Latest news with #CivilProcedureCode
The Print
a day ago
- Politics
- The Print
After success in metros, SC panel & NALSA working on module to train community mediators in villages
These neutral persons, who would be trained to acquire negotiating skills to resolve disputes amicably at the pre-litigation stage, would not be politically aligned individuals, but preferably those who have retired from government jobs such as teaching or defence services. To start with, the two bodies are currently working on a programme to train mediators in villages. According to people aware of this move, NALSA proposes to approach all gram panchayats and ask them to identify and nominate respected persons from their villages who are willing to be trained as mediators. New Delhi: In an effort to reduce workload for courts, a mechanism is being developed to encourage out-of-court mediation. The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), in collaboration with the Supreme Court's Mediation and Conciliation Project Committee (MCPC), is developing a module to promote community mediation with the objective to encourage citizens to opt for this dispute resolution mechanism instead of choosing the litigation route. The training module that is in the process of being developed would be prepared in all regional languages as the programme aims to cover all villages in the country. A committee headed by a retired District Judge of Delhi has been assigned to prepare the training capsule. A similar project would be developed later to popularise community mediation at the district level. Community mediation is one of the facets of the Mediation Act, 2023, that was introduced to codify and formalise mediation, which has emerged as a successful alternative dispute redressal (ADR) mechanism to settle disputes amicably. Before the Parliamentary legislation was introduced, mediation was practised under section 89 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC), with courts referring cases to court-annexed mediation centres for settlement. Section 89 was inserted in 1999 to give legal recognition to extra-judicial settlements through participation of parties in ADR, including mediation. This was done to alleviate the burden on courts and enable speedy resolution of disputes. Following a Supreme Court judgement in 2010, mediation emerged as a successful ADR mechanism. This verdict had outlined guidelines on what kind of cases can be referred for mediation. It drew an illustrative list of cases and extolled the virtues of mediation in the legal sector, while hailing it as a meaningful ADR mechanism. As per the law, mediation can only be suggested if the parties agree to an amicable settlement. The procedure allows either of the disputants to withdraw from the mediation process and go back to the court to pursue litigation. 'Litigations are not averse to mediation and have willingly participated in it, resulting in successful resolution of complex cases, particularly those that arose from soured family relations,' said the officer quoted above. However, mediation has remained restricted to metropolitan cities and its benefits have not reached the districts and villages where there is a spurt in litigation. When Supreme Court judge Justice Suryakant took over as chairman of NALSA and MCPC two months ago, he held discussions with officials to build awareness on mediation, particularly community mediation. 'Justice Suryakant noticed that people fighting cases in the top court were ready to settle their disputes through mediation. He, therefore, felt that if the culture of mediation spreads at the district and village level then the docket explosion can be curbed. That's how the idea of informing citizens about community mediation was explored,' another officer working on the project said. Since the objective behind promoting community mediation is to reduce the institution of fresh cases in villages and districts, Justice Suryakant suggested that the programme be devised in such a way that mediation is not showcased as an ADR, but a parallel dispute resolution mechanism. 'If you project mediation as an ADR, people will continue to live with the idea that the traditional court litigation is the principal dispute settlement process. However, we want to break this myth and highlight mediation as an independent mechanism that can be opted for settlement outside the court or even before the start of the litigation,' the second officer mentioned above added. In another significant move, NALSA and MCPC will hold a 90-day all-India mediation campaign wherein cases from taluka-level courts up to the Supreme Court will be referred for mediation everyday, subject to the consent of parties involved in the dispute. The campaign will start on 1 July and end on 30 September. An academic exercise will also be undertaken simultaneously to analyse the impact of the settlements carried out on the judicial system. This will be the first time that such a study will be conducted on mediation. 'In mediation, a bulk of cases are either matrimonial disputes, cheque bouncing cases or insurance matters. During this campaign, courts have been told to refer other kinds of cases such as disputes between neigbours, inheritance cases, mutation matters. A critical and objective evaluation of the exercise will be carried out by the National Judicial Academy, Bhopal, which has been given a free hand to choose a National Law University to work with it,' the officer said. (Edited by Viny Mishra) Also read: 'Tareekh pe tareekh' is not it. Here's why India's district courts are staring at massive pendency
Time of India
5 days ago
- Time of India
Lawyer Wins Legal Battle Against Sub-Registrar's Office Over Faulty Encumbrance Certificate, ET LegalWorld
A simple request for an encumbrance certificate (EC) turned into a legal victory for advocate Praveen Kumar K — besides exposing a case of bureaucratic negligence — after the sub-registrar's office in Peenya issued a faulty document. It all began when 34-year-old Praveen, from Vijayanagar, applied online for an EC relating to a property in Kurubarahalli, JC Nagar, on Dec 3, 2023. He sought details of all transactions between Oct 1, 2010, and Dec 3, 2023, and paid Rs 170 via UPI for the certificate, which was issued on Dec 7, 2023. To Kumar's surprise, the EC returned "no transactions found," which was a glaring error. The property in question had been purchased through a registered sale deed dated Oct 11, 2010. The document was properly recorded but was omitted from the EC, making the certificate not just inaccurate but professionally damaging. Kumar issued a legal opinion based on the faulty EC, and the omission risked affecting his credibility and legal standing. Advt Advt Kumar immediately approached the sub-registrar's office requesting rectification. When he received no response, he sent a legal notice on Jan 24, 2024. A second notice was issued on March 14, 2024, which he also escalated to multiple officials, including the revenue minister and commissioner of stamps. Finally, he sent a statutory notice under Section 80 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) on July 20, repeated attempts to seek redressal, Kumar received no reply or corrective action from the sub-registrar. Fed up, he filed a consumer complaint before the Bengaluru Urban II additional district consumer disputes redressal commission on March 21, 2024, for deficiency in sub-registrar's office didn't appear for the hearing and failed to file any response, leading to an ex-parte proceeding. Kumar submitted 12 documents in support of his case, including the EC, sale deed, legal notices, postal acknowledgements, and the CPC going through all the documents, the commission observed that the sub-registrar's silence throughout the process was an implicit admission of guilt. The commission also observed that EC is a crucial document used to verify the ownership status and financial encumbrances (like loans, mortgages, or pending litigation) on a property. A defective EC can mislead stakeholders and prejudice their rights. It may result in litigation, delays in transactions, and even losses to parties who rely on the certificate's accuracy for legal or financial to a 2007 national commission ruling, the consumer forum observed: "Issuance of such wrong EC may mislead the authorities concerned and may create unnecessary litigation in respect of the subject property. Hence, such negligence can't be considered as trivial."On April 28, 2025, the consumer commission ordered the sub-registrar's office to refund the fee paid by the petitioner for obtaining the EC, aside from paying him Rs 10,000 for mental distress, loss of professional reputation, and to cover litigation costs. By Join the community of 2M+ industry professionals. Subscribe to Newsletter to get latest insights & analysis in your inbox. All about ETLegalWorld industry right on your smartphone! Download the ETLegalWorld App and get the Realtime updates and Save your favourite articles.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Lawyer sues sub-registrar's office over faulty encumbrance certificate, wins Rs 10,000 compensation
Bengaluru: A simple request for an encumbrance certificate (EC) turned into a legal victory for advocate Praveen Kumar K — besides exposing a case of bureaucratic negligence — after the sub-registrar's office in Peenya issued a faulty document. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It all began when 34-year-old Praveen, from Vijayanagar, applied online for an EC relating to a property in Kurubarahalli, JC Nagar, on Dec 3, 2023. He sought details of all transactions between Oct 1, 2010, and Dec 3, 2023, and paid Rs 170 via UPI for the certificate, which was issued on Dec 7, 2023. To Kumar's surprise, the EC returned "no transactions found," which was a glaring error. The property in question had been purchased through a registered sale deed dated Oct 11, 2010. The document was properly recorded but was omitted from the EC, making the certificate not just inaccurate but professionally damaging. Kumar issued a legal opinion based on the faulty EC, and the omission risked affecting his credibility and legal standing. Kumar immediately approached the sub-registrar's office requesting rectification. When he received no response, he sent a legal notice on Jan 24, 2024. A second notice was issued on March 14, 2024, which he also escalated to multiple officials, including the revenue minister and commissioner of stamps. Finally, he sent a statutory notice under Section 80 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) on July 20, 2024. Despite repeated attempts to seek redressal, Kumar received no reply or corrective action from the sub-registrar. Fed up, he filed a consumer complaint before the Bengaluru Urban II additional district consumer disputes redressal commission on March 21, 2024, for deficiency in service. The sub-registrar's office didn't appear for the hearing and failed to file any response, leading to an ex-parte proceeding. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Kumar submitted 12 documents in support of his case, including the EC, sale deed, legal notices, postal acknowledgements, and the CPC notice. After going through all the documents, the commission observed that the sub-registrar's silence throughout the process was an implicit admission of guilt. The commission also observed that EC is a crucial document used to verify the ownership status and financial encumbrances (like loans, mortgages, or pending litigation) on a property. A defective EC can mislead stakeholders and prejudice their rights. It may result in litigation, delays in transactions, and even losses to parties who rely on the certificate's accuracy for legal or financial decisions. Referring to a 2007 national commission ruling, the consumer forum observed: "Issuance of such wrong EC may mislead the authorities concerned and may create unnecessary litigation in respect of the subject property. Hence, such negligence can't be considered as trivial." On April 28, 2025, the consumer commission ordered the sub-registrar's office to refund the fee paid by the petitioner for obtaining the EC, aside from paying him Rs 10,000 for mental distress, loss of professional reputation, and to cover litigation costs.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Only urgent cases allowed during civil court vacations: HC
Dehradun: The Uttarakhand high court's (HC) senior judge Manoj Tiwari , presiding over a single-judge bench, rejected a petition seeking to request the lower court to hear an appeal during the summer vacation. The case originated when Nitin Arora filed for a permanent prohibitory injunction and a mandatory injunction. On June 5, with the Dehradun civil courts closed for summer holidays, he filed an appeal under section 96 of the Civil Procedure Code, along with an application under Rule 13 of the General Rules (Civil). The district judge declined the request, citing a lack of urgency to justify a vacation hearing. Thereafter, the petitioner approached the HC. Rule 13 stipulates that courts shall not hear cases on gazetted holidays unless both parties consent, except for urgent matters that require immediate attention. In the districts of Dehradun, Haridwar, Nainital and Udham Singh Nagar, one civil judge (junior division) and one civil judge (senior division) remain available on rotation throughout the vacation period. In other districts, a designated official is appointed to handle urgent cases. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Cervecería Nacional CFD: Calcula cuánto podrías ganar invirtiendo solo $100 Empieza a invertir Undo The HC emphasised that while the proviso to rule 13 allows civil courts to consider urgent matters during holidays, it does not confer an automatic right for litigants. The determination of urgency rests with the civil court's discretion. In its June 19 order, the court upheld the previous ruling by the district and sessions court, Dehradun, and concluded that the district judge had acted within their authority when finding insufficient urgency for a vacation hearing. The court found no grounds to interfere with that decision and dismissed the petition accordingly.
Hindustan Times
13-06-2025
- Hindustan Times
HC rejects Firoz Nadiadwala's plea to dismiss ₹24-crore suit over film financing dispute
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Monday rejected a plea by filmmaker Firoz A Nadiadwala seeking dismissal of a ₹24-crore commercial suit filed against him on grounds that he was never formally served a writ of summons. Justice Abhay Ahuja, who heard the matter, observed that since Nadiadwala had already appointed lawyers and was represented by senior counsel during earlier proceedings, formal service of summons was not required under the law. The case stems from a financing agreement dated July 16, 2015, between Nadiadwala and businessman Anil Dhanraj Jethani, who had agreed to fund a film production. Jethani later filed a suit on August 19, 2015, to recover ₹24 crore, alleging non-payment of dues. On September 1, 2015, the high court passed a consent order permitting Jethani to withdraw ₹12.5 crore deposited by another defendant. The remaining amount was to be paid by Nadiadwala before the release of his upcoming film Welcome to the Jungle, which was initially scheduled for December 28, 2024, but has since been delayed. Following the enactment of the Commercial Courts Act in October 2015, the suit was reclassified as a commercial case. Nadiadwala later moved an application arguing that he had never been served a summons, and therefore, all subsequent orders—including the consent order—were invalid and contrary to the Civil Procedure Code. His counsel further pointed out that Jethani had not taken any steps to issue or serve a writ of summons for over seven years and contended that the financing agreement remained unsigned by one party, raising questions about its enforceability. Countering the claim, Jethani's senior counsel argued that once a defendant enters an appearance during interlocutory proceedings or files a vakalatnama, formal service of summons is no longer necessary. He accused Nadiadwala of acting in bad faith and attempting to evade a binding commitment made to the court. The court noted that Nadiadwala had received copies of the plaint and exhibits on August 20, 2015, and that his legal team had participated in hearings on August 24 and 28 that year. It held that his participation established his awareness of the proceedings and dismissed his application accordingly.
