'Large Number Of Cases Before Us Are Of Prolonged Incarceration, Why Not Put In Place A System To Give More Accessibility To Legal Aid ?' Justice S K Kaul

"It is a matter of concern when we compare the number of lawyers enrolled in the country with the legal aid available, especially in the context of the socio-economic strata of society where the litigants can ill afford large amounts of litigation", expressed Justice S. K. Kaul on Saturday. At the same, Justice Kaul insisted, "The person giving legal aid must have empathy for what he is doing. Otherwise, your heart will not be in what you do. That is why Justice Chandrachud spoke of ...

'Courts Are Not Playgrounds And Litigation Is Not A Pastime' – Bombay HC Imposes Rs 25 Lakh Costs For Vexatious Application In Commercial Dispute

The Bombay High Court recently imposed heavy costs on the plaintiff for a "vexatious and mischievous" application, observing that the Commercial Courts Act is not anti-defendant and is meant for expeditious disposal of commercial disputes. "Plaintiffs such as this one will understand that Courts are not playgrounds, and litigation is not a pastime," Justice Gautam Patel observed while directing plaintiff La Fin Financial Services Pvt Ltd to pay the Defendant Multi Commodity Exchange Of...

What Constitutes A 'Commercial Dispute' Under Commercial Courts Act, 2015? Calcutta High Court Explains

The Calcutta High Court recently had the opportunity to extensively define what constitutes a "commercial dispute" as contemplated under Section 2(1)(c) of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 (2015 Act). The issue in consideration before the Court was whether a plea filed before the Commercial Division of the High Court should be tried under the provisions of the 2015 Act or be adjudicated upon as a regular suit. The petitioner had moved the instant plea seeking recovery of amount to the tune of...

Bar U/S 8 Of Commercial Courts Act On Revision Application/ Petition Not Applicable To Petitions Under Article 227: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the bar provided under Section 8 of the Commercial Courts Act against entertaining revision application or petition against any interlocutory order of a Commercial Court, is not applicable to petitions under Article 227 of the Constitution of India.A Division Bench of Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw and Justice Amit Bansal held that the jurisdiction and powers of the High Court in entertaining petition under Art. 227 cannot be affected by a statute framed by a...

Commercial Courts Act- Section 12-A On Pre-Institution Mediation and Settlement Is Not A Mandatory Provision: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court recently held that Section 12-A of the Commercial Courts Act, isnot a mandatory provision.The Court delved into a thorough analysis of the provisions under Section 12-A on Pre-Institution Mediation and Settlement. It further analyzed the Rule 3(1) and 3(7) of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 (Pre-Institution Mediation and Settlement) Rules, 2018."Though, the word 'shall' in Section 12-A of the Act, sounds Prelitigation mediation is mandatory on the part of the...

Application For Condonation Of Delay Must Be Submitted With A Written Statement Filed Beyond 30 Days Of Issue Of Summons: Delhi High Court

The Delhi high Court passed an order today holding that a written statement filed after 30 days of service of summons but before the expiry of further 90 days must mandatorily be accompanied with a written application setting out the reasons for the delay. This would allow the court to consider the reasons so given, to condone delay and receive the belated written statement giving reasons for granting such leave and enabling the court to impose appropriate costs, added Justice Asha...

Counsel's Failure To Argue Written Submissions Not A Ground For Review: Bombay High Court

In an important order, the Bombay High Court has observed that written submissions in a dispute become immaterial if the litigant's counsel doesn't rely on them before the court of the first instance.The Bench went on to add that those submissions cannot subsequently be used to challenge any order. "Counsel's failure to argue written submissions is not a ground of review or, I dare say, even appeal. It is no ground to assail any order of any judge of any court. If the written...

Delhi Cabinet Nod For Creation Of 22 Commercial Courts And 42 Additional Posts In Higher Judicial Service

The Delhi Cabinet on Monday approved two separate proposals for establishing 22 commercial courts and 42 Additional posts in the Delhi Higher Judicial Services. Kailash Gahlot, Law Minister of the Delhi Government today said:Delhi Government, under our Hon'ble CM has been consistently focusing on improving 'Ease of Doing Business'. Today's decision is not just another step towards meeting targets, but also one that has been taken after referring to global best practices on fast & efficient...

All Commercial Appeals From District Court Orders To Now Be Listed Before Division Benches: Delhi High Court

The High Court of Delhi has on Wednesday directed its Registry to list all commercial appeals from district court orders before the Commercial Appellate Division Benches. The Court has also directed these appeals to be registered as FAO (Comm) before they are listed before the Commercial Appellate Division. A Single Bench of Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva has directed that all appeals filed under Section 13(1A) of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, arising out of orders or judgments passed by...

Admission & Denial Of Documents In Suits

Prior to enacting the Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Act, 2015 ("Commercial Courts Act"), documents filed with the plaint and the written statement, especially in respect of the existence of the documents, were denied by the parties with impunity. With the introduction of the Commercial Courts Act an elaborate process was formulated in order for a party to admit and deny documents. This, along with other measures/ mechanisms such as discovery, ...

The Court Annexed Mediation Mechanism: An Overlooked Avenue For Justice

Mediation, as a means of resolution of disputes, has been growing significantly over the past few decades. It is considered to be the most appropriate method amidst the 'Alternative Dispute Resolution' mechanisms as it is cost-effective, flexible, amicable and addresses the conflict in the most cordial of manners. Mediation is a process in which a third non-partisan party seeks to stimulate a voluntary and an unconstrained agreement between the parties in conflict by using negotiation...

Importance Of Case Management And Practice Directions Before Commercial Courts

Case Management is a judicial process which provides effective, efficient and purposeful judicial management of a case so as to achieve a timely and qualitative resolution of a dispute. It assists in the early identification of disputed issues of fact and law, the establishment of a procedural calendar for the life of the case and the exploration of a possibility of resolution of the dispute through methods other than the Court trial. Practice directions are issued by the Court to...