Dispute Resolution In India

Presented by

Group-4

Anil | Bidushi | Kishore | Ngaimuankim | Soni

Judicial System

 It is the system of courts that interprets and applies the laws.

 A mechanism for the Resolution of Disputes.

 It consists of a court of appeal together with lower courts.

Judicial System Hierarchy

Supreme Court

High Court

District Level Metropolitan Level Tribunals

Supreme Court

 It is the highest court of appeal.

 Original and exclusive jurisdiction to resolve disputes between

Central Govt. and one or more states and union territories.

 Empowered to issue directions, orders, writ petitions in cases of

serious human rights violations.

 Writs in the nature of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo

warranto and certiorari.

 Article 32 of the constitution gives jurisdiction to SC to enforce

Fundamental Rights
High Court

 Consists of a Chief Justice and a number of Judges.

 High Court Judge is appointed by the President of India in

consultation with Chief Justice of India, Governor and Chief
Justice of the state.

 Exercises original jurisdiction in civil and admiralty matters.

 Constitution vests some additional powers:

 Article 226
 Article 227
 Article 228
Subordinate Courts

 The highest court in each district is that of the District and Session
Judge.

 It is the principal court of Civil jurisdiction.

 Court of Sessions for the purpose of criminal cases.

 Courts subordinate to District and Sessions Judge:

 Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division)
 Court of Civil Judge (Junior Division)
Tribunal and Other Courts
Facilitate speedy dissemination of justice by individuals
qualified in specific fields.

 Income Tax Appellate Tribunal

 Motor Accident Claims Tribunal
 Industrial Tribunal
 Central/ State Administrative Tribunal
 Company Law Board
 Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal
 Consumer Forum
 Debt Recovery Tribunal
 Intellectual Property Appellate Tribunal
Jurisdiction

 The power or authority of a court

 to hear and determine a cause,
 to adjudicate and
 exercise any judicial power in relation to it.
 Classification
 Territorial or Geographical Jurisdiction.
 Pecuniary Jurisdiction.
 Subject-matter Jurisdiction.
 Original and appellate Jurisdiction.
Territorial & Geographic Jurisdiction

 Local and territorial limits fixed by the government

 The territory of a court is decided based on:

 Immovable property
 Dispute between two or more persons with respect to movable
property, business or any other wrong done
 Matrimonial dispute
Pecuniary Jurisdiction

 A court will have jurisdiction only over those suits the amount or
value of the subject matter of which does not exceed the
pecuniary limits of its jurisdiction.

 This amount of pecuniary jurisdiction is different for all High

Courts.

 Pecuniary jurisdiction of the Delhi Courts:

 District Courts: Suits amounting to Rs.1–Rs.20,00,000
 High Court: Suits over and above Rs.20,00,000
Subject Matter Jurisdiction

 Different courts have been empowered to decide different types

of suits.

 Certain courts are precluded from entertaining certain suits.

 e.g. Bankruptcy courts only has the authority to hear bankruptcy

cases.
Original and appellate Jurisdiction

 In Original Jurisdiction, a Court entertains and decide suits.

 In Appellate Jurisdiction, a Court entertains and decide appeals.
 Courts which possess Original Jurisdiction:
 Munsif’s Courts
 Courts of Civil Judge
 Small Cause Courts
 Courts which possess both Original & Appellate Jurisdiction:
 District Courts and
 High Courts
Limitations

 Limitation refers to the time period within which a person who has
a grievance should approach the Court for relief, beyond this
period, the plea will not be entertained.
 The Limitation Act 1963, specifies the periods of limitation for
different types of causes
 Suits relating to Accounts – 3 years
 Suits relating to Contracts – 3 years
 Suits relating to Declaration – 3 years
 Suits relating to Immovable Property – 12 years
 Suits relating to Movable Property – 3 years etc
Injunction

An Injunction is an order of a Civil Court usually directing the defendant

not to do something.

 Temporary / Interim Injunction

 Restrains a person/party temporarily from doing a specified act for a

specified period or until further order from the court.

 Typically issued when immediate action is required.

 Permanent Injunction

 Restrains a party from doing the specified act.

 Typically issued after a full trials of the merits, or on the consent or

default of the other side.
Public Interest Litigation

 Litigation for the protection of the public interest.

 Signature achievement of Indian constitutional interpretation.
 Improvisation of public law litigation by Indian Judiciary.
 Extension of writ jurisdiction by constitutional courts.
Public Interest Litigation (cont..)

 Grants poor access to the courts.

 No knowledge about their legal rights.
 Material resources.
 Suppression of his/her freedom to move court.
 Cognizance of matters by Court without any procedural
formalities.
Public Interest Litigation (cont..)

 Proactive actions of the SC to changing needs of society where

execution and legislation have fallen behind.
 Rule on issues like
 consumer protection.

 gender justice.

 prevention of environmental pollution.

 Ecological destruction.

 Infusion of spirit of equality into the society.

Hussainara Khatoon (I) vs. State of Bihar

 Earliest cases of Public Interest Litigation by Indian Supreme

Court.
 Plight of ‘under-trial’ prisoners.
 Prisoners serving longer terms than the maximum sentence
granted by courts.
Departure of PIL from traditional public
law

Three major departures

 Dilution of the requirement of ‘locus standi’.
 Proceedings are not strictly adversarial.
 Extension of traditional remedies under writ jurisdiction to
PILs and enabling courts to grant discretionary remedies.
Dilution of Locus standi

 Locus standi – Legal proceeding instituted by only adversely

affected party
 As per PIL
 legal proceeding (writ under Article 32) can be filed by any
person on behalf of aggrieved group
 Judges can consider the matter on their own
 Misuse of PILs leading to caseload of the courts
 To safeguard the interests of underprivileged /Oppressed
sections of the society
 draw courts attention to social evils and governmental apathy
as
 Seek remedies against environmental damage
Non-adversarial proceedings

 Common law norm

 In adversarial system, respective parties engage in argumentation,
presentation of evidence and cross-examination.
 Judges take passive role in disputes decisions.

 Public Interest Litigation

 Active role of judges

 Seeks more information.

 Directions to the public authorities.
 Means of continuing judicial oversight over government functions.
Extension of traditional remedies

 Traditional remedies (Habeas corpus, mandamus, quo warranto,

prohibition, certiorari) extended to PILs
 Courts grant discretionary remedies as per Article 32
 Private law remedies (Injunctions and orders of ‘stay’ are applied
to PILs)
 Example is vishaka v State of Rajasthan
Vishaka v State of Rajasthan, 1997

 Fundamental rights of working women.

 SC guidelines for creation of redressal mechanisms against
sexual harassment of women at workplaces.
 No prevailing legislation dealing with the issue.
 “Right to gender equality” and “right to life and liberty”.
Traditional method of resolving legal
disputes through litigation

Major Concerns
 Expensive
 Slow
 Cumbersome
 Worsen the relationship between the two parties
Alternative Dispute Resolution

 Procedures for settling disputes by means other than litigation.

 The traditional civil law known as Code of Civil Procedure (CPC)
1908 in Indian legal system has been amended and section 89
has been introduced.
 Section 89(1) CPC provides option for settlement of dispute
outside court.
 Used in commercial and labor disputes, divorce actions , medical
malpractice tort claims etc.
Alternative Dispute Resolution (cont..)

 The different primary mechanisms of settlement

 Arbitration
 Conciliation
 Others( Mediation & Judicial Settlement)
 The law that governs these procedures is the Arbitration and
Conciliation Act 1996, based on the Model Law on International
Commercial Arbitration adopted by the United Nations
Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) in 1985
Advantages of ADR

 Less Costly and expeditious.

 Encourages direct participation of the parties and discourages
the implementation of complete procedural law.
 More satisfactory approach as in most of the cases both the
parties will be satisfied with the outcome as well as their
compliance with the agreements reached.
 Creates less ill will and improves the relationship of the parties,
as it is based on an integrative approach than the adversarial
court based method of litigation.
 Gives an opportunity to continue the interaction between the
parties after they have reached a settlement.
Mediation
Process
 Mediator appointed by parties or by the Court.
 Mediator facilitates the discussion between the parties.
 Application of the provisions of Mediation rules 2003.
Role of Mediator
 Assists parties in identifying issues.
 Reduces misunderstandings.
 Clarifies priorities.
 Exploring areas of compromise.
 Generates options in an attempt to solve the dispute.
Arbitration

 ‘Arbitration’ means the process by which an arbitrator

appointed by parties or by the Court, as the case may be,
adjudicates the disputes between the parties to the suit and
passes an award by the application of the provisions of the
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 , in so far as they
refer to arbitration.
Arbitration (cont..)

Difference from traditional litigation

 Disputants mutually decide the person who will hear the case.
 Proceedings are less formal.

Arbitration Agreement
 It is in the form of an Arbitration clause in a contract or in the form
of an agreement.
 The provisions of arbitration can be made at the time of entering
a contract or after a dispute has arisen.
 The agreement must be signed by both the parties.
Arbitration (cont..)

Before signing an Arbitration Agreement the following must be

properly addressed:

 Applicable law to arbitration

 Location of Arbitration
 Number of Arbitrators
 Language of Arbitration
 Discovery procedure
 Limitation to arbitration powers
 Interim measures/Provisional Remedies
 Privacy
 Rules Applicable
 Appeal & Enforcement
Advantages of arbitration

 Final Binding decision

 Limited right of appeal

 Speed and economic

 Flexibility of Procedure

 Confidentiality

 Neutrality

 Specialized competence of arbitrators

 International recognition of arbitral awards

Conciliation

Conciliation is a voluntary dispute resolution process in which a

neutral person, the conciliator, facilitates negotiations between
disputing parties and assists them in understanding their conflicts
at issue and their interests in order to arrive at a mutually
acceptable agreement.
Conciliation Procedure

Submission of Generation of option in

Appointment of
dispute description order to find a
conciliator
to conciliator compatible solution

Types of dispute conducive for mediation:

 Commercial  Insurance
 Financial  Service
 Family  Partnerships
 Real Estate  Environment
 Employment
 IP
 Product Liability
Conciliation vs. Arbitration

 Parties do not agree in advance to follow the decision reached by

third party.

 Decision is not binding on the parties.

 Conciliator assist the parties in exploring the alternatives.

 Conciliation offers more flexible alternatives to arbitration.

 Parties are free to withdraw conciliation, without prejudice to their

legal position, at any stage of the proceedings.

 Creative solutions to the special needs of the parties can become

a part of the settlement.
Lok Adalats – Significance & History

Camps of Lok Adalat were started initially in Gujarat in March 1982 and now
it has been extended throughout the Country. The evolution of this
movement was a part of the strategy to relieve heavy burden on the Courts
with pending cases.

Lok Adalat which has showed its significance by settling huge number of
Third Party claims referred by Motor Accident Claim Tribunal (MACT).
Except matters relating to offences, which are not compoundable, a Lok
Adalat has jurisdiction to deal with all matters.

Parliament enacted the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987, and one of the
aims for the enactment of this Act was to organize Lok Adalat to secure that
the operation of legal system promotes justice. The Act gives recognition to
the resolution of disputes by compromise & settlement by the Lok Adalats.
LSAA, 1987 – Recognition to
Lok Adalat

Section 19

 Central, State, District and Taluka legal Services Authority has

been created who are responsible for organizing Lok Adalats at
such intervals and place.

 The Conciliators for Lok Adalat comprise the following:

1. A sitting or retired judicial officer.

2. Other persons of repute as may be prescribed by the State
Government in consultation with the Chief Justice of High Court.
LSAA, 1987 – Recognition to
Lok Adalat (cont..)
Section 20: Reference of Cases

Cases can be referred for consideration of Lok Adalat as under:

1. By consent of both the parties to the disputes.

2. One of the parties makes an application for refrence.

3. Where the Court is satisfied that the matter is an appropriate one to be

taken cognizance of by the Lok Adalat.

4. Compromise settlement shall be guided by the principles of justice, equity,

fairplay and other legal principles.

5. Where no compromise has been arrived at through conciliation, the matter

shall be returned to the concerned court for disposal in accordance with
Law.
LSAA, 1987 – Recognition to
Lok Adalat (cont..)

Section 21

After the agreement is arrived by the consent of the parties, award is

passed by the conciliators. The matter need not be reffered to the
concerned Court for consent decree.

The Act provisions envisages as under:

1. Every award of Lok Adalat shall be deemed as decree of Civil Court.

2. Every award made by the Lok Adalat shall be final and binding on all the
parties to the dispute.

3. No appeal shall lie from the award of the Lok Adalat.

LSAA, 1987 – Recognition to
Lok Adalat (cont..)

Section 22
 
Every proceedings of the Lok Adalat shall be deemed to be judicial
proceedings for the purpose of 

1. Summoning of Witnesses.

2. Discovery of documents.

3. Reception of evidences.

4. Requistioning of Public record.

Thank You