profits: Rent received from sub-tenants, agricultural produce, commercial income from the property. (b) Notional profits: What the wrongful possessor could have earned 'with ordinary diligence' — if they failed to exploit the property's potential, they are still accountable for what a reasonably diligent person would have earned. (c) Interest on profits: Interest on the profits from the date they were earned. What mesne profits specifically exclude: 'profits due to improvements made by the person in wrongful possession' — the wrongful possessor who built a factory on the land is not required to account for the factory's profits (since the plaintiff did not build it).
Claiming Mesne Profits: Procedure
A claim for mesne profits may be made: (a) in the same suit as the claim for possession — as additional relief; (b) in a separate suit after the possession decree is passed — particularly where the court cannot determine the period of wrongful possession (which requires the passing of the possession decree first) at the time of the original suit. Order XX Rule 12 CPC deals with the passing of a decree for mesne profits in a possession suit — the court may pass a preliminary decree and then determine the amount of mesne profits separately.
“Mesne profits close the loop on wrongful possession: the wrongdoer must not only give back the property, but also account for every benefit they derived from it during their wrongful occupation. The law refuses to allow a wrongful possessor to keep the profits of their wrong while surrendering the property itself.”
This Term in Indian Statutes
Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, 1908
""mesne profits" of property means those profits which the person in wrongful possession of such property actually received or might with ordinary diligence have received therefrom, together with interest on such profits, but shall not include profits due to improvements made by the person in wrongful possession."
Mesne profits: profits (actual or notional) earned during wrongful possession — excludes profits from improvements
