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- Supreme Court Affirms Damages Recovery for Delayed Provident Fund Contributions Without Time Limit
Blogs · 10 Oct 2026
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal by news reports Limited, upholding damages of Rs. 44,220 under Section 14-B of the Employees Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, for delayed remittance of contributions spanning July 1965 to September 1972. The Court rejected claims of waiver or prejudice, emphasizing that employers who benefit from delayed fund usage must face recovery without prescribed limitation periods. This ruling strengthens the enforceability of statutory compliance obligations for all employers.
- Supreme Court Upholds Recovery of Excess Salary Paid by Mistake if Written Undertaking Given
Blogs · 9 Oct 2026
The Supreme Court, in a bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Sheel Nagu, ruled that excess salary paid to employees by mistake can be recovered if employees provided a written undertaking to refund such payments. The case involved teachers of National Institute of Technology (NIT), Calicut, who received Academic Grade Pay benefits in 2009 but lost eligibility in 2010. The Court applied Section 72 of the Indian Contract Act on unjust enrichment, dismissing the teachers' plea and upholding the Kerala High Court's order, clarifying that recovery is valid even without misrepresentation.
- Supreme Court Grants Divorce on Irretrievable Breakdown Without Mutual Consent
Blogs · 8 Oct 2026
In *Neha Lal v. Abhishek Kumar*, decided on September 22, 2026, the Supreme Court invoked Article 142 to grant divorce based on irretrievable breakdown of marriage despite the absence of mutual consent. The parties had lived together only 65 days and remained separated for over ten years, leading to endless litigation. The Court closed all pending matrimonial cases and imposed token costs of Rs 10,000 each on both spouses, emphasizing that preserving a 'dead marriage' lacks rehabilitative or systemic value.
- Delhi High Court Recognizes 'Right to be Forgotten' as Fundamental Right Under Article 21
Blogs · 7 Oct 2026
Justice Sachin Datta's May 29, 2026 judgment affirms that the right to be forgotten is integral to privacy under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. The ruling allows individuals to seek removal or masking of personal information from online judicial records where continued accessibility causes disproportionate harm to privacy and dignity. Search engines and legal databases must de-index and disable name-based search functionality for specified cases, with directions for global de-indexing where privacy harm is global.
- Supreme Court Uses Article 142 Powers to Grant Divorce and Bar Future Litigation
Blogs · 6 Oct 2026
The Supreme Court exercised its extraordinary powers under Article 142 to grant a decree of divorce by mutual consent, quashing 18 pending civil and criminal proceedings across multiple states and permanently barring fresh litigation between the parties. The Court increased the husband's alimony offer from ₹15 lakh to ₹35 lakh after noting the wife's medical condition and the marriage's irretrievable breakdown since 2022. This decision reinforces the Court's willingness to use Article 142 to end prolonged matrimonial deadlocks when reconciliation is impossible.
- NGT Directs Inspection of Silica Dust Emissions at Jhabua Factory in Madhya Pradesh
Blogs · 5 Oct 2026
The National Green Tribunal on September 9, 2026, ordered the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board, District Jhabua Collector, and Mining Department to inspect Samruddha Mines and Minerals in Meghnagar Industrial Area for alleged silica dust emissions causing silicosis among workers and villagers. The NGT mandated remedial measures for environmental norm violations and required a compliance report within three months, setting a precedent for occupational health protection in mining operations.
- GST Council's October 7 Meeting: Reduced Penalties and Compliance Relief for Small Businesses
Blogs · 1 Oct 2026
The GST Council is scheduled to meet on October 7, 2026, to consider reducing the general penalty from ₹25,000 to ₹10,000 and waiving late fees for small taxpayers with aggregate turnover below ₹5 crore. A minimum threshold of ₹5,000 for issuing show-cause notices under Sections 73 and 74 of the CGST Act may also be introduced. These reforms aim to simplify compliance and reduce the burden on small businesses while maintaining tax administration integrity.
- Jail-Earned Remission and Life Sentences: Supreme Court Clarifies Limits of Sentence Reduction
Blogs · 25 Sep 2026
The Supreme Court (Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta) held on 10 September 2026 that jail-earned remission can only shorten the imposed life sentence and not the guaranteed imprisonment period at the time of extradition. This judgment clarifies the boundary between remission benefits and extradition treaty obligations, affecting prisoners seeking early release under remission schemes.
- Conditional Deposits and Interest Accrual in Arbitration Appeals: Supreme Court Seeks Law Commission Review
Blogs · 24 Sep 2026
The Supreme Court in National Seeds Corporation Ltd. v. National Agro Seed Corporation (India) (2026 INSC 1017, September 18, 2026) observed that the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 lacks statutory guidance on how interest accrues on conditional deposits pending appeals. The Bench noted wide asymmetry across High Courts in deposit handling and has requested the Law Commission to examine comparative practices from the United States and Canada in consultation with the RBI and relevant ministries. This ruling matters to parties involved in arbitration disputes who deposit funds pending appeal outcomes.
- Possession in Specific Performance: Why Courts Favour the Buyer Who Has Occupied Since 1979
Blogs · 23 Sep 2026
The Supreme Court in 2026 INSC 1005 (Sobaran Singh v Gordhan Singh, 15 Sep) restored a trial court decree for specific performance, holding that equity favours a purchaser in possession over decades rather than a refund fixed much later. This ruling clarifies how courts weigh long-term possession against delayed monetary claims in property disputes and matters to buyers asserting equitable rights.
- What AI Actually Does for a Working Advocate — and What It Doesn't
Blogs · 31 Aug 2026
What AI Actually Does for a Working Advocate — and What It Doesn't
- A Working Week With an AI Copilot: Where the Hours Actually Come Back
Blogs · 31 Aug 2026
A Working Week With an AI Copilot: Where the Hours Actually Come Back
- Anticipatory bail and how to prepare for the hearing
Blogs · 18 Aug 2026
A blog on the application most often filed in a hurry and lost for it. Explain the nature of the remedy — a direction that in the event of arrest the applicant shall be released on bail — the courts competent to grant it, and the requirement of reason to believe that arrest is apprehended, which is more than a vague fear. Cover the factors courts weigh: the nature and gravity of the accusation, the applicant's antecedents, the possibility of fleeing from justice, whether the accusation appears designed to injure or humiliate, and the necessity of custodial interrogation. Explain the conditions ordinarily imposed and how to propose reasonable ones proactively. Address the statutory bars and the categories of offence where the remedy is unavailable or restricted, and the practice on interim protection pending notice to the prosecution. Cover the procedural points that decide outcomes: what documents to annex, whether to disclose prior applications, the consequence of concealment, the position after a charge sheet is filed, and how a rejection at the Sessions level affects the High Court application. Include a model petition and a preparation checklist.
- Drafting a written statement that protects your client
Blogs · 18 Aug 2026
A blog on a document that is frequently treated as a formality and decides cases. Explain the governing rules on pleading: material facts must be stated, not evidence or law; every allegation not specifically denied is deemed admitted; and evasive denial is treated as no denial at all. Explain the discipline that follows — a paragraph-by-paragraph response, specific denial in clear terms, and an affirmative statement of the defendant's own version. Cover preliminary objections and their sequence: jurisdiction, limitation, maintainability, non-joinder and misjoinder, res judicata, absence of statutory notice, and undervaluation. Explain set-off and counterclaim, the difference between them, court fee implications, and the timing constraints. Address the statutory time limit for filing, the extended discretion outside commercial disputes and the strict outer limit within them, and what an application for extension must establish. Add the practical points: never plead inconsistent defences without care, never admit a document's execution merely to save time, and always verify the written statement correctly. Include a structural template.
- Guarantors and their liability
Blogs · 18 Aug 2026
A blog on an exposure people accept casually and regret badly. Explain the nature of a contract of guarantee, the tripartite relationship between creditor, principal debtor and surety, and the principle that the surety's liability is coextensive with that of the principal debtor unless the contract provides otherwise. Explain what that means in practice: the creditor may proceed against the guarantor without first exhausting remedies against the borrower or the security. Cover the circumstances that discharge a surety — variance in the terms of the contract without consent, release or discharge of the principal debtor, a compromise or promise not to sue, the creditor's act impairing the surety's remedy, and loss of security held by the creditor. Explain the surety's rights on payment: subrogation to the creditor's position, the right to indemnity from the principal debtor, and the right to securities held by the creditor. Add the modern context — personal guarantees in corporate lending, the position of a guarantor when the borrower enters insolvency, and enforcement against guarantors under recovery and securitisation legislation. Include a checklist before signing.
- Preservation and production of electronic evidence
Blogs · 18 Aug 2026
A practical blog on evidence that disappears if not secured immediately. Explain the categories that matter in practice — CCTV footage, call detail records, tower location data, WhatsApp and messaging content, email, bank transaction logs and device images — and the retention period each typically has before automatic deletion. Explain the urgency: most CCTV systems overwrite within fifteen to thirty days, and telecom records have finite retention. Cover the mechanisms for preservation and production: an application to the investigating officer, an application to the Magistrate for a direction to produce a document or thing, a summons to a third party such as a bank or service provider, and an application in a pending suit. Address the certification requirement for electronic records and what the certificate must state, who may sign it, and the consequence of its absence. Explain the practical points that decide admissibility — hash values, chain of custody, the difference between the original device and a copy, and why a screenshot alone is usually insufficient. Include a model preservation application and a certificate format.
- When a court can be asked to reconsider its own order
Blogs · 18 Aug 2026
A blog on three remedies that litigants confuse constantly. Explain review — available on discovery of new and important matter that could not have been produced earlier despite due diligence, on an error apparent on the face of the record, or for any other sufficient reason — and stress that review is not an appeal in disguise and cannot be used to reargue the merits. Then explain what qualifies as an error apparent: something self-evident that requires no elaborate reasoning to detect, as opposed to a debatable point of law. Cover the thirty-day limitation, the practice that a review is ordinarily heard by the same judge, and the limited appealability of an order granting review. Distinguish the second remedy, correction of clerical or arithmetical mistakes and accidental slips, which is available at any time and requires no formal application. Then the third, recall, where an order was passed without jurisdiction or without notice to a party. Add the position on review in writ jurisdiction and in criminal matters, where the power is far narrower. Include model applications for each.
- Getting certified copies and inspecting court records
Blogs · 14 Aug 2026
A practical blog on a task juniors are handed and rarely taught. Explain why certified copies matter: an appeal or revision must be accompanied by one, limitation for an appeal runs from the date of the decree with the time taken for obtaining the copy excluded, and secondary evidence of a court record is inadmissible without it. Cover the mechanics — the application form, court fee, folio requirements, urgent versus ordinary copies and the difference in timeline, and how to compute the exclusion period accurately from the application and delivery dates endorsed on the copy. Explain inspection of records, who is entitled to inspect, the position of a stranger to the proceedings, and applications for inspection of records in disposed matters and record rooms. Add the digital layer: downloading orders and judgments from court portals, the difference between a downloaded copy and a certified one, and which forums now accept digitally signed copies. Include a note on obtaining copies from the Sub-Registrar, revenue offices and police stations, and a checklist for building an appeal paperbook.
- Death of a party during litigation
Blogs · 14 Aug 2026
A short blog on an event that quietly kills cases. Explain the concept of the right to sue surviving, and the categories where it does not — purely personal claims such as defamation and, generally, matrimonial proceedings. Cover the procedure for bringing legal representatives on record: the ninety-day period for the application, the sixty-day period thereafter for setting aside abatement, and the separate application for condonation of delay that is required if both periods have run. Explain what abatement means in practice and why it is far harder to reverse than to prevent. Address the position where one of several plaintiffs or defendants dies and the right to sue survives against the remainder, where no application is fatal. Cover who qualifies as a legal representative, including the position of a person intermeddling with the estate, and the fact that the court determines representation summarily without deciding title. Add the parallel provisions for appeals, execution proceedings and writ petitions, and a chamber protocol — diarise every death immediately and file within thirty days rather than ninety.
- Registration and stamping of documents
Blogs · 14 Aug 2026
A blog on the two requirements that decide whether a document can be used in court at all. Explain compulsory registration — instruments creating, transferring or extinguishing an interest in immovable property above the statutory threshold, leases above a specified term, and gift deeds — and the consequence of non-registration, which is that the document cannot affect the property or be received in evidence, subject to the limited collateral-purpose exception. Cover the four-month presentation period, delay condonation on payment of penalty, and the position on agreements to sell and on powers of attorney. Then treat stamp duty separately, since the two are often confused: an insufficiently stamped instrument is inadmissible for any purpose until the duty and penalty are paid, and the court is obliged to impound it. Explain how to cure a deficit mid-trial and the cost of doing so. Add Karnataka-specific practical content — the market value guidance, e-stamping, and the recurring problem of undervalued sale deeds. Include a quick-reference table by document type.
- Cross-examination that changes the outcome
Blogs · 14 Aug 2026
A practical blog on the skill that separates competent trial lawyers from the rest. Explain the purposes of cross-examination — to elicit favourable facts, to impeach credibility, to establish contradictions with prior statements, and to lay the foundation for documents — and the discipline of choosing two or three objectives rather than attacking everything. Cover preparation: building a chronology from the pleadings, tabulating every prior statement of the witness with paragraph references, identifying admissions in documents the witness must accept, and drafting questions in short leading form. Explain the rule requiring that a party's case be put to the opposing witness, and the consequence of failing to do so. Cover confronting a witness with a previous inconsistent statement and the procedure that must be followed for it to be admissible. Address practical judgment — when to stop, why never to ask a question whose answer is unknown, how to handle an evasive or coached witness, and how to deal with a witness the court has permitted the party calling him to cross-examine. Include a preparation template.
- Legal notices that actually work
Blogs · 14 Aug 2026
A short practical blog on the first document in most disputes. Explain the two categories: notices required by statute as a precondition to proceedings — the cheque dishonour notice with its strict fifteen-day and thirty-day timelines, notice to a government or public officer, notice under tenancy legislation, and pre-institution demand under insolvency law — and notices sent purely as a commercial or tactical step. Explain why the distinction matters: in the first category a defect is fatal to the claim, while in the second it merely weakens negotiating position. Cover the essential contents — clear identification of parties, a precise recital of facts and dates, the legal basis, the specific demand, the time allowed for compliance, and the consequence of non-compliance. Address mode of dispatch and proof of service, since a notice that cannot be proved is worthless: registered post with acknowledgment, courier with tracking, email and its evidentiary requirements, and the presumption of service on correct address. Warn against the common errors — overstating the claim, threatening criminal action for a civil default, and drafting the notice inconsistently with the plaint that follows.
- Recalling and re-examining witnesses during trial
Blogs · 13 Aug 2026
A blog on a power that rescues cases from bad cross-examination and from evidence that emerges late. Explain the court's power to summon a material witness or recall and re-examine any person already examined, at any stage, where the evidence appears essential to the just decision of the case, along with the parallel power on the application of a party. Explain the two limbs of that power — the discretionary limb and the mandatory limb triggered where the evidence is essential — and the different standards they attract. Cover the recurring situations: a witness who was not cross-examined on a crucial document, a document marked but not proved through any witness, a witness whose earlier testimony is contradicted by later material, and a prosecution witness whose examination was cut short. Address the misuse concern and the courts' insistence that the power is not to be used to fill lacunae in the prosecution case or to give a party a second attempt at a failed cross-examination. Include the position on recalling in summary and summons trials, cost conditions typically imposed, and a model recall application.
- Compounding of offences: settling a criminal case lawfully
Blogs · 13 Aug 2026
A blog on the difference between a case that can be settled and one that cannot. Explain the scheme of compounding under the BNSS: offences compoundable without leave of court, offences compoundable only with leave, and offences that are not compoundable at all. Explain who may compound — the person against whom the offence was committed, and the position where that person is a minor, of unsound mind or deceased. Cover the effect of composition, which operates as an acquittal, and the timing, including composition at the appellate and revisional stages with leave. Then address the separate and larger question of quashing on the basis of settlement in non-compoundable cases, the categories in which High Courts exercise inherent power — predominantly civil or matrimonial disputes — and the categories in which they will not, notably offences against the State, heinous offences and those affecting society at large. Include the special position of cheque bounce cases, where compounding is expressly permitted and the courts have laid down a graded costs scale for delayed composition. Include model compounding petitions and settlement terms.
- Framing of charge: the stage where most trials are won or lost
Blogs · 13 Aug 2026
A blog on a hearing that many advocates treat as a formality. Explain the stages under the BNSS: supply of documents to the accused, consideration of discharge, and framing of charge, along with the corresponding provisions for warrant cases, summons cases and Sessions trials. Set out the test the court applies — whether there is grave suspicion, not proof, and whether the material discloses ingredients of the offence alleged. Explain what the accused may and may not place before the court at this stage, and the limited circumstances in which unimpeachable documentary material may be looked at. Cover the drafting of the charge itself: the requirement of particulars as to time, place, person and manner, the consequence of an error or omission, alteration of charge during trial, and the accused's right to recall witnesses after alteration. Explain why a well-argued discharge application pays off even when refused, because it forces the prosecution to commit to a theory of the case. Include a model discharge application and a note on revision against an order framing charge.
- Interim injunctions: what actually persuades a court
Blogs · 13 Aug 2026
A blog on the most frequently sought and most frequently refused relief in civil practice. Explain the three-part test — prima facie case, balance of convenience, and irreparable injury — and stress that all three must be satisfied, not merely the first. Explain what a prima facie case means at the interlocutory stage and what documents must accompany the application to establish it in a title dispute, a contractual dispute, a trademark matter and a construction dispute. Cover the special requirements for ex parte injunctions: the obligation to record reasons, the duty of full and frank disclosure, the consequences of suppression, the notice requirement, and the time limit within which the suit must be disposed of. Address mandatory injunctions and the higher threshold they attract, injunctions against invocation of bank guarantees and the narrow fraud and irretrievable injustice exceptions, and the bar on injuncting government action in certain revenue matters. Include the appeal remedy, the consequence of breach through contempt and attachment, and a model application with the affidavit of urgency.
- Withdrawal and abandonment of a suit
Blogs · 13 Aug 2026
A short practical blog on a step taken carelessly and regretted often. Explain the plaintiff's right to abandon a suit or part of a claim, and the critical distinction between simple withdrawal and withdrawal with liberty to file a fresh suit. Set out the two grounds on which the court may grant liberty — formal defect, and sufficient grounds for allowing a fresh claim — and explain what qualifies as a formal defect. Emphasise the consequence of withdrawing without liberty: the plaintiff is precluded from instituting a fresh suit on the same subject matter, which is a trap that catches litigants who withdraw to correct a drafting error. Cover the position where there are multiple plaintiffs or defendants and consent requirements, the treatment of costs on withdrawal, and the effect on counterclaims, which survive independently. Add the position on withdrawal of appeals and of writ petitions, where the Court's practice on liberty differs. Include a model memo of withdrawal, a model application seeking liberty, and a checklist of what must be pleaded to make out a formal defect.
- Bail Bonds, Sureties and Bond Forfeiture under the BNSS
Blogs · 12 Aug 2026
The stage after bail is granted, where matters routinely go wrong. Explain the bond framework under Chapter XXXV of the BNSS: the requirement of a bond with or without sureties, the court's power to fix the amount and the direction that it not be excessive, and the position of the indigent accused. Cover who may stand surety, the verification of surety documents that trial courts insist on — identity, address, solvency certificate, property documents and photographs — and the common causes of rejection. Explain the consequences of breach: forfeiture proceedings, the show cause requirement, recovery as if it were a fine, and the surety's liability and discharge on application. Address the practical scenarios that arise most often — the accused who absconds, the surety who wishes to withdraw, the surety who dies, and the accused who cannot furnish local sureties because he is from another state. Include the procedure for substitution of surety, for reduction of the bond amount, and for cancellation of bail on breach of conditions, along with model applications for each.
- Costs in Indian Litigation: Sections 35, 35A and 35B CPC and the Commercial Courts Regime
Blogs · 12 Aug 2026
Costs in India have historically been nominal, but that is changing, and advocates who ignore the shift leave money on the table. Explain the general discretion under Section 35 and the principle that costs follow the event, the compensatory costs for false or vexatious claims under Section 35A with its statutory ceiling, and the costs for causing delay under Section 35B. Then set out the materially different regime introduced by the 2015 amendment for commercial disputes: the requirement that the court ordinarily direct the unsuccessful party to pay the successful party's costs, the enumerated factors including conduct, exaggerated claims and rejected settlement offers, and the inclusion of counsel's fees, witness expenses and other proceedings-related expenditure within the definition of costs. Explain what must be placed on record to obtain a meaningful costs order — a costs statement, fee particulars and evidence of settlement attempts — since courts cannot award what has not been proved. Add practical notes on costs in writ jurisdiction, exemplary costs for abuse of process, and enforcement of a costs order.
- Commissions under Order XXVI CPC: Local Inspection, Examination of Witnesses and Accounts
Blogs · 12 Aug 2026
An under-used chapter that solves problems no amount of oral evidence can. Explain the situations in which a commission is the right tool: examination of a witness who is exempt from personal appearance, is ill, or resides beyond jurisdiction under Rules 1 to 8; local investigation to elucidate a matter in dispute or ascertain market value, mesne profits or damages under Rule 9; examination of accounts under Rules 11 and 12; partition of immovable property under Rules 13 and 14; and scientific investigation, sale of perishables and ministerial acts under Rule 10A to 10C. Devote particular attention to the boundary dispute scenario, where a court commissioner with a licensed surveyor is often the only way to translate revenue records into an enforceable decree, and explain what the commissioner's warrant should specify so that the report is usable. Cover the evidentiary status of the report under Rule 10(2), the procedure for filing objections, and when a fresh commission will be ordered. Include a model application, a draft warrant of commission, and a note on commissioner's fees and who bears them.
- Transfer of Cases: Sections 22 to 25 CPC and Sections 447 to 452 BNSS
Blogs · 12 Aug 2026
A practical guide to moving a case out of a court where the client cannot get a fair or convenient hearing. On the civil side, explain the defendant's right under Section 22 to apply for transfer where a suit could have been instituted in more than one court, the timing requirement that the application be made at the earliest possible opportunity, the powers of the District Court and High Court under Section 24 to transfer, withdraw and retry, and the Supreme Court's Section 25 power to transfer between states. On the criminal side, cover the High Court's power under Section 447 BNSS and the Supreme Court's under Section 446, the grounds recognised — reasonable apprehension that justice will not be done, convenience of parties and witnesses, questions of unusual difficulty, and expediency in the ends of justice — and the requirement of an affidavit stating grounds. Address matrimonial transfer petitions specifically, since they form the bulk of Section 25 practice, and the courts' consistent solicitude for the wife's convenience. Include the costs consequence for frivolous applications and a model transfer petition with a supporting affidavit.
- Order IX CPC: Restoring a Dismissed Suit and Setting Aside an Ex Parte Decree
Blogs · 12 Aug 2026
Every litigation practice loses a matter to non-appearance eventually. This blog explains how to recover it. Distinguish the situations Order IX addresses: dismissal for non-appearance of both parties under Rule 3, dismissal for the plaintiff's absence under Rule 8, ex parte proceeding against an absent defendant under Rule 6, and the resulting ex parte decree. Set out the two distinct remedies — restoration under Rule 9 where the suit was dismissed, and setting aside under Rule 13 where a decree was passed — along with the different tests each attracts. Explain "sufficient cause" and how courts have treated counsel's absence, illness, mistake and misplaced diary entries, and warn that a bald affidavit rarely succeeds. Cover the crucial proviso to Rule 13, which bars relief where the summons was duly served and the defendant had notice of the hearing date, and the strategic consequence for how service is challenged. Add limitation under Article 123 of the Limitation Act, the thirty-day period running from the decree or from knowledge, and the interaction with an appeal already filed against the same decree. Include model applications and a chamber protocol for diarising hearing dates.
- Service of Summons under Order V CPC: E-mail, WhatsApp and the End of "Awaiting Service"
Blogs · 8 Aug 2026
Delay in service is the single largest cause of dead time in Indian civil litigation. Explain the full menu under Order V: personal service, service on an agent, service on an adult member of the family, affixture under Rule 17, substituted service by publication under Rule 20, and service through the court of another jurisdiction. Then cover the modern additions — service by courier, fax and e-mail under Rule 9, the growing use of WhatsApp and other electronic modes authorised by High Court circulars, and what the record must show for such service to be held valid: the delivery report, the double tick, the profile identification, and the affidavit of the process holder. Address the specific position in cheque dishonour cases, where several High Courts have expressly permitted electronic service of summons. Include the consequences of improper service — setting aside of an ex parte decree under Order IX Rule 13, and the proviso barring relief where the defendant had notice. Close with a chamber checklist for building an unimpeachable service record.
- Court Fee and Valuation: Getting the Number Right Before the Registry Sends It Back
Blogs · 8 Aug 2026
A practical guide to the step that delays more filings in Karnataka than any other. Explain the distinction between jurisdictional valuation and valuation for court fee, and why the two are not always the same. Work through the common categories: suits for money, suits for declaration with consequential relief, partition suits by a person in joint possession versus one out of possession, suits for injunction, specific performance suits and the treatment of the consideration amount, and suits for cancellation of an instrument. Cover ad valorem versus fixed fee, the effect of amendment of the plaint on fee, deficit court fee and the opportunity to make it good, and refund of court fee on settlement or reference to mediation. Add the appellate side: fee on first appeal, second appeal, and revision. Include the practical workflow — checking the market value guidance for immovable property, obtaining the correct valuation certificate, and responding to registry objections. Close with a one-page ready reckoner for the most frequently filed suit types and a caution on undervaluation as a ground of attack by the defendant.
- Interim Compensation under Sections 143A and 148 of the NI Act
Blogs · 8 Aug 2026
Cheque bounce practice changed materially after the 2018 amendment, but many complainants still do not ask for what they are entitled to. Explain Section 143A, which allows the trial court to direct the drawer to pay interim compensation of up to twenty per cent of the cheque amount, and Section 148, which allows the appellate court to direct deposit of a minimum of twenty per cent of the fine or compensation as a condition of suspension of sentence. Address the crucial distinction courts have drawn between the two — the discretionary character of Section 143A and the near-default character of Section 148 — and the question of retrospective application to complaints filed before the amendment. Cover the timelines for payment, extension, and recovery as if it were a fine, along with the adjustment of interim compensation against the final award. From the defence side, explain how to resist a Section 143A order by demonstrating a prima facie plausible defence. Include a model application, a model objection, and a note on the appellate court's power to reduce or stagger the deposit.
- Caveat under Section 148A CPC: The Cheapest Insurance in Litigation
Blogs · 8 Aug 2026
A short, practical piece on the most under-used provision in the Code. Explain what a caveat is, who may lodge one, and the core protection it buys — the court cannot pass an interim order without first hearing the caveator. Cover the mechanics: where to file, the ninety-day validity and the need to renew, service of notice of the caveat on the expected applicant, and the applicant's reciprocal duty under sub-section (3) to serve a copy of the application and accompanying papers on the caveator. Explain the practical scenarios where a caveat saves a client: an anticipated appeal against a favourable decree, an expected writ petition against a client's licence or allotment, an expected Section 9 arbitration application, or a probable ex parte injunction over property. Include a note on caveats in criminal matters and the limits there, and on caveats before the High Court and Supreme Court registries. End with a ready-to-use caveat petition format and a chamber practice tip: build caveat filing into the closing checklist for every matter that ends in a client's favour.
- Notice under Section 80 CPC: Suing the Government Without Getting Thrown Out
Blogs · 8 Aug 2026
Suits against the government and public officers fail at the threshold more often than on merits, almost always because of a defective statutory notice. Explain the two-month notice requirement under Section 80(1), the contents that must be stated — name, description, place of residence, the cause of action and the relief claimed — and the identity between the notice and the plaint that courts insist on. Cover Section 80(2), which permits a suit for urgent or immediate relief with leave of court, and the trap in the proviso: the court must not grant relief without giving the government a reasonable opportunity. Address Section 80(3), which prevents dismissal for merely technical errors in the notice where the substance is clear. Then set out the parallel and often stricter notice provisions in special statutes — municipal Acts, revenue laws, and state development authority enactments — and warn that Section 80 does not displace them. Include a model notice, a table of common defects that have proved fatal, and a limitation note on exclusion of the notice period under Section 15(2) of the Limitation Act.
- AI for Case Diary and Practice Management: Never Miss a Date Again
Blogs · 6 Aug 2026
A missed hearing date is one of the most preventable failures in legal practice. Here's how AI can strengthen your case diary and practice management without adding risk.
- Billing Smarter: How AI Helps Advocates Track Time and Value
Blogs · 6 Aug 2026
Undercharging and inconsistent billing quietly cost Indian advocates real income. Here's how AI can help track time, value work fairly, and bill with more confidence.
- AI for Legal Notice Drafting: The First Document in Every Dispute
Blogs · 6 Aug 2026
A legal notice sets the tone for everything that follows. Here's how AI can speed up notice drafting across common categories while keeping every notice accurate.
- AI and Access to Justice: Closing India's Legal Aid Gap
Blogs · 6 Aug 2026
Millions of Indians cannot afford or reach adequate legal representation. Here's how AI is beginning to narrow that gap — and where it genuinely cannot substitute for a lawyer.
- AI for Matrimonial and Family Law Practice in India
Blogs · 30 Jul 2026
Family law demands both precedent research and human sensitivity. Here's where AI genuinely helps matrimonial practitioners — and where it should stay firmly in the background.
- AI for GST and Tax Litigation Research in India
Blogs · 30 Jul 2026
GST and tax law change constantly through circulars, notifications, and rulings. Here's how AI helps tax litigators stay current — and where currency risk is highest.
- AI in Arbitration Practice: Research, Drafting, and Award Analysis
Blogs · 30 Jul 2026
Arbitration in India runs on party autonomy, tight timelines, and dense documentary records. Here's how AI fits into arbitration practice — and where confidentiality limits it.
- AI for Real Estate and RERA Disputes: A Practical Playbook
Blogs · 30 Jul 2026
RERA complaints, builder-buyer disputes, and title litigation involve dense documentation and fast-evolving precedent. Here's how AI helps real estate practitioners work faster.
- AI in Labour and Service Law: Research for a High-Volume Practice
Blogs · 30 Jul 2026
Labour and service law involves dense, overlapping statutes and a huge body of tribunal precedent. Here's how AI helps practitioners handle the volume without missing nuance.
- From SUVAS to LLMs: A Short History of AI in the Indian Judiciary
Blogs · 29 Jul 2026
AI in Indian courts didn't start with ChatGPT. Here's a timeline of how the judiciary quietly built its own AI infrastructure — and where it's heading next.
- Who Owns an AI-Drafted Legal Document? Copyright Questions for Advocates
Blogs · 29 Jul 2026
When AI drafts a pleading, notice, or opinion, who owns it — and can it even be copyrighted? Here's what Indian advocates should understand about AI and authorship.
- Why Courts Won't Let AI Decide: AI and Judicial Independence in India
Blogs · 29 Jul 2026
Every Indian AI-in-courts policy draws the same line: AI can assist, never decide. Here's the constitutional reasoning behind that boundary — and why it will hold.
- The EU AI Act and Indian Legal Tech: What Advocates Should Know
Blogs · 28 Jul 2026
The EU AI Act classifies legal AI as high-risk. Here's what that framework means, how it compares to India's approach, and why it matters for Indian advocates.