By : Sumit Nagpal
Never thought that people would be so much interested to know about an aspect which is just a normal procedural thing for all who are associated with court proceeding. Yes! I am talking about court reserving the judgments.
When the bench of Justice G S Singhvi and Justice A K Ganguli reserved its verdict on the petition filed by Subramaniun Swamy asking for a CBI inquiry against the Home Minister P Chidambaram for his alleged role in 2G scam, I was flodded with queries on twitter. People wanted to know why couldn't the court decide the matter the same day? Someone asked what does it mean when we say the judgment has been reserved? I even tried responding to few but gave up as never ending queries were pouring in. So finally writing this to clear the doubts on courts reserving judgments.
Q : What does it mean that the court has reserved its judgment?
A : When a court reserves the judgment, it means the matter has been kept in abeyance for a while. This is done after all the parties have completed their arguments and all the written submissions have been filed in the court.
Q: Why do judges reserve a judgment?
A : The judges reserve a judgment so they can write a judgment. One must understand that a judgment is not a single page order of few lines, the judgment contains the summery of arguments of both the parties, the law of the land, previous judgments on the issue, conclusion and the reasons for arriving on that conclusion. Judges need time to refresh in their memory, the arguments of each party, do research by reading previous judgments and judgments on similar issues in other countries and finally think about the reasons for arriving on a particular conclusion. This entire excersise is very laborious and time consuming.
Q : What is the normal timeframe in which a judgment should ideally be delivered?
A : There is no fixed timeframe for the judges to write judgments but six months is considered to be a reasonable time for passing a judgment. If a judge keeps a judgment reserved for more than six months, any of the party can mention to the Chief Justice about this.
Q : What happens to a reserved judgment if the judge retires?
A : If anything like this happens, the new bench will hear the matter afreash. A judge can not sign/pronounce a judgment after he retires.
Q : Is it necessary for a judge to reserve judgment in every case?
A : No! Its not at all necessary for a judge to reserved judgment in all the cases. Generally the court reserved judgments in cases of extreme public importance, cases which will have greater impact on the polity of India, cases in whcih the courts are laying down some new law etc. In many cases, judges deliver the same day the arguments are complete.
Conclusion
I have tried to answer most of the questions about courts reserving judgments. If anyone of you still feels there is something left, please leave a comment, I will answer that also.
Dear Sumit,
ReplyDeleteSo we can presume that the honorable court is contenplating passing some strong strictures or is pre disposed towards the guilt of PC and hence wants time off to solidly verify it before proceeding further with implicating him ? :)
Thanks sir ,For addressing our queries and we only hope that in present context honorable judges are preparing a strong cage for offenders.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this clarification.
ReplyDeleteSix months ? You mean when will court pass order on this ?
ReplyDeleteYour point that a judge can reserve judgement, and retire, case going for fresh hearing, is pretty bad, expensive for all, time consuming. In new circumstances, the fresh trial may or may not have much meaning. I am surprised that no NGO, like Common Cause, or Prashant Bhushan, or others have considered filing a PIL to change this.
ReplyDeleteThere are too many celebrity cases, where such things happen. I saw your tweet mentioning a 2+ years in Mulayam Singh case. I had heard that Sanjay Dutt was convicted in that Mumbai bomb blast case for concealing an AK47 he got from the D-company. Have not seen any news of judgement, and his being further serving prison term. Or, was his prison term set off against the time he spent in prison earlier?
Similarly, Salman Khan was caught hunting a black buck. Not sure, if that case is decided. Then there was that drunken, reckless driving, resulting in death of some pedestrians in Mumbai. What happened in that case?
If anybody knows, please update. Sumit, request your legal inputs on above. Thanks.
In Shivani Bhatnagar murder case Court had reserved judgement on 21st Dec'2010 and which was pronounced today in which R K Sharma is acquitted.Here court took 10 months to deliver final verdict.What is the guarantee that same is not repeated in PC's case?
ReplyDelete@ Mr.Madhusudan , here one has to understand that delivering a judgement may affect both parties.It may be in favor of accused or against the accused but, judges need time to deliver judgement as per law and reason, they cant pass judgements hurriedly because the judgements act as precedents in future...
ReplyDeleteThe point that Judge requires some time to pronounce the judgement is appreciable but again if the Judge takes more than 6 months is disgusting for the parties who have filed and eagerly waiting for the judgement, there has to be a mechanism by which Judge can deliver his verdict soon in the interest of justice and the parties concerned. I hope, both the parties can not take any action before they actually receive the judgement copy. Some time the judgement also may not be relevant if it is delayed in some cases, though party would have won actually. Justice delayed is Justice denied. satyanarayana
ReplyDeletehi our ongc recruitment case is pending from 2014 in high court..recently judge has given judgment on march 11th..in net it is showing ..the case is diposed but written copy of order is not given..the judge is going to retaire on monday..9th may..wat happens if judge has not given the orders?is it compulsory to give order before judge retaires..after pronouncing judgement
DeleteHai praveen my name is naveen iam also waiting for this ongc case from 2014 result. You can also contact me on 8125637372
DeleteHi All ,
ReplyDeletewe have case injuction order.
Arguments are completed ..and but the we did not get the judgement from past one month we have heard from our lawyer that he has kept the judgement pending.
how many months the judge can put it in pending
judges reserved judgement of bail petition by Jagan..does bail petition deserve reserving of judgement...how can we interpret this as this judgement mounts to wide political implications
ReplyDeleteThe court in AP has reserved its judgement regarding the management qota seats. Approximately how long do you think it would take to give the judgement?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the time limit for pronouncing the judgement/order in case of a civil dispute and in case of a quasi judicial proceedings held under special laws.
ReplyDeleteThe practice of reserving a judgement should be prohibited...as it leaves enough scope of the decision being biased ..In normal Govt functioning Govt officials face accusation that they are not delivering service in time..then how can be courts be allowed to do so ...surprising ???
ReplyDeleteyou are write
DeleteHy my hearing was on 14 0ctober2013 for tier 1appeal but judge didn't pass his decision he reserve his decision any one can tel me how long it will take to pass decisio ?
ReplyDeletehey i wanted to know wat happens in cases whr the High Court reserves a judgment after the arguments get over and in the meanwhile a judgment is delivered by the Supreme Court on the same question of law and in pursuance of such a decision of the SC the HC gives its decision based on the Decision of the SC. Could u pls name some cases whr such a situation has arisen? and can such a thing be done by the HC provided that the d decision of the Sc came after the cause of action had arisen n the arguments were over.
ReplyDeleteNow a day this is being used as an Excuse to delay the judgment under political pressure. Then whats the use of fast track courts if at above level judge takes six months and above to pronounce judgement.There should be fixed time limit and judge should close the case
ReplyDeleteWhether a reserved judgment if not pronounced in the court, can it come under the preview of RTI for any party to the suit
ReplyDeletesir my question is if the judgement is reserved by honable judge n honble judge is going to be retire in couple of days n the person in jail in police custody n the judge is to be retire then what happen
ReplyDeletekindly answer this to sachinpawar2008@gmail.com
sir my group employee case last hearing on 27.05.2014 daily order given as judgement reserve without further date but have yet unknown how long take reserve judgement pronounce to party.?my e-mail: csv.pillai@yahoo.com
ReplyDeletesir my case is also pending ...in health department and judgement is
Deletereserved on 12/9/2016. I sir i want to know that whether your
judgement have came and how long did it took for judgement ...please
reply ..sir..
thanking you.
Thank you very much .. now it is very clear .. I think FAQs are the best way in clearing doubts!!
ReplyDeletehello friends,
ReplyDeletei just want to know that if any judgment is reserved, can the respondent be proceed on order impugned in the petition.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for sharing such a good source with all, i appreciate your efforts taken for the same. Import Procedure India
hello,
ReplyDeletethanks for this useful information.
The argument, first and last, for my case in CAT took place on 27th april2015, and the decision was kept reserved. I wanted to know if hte final decision will be arrived at after complete document study or argument will have a greater impact( as document wise I have almost 100 % chances of a + outcome while argument was not very satisfactory to me). And how much time usually CAT takes to pronounce the order.
thanks
Thank you sir!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletehello
ReplyDeleteI have matter pending before gujarat highcourt.
Its a service matter ( termination simplicitor) ,, judge has had heard both the parties. its about more than one month still my case is on status: Pronunciation of judgement...how much time it will take to pass a judgement.. plz reply
I have matter pending before orissa highcourt. ,, judge has had heard both the parties. its about more than one month still my case is on status: Pronunciation of judgement...how much time it will take to pass a judgement.. plz reply
ReplyDeleteDoes this mean that the outcome could be better than what the CCMA rewarded in favour of the employee in the first place?
ReplyDeleteDelhi HC has reserved judgments on very important coal mining matters since April 2015, for over 7months. Investors are suffering badly. What is remedy?
ReplyDeleteI made an appeal to Ho. Taluka court in Feb-2015 for redemption of usufructuary mortgage, every month court is requesting more proofs from both sides or the defendant is staying absent, I already submitted the deed and ownership of the land, can not understand the reason
ReplyDeleteI made an appeal to Ho. Taluka court in Feb-2015 for redemption of usufructuary mortgage, every month court is requesting more proofs from both sides or the defendant is staying absent, I already submitted the deed and ownership of the land, can not understand the reason
ReplyDeleteHi Sumit
ReplyDeleteThanks for the lucid piece.
My query is how much time is it normal to take between reserving and declaring a judgement at the High Court Level? What can be the maximum time, surpassing which we can appeal to the higher level of judiciary for the verdict? Is it still 6 months, or has it been lowered down to 3 months?
Also, what happens if one of the judge from a bench of two judges is posted/promoted after reserving the judgement? Does it imply a fresh slew of arguments or the declaration of judgement would still take place by the same bench?
Thanks in advance for answering this :)
Sir andhrapradesh tribunal reserved its judgement more than 3 months ago.it is related to 2000unemployees life.he is delivering his judgement.how can we plead him for judgement.he given so many judgements very early.but in our cases he is not responding.if there is any chance to get our orders plz reply
ReplyDeleteBRO U HAVE GOT ANY AWNSER..I AM ALSO FROM ANDHRA PRADESH ONGC CASE
Deletesince from two months Judgement reserved and next date is not given in my case. Actually my case is in ranga reddy civil court set ex-party and respondent not presented in any stage . In ex-party cases why they reserved judgement I am not understand.
ReplyDeletebro do u got any information?
Deletesir i am from andhra pradesh ..hig court judge has has given the judgment two months back ..but he has not given thewritten copy of the orders...the judge is going to retaire on 9th may monday..is it compulsory to give the ordrs ..before his judgment?
ReplyDeletewhat to do if judge gien oral judgment and not issued the daily order?in net it is showing case is disposed..but written order was not given..judge is going to retaire on 9th may..it is a matter of 2000 lifes
ReplyDelete01-06-2016 Bangalore
ReplyDeleteTo: Sri Sumit Nagpal.
Sir,
I have following two important issues which is still pending in the court over a considerable period.
1) On payment of gratuity
2) On sick leave encashment. Both are against S B I.
I am still waiting for judgement.
Reason why I petitioned to the court?
a) To get personal benefit
b) More important to enable lakhs of people who are
similarly placed as I am.
If I win the case it helps lakhs of people across
industries who are governed by Gratuity Act and
Indian Contract Act.
My victory sets a precedence for lakhs of people
who can get similar benefit without going to the court
and they can save time money and effort by quoting
my cases.
Can you suggest me any other alternative say any other
forum or NGOs or any tv media who serve for a cause?
My intention is to serve the larger interest of
our society.
With regards, - Nagaraj T V 9844200688
01-06-2016 Bangalore
ReplyDeleteTo: Sri Sumit Nagpal.
Sir,
I have following two important issues which is still pending in the court over a considerable period.
1) On payment of gratuity
2) On sick leave encashment. Both are against S B I.
I am still waiting for judgement.
Reason why I petitioned to the court?
a) To get personal benefit
b) More important to enable lakhs of people who are
similarly placed as I am.
If I win the case it helps lakhs of people across
industries who are governed by Gratuity Act and
Indian Contract Act.
My victory sets a precedence for lakhs of people
who can get similar benefit without going to the court
and they can save time money and effort by quoting
my cases.
Can you suggest me any other alternative say any other
forum or NGOs or any tv media who serve for a cause?
My intention is to serve the larger interest of
our society.
With regards, - Nagaraj T V 9844200688
Sir,
ReplyDeleteI filed case against a developer at district consumer forum, Bangalore.
The FORUM give the date 28/6/2016 for order pronouncement. However the opposite party counsel filed an recall application. Counsel was absent on hearing dated 4/6/2016. When I appeared on 28/6/2016 for order, counsel was also present. The forum asked me whether you received two letters sent by the counsel, I replied yes, I received. The counsel was not prepared for arguments therefore, the Forum asked the counsel to pay me Rs. 150/- towards transportation to return to my place. The opposite party has submitted two recall applications so far. The Forum give new date after 127 days to be exact on 3/11/2016. How to request the forum to pronounce order and not to accept recall application again from the counsel.
Regards,
Mohamed Aneesulla
My query is how much time is it normal to take between reserving and declaring a judgement at the High Court Level? What can be the maximum time, surpassing which we can appeal to the higher level of judiciary for the verdict? Is it still 6 months, or has it been lowered down to 3 months?
ReplyDeleteIs there any procedure to approach the supreme court in an urgent matter case where hight court has heard the case on urgent matter.my case had gone in lawazima process,but court has reserved the order and after 3 day psc exam has started,even i put the earlier judgement made by the supreme court in Andhra pradesh psc case.but not taken cognisence by court.plzzz reply me by suggesting the way what i should do at this point of time.
My query is how much time is it normal to take between reserving and declaring a judgement at the High Court Level? What can be the maximum time, surpassing which we can appeal to the higher level of judiciary for the verdict? Is it still 6 months, or has it been lowered down to 3 months?
ReplyDeleteIs there any procedure to approach the supreme court in an urgent matter case where hight court has heard the case on urgent matter.my case had gone in lawazima process,but court has reserved the order and after 3 day psc exam has started,even i put the earlier judgement made by the supreme court in Andhra pradesh psc case.but not taken cognisence by court.plzzz reply me by suggesting the way what i should do at this point of time.
lower court judge is not passing final decree order though hearing was completed in 01/08/16.
ReplyDeleteiam depressed and frustrated . because my title suit is pending for last 13 years. pl advice what to do. more than 45 days are over.
sir court given double bench order by tribunal court but department not follow order yet and passed 3 month order given 01-06-2016 but not followed yet so tell me that time period of double bench order validity and givin me further next process for contempt.
ReplyDeleteRepected sir,
ReplyDeleteI have a case going on in a subordinate court where the judge has cancelled the date of the judgement after hearing the arguments and concluding all the facts of the case. The judge in charge of the case was removed and replaced by a new judge who had again heard the argument and is still waiting to give the judgement date and it's has been 3 months since then no time and date has been mentioned for the the judgement date. When asked to the court, it's been stated that the case is on the table of the judge and he is taking time to revise the judgement without giving my party a time and date for justice to be imposed. What should I do ? Your help is much needed and will be appreciated if I hear from you quickly.
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully
Abhinaba Datta
A Court Case relates to Tata Camlot housing, Chandigarh pending from 3 years in Delhi High Court. On 09.10.2015 all arguments were completed and judgement will be announced. But on 09.10.2015, Hon'ble Court kept pending the judgment and reserved it. Since then(09.10.2015) we are waiting for announcement of judgement. By kept pending this judgement, we are very harassed by our neighbour. our neighbour compell us to sale our house to him. we are waiting for announcement of judgement which is kept pending by the Hon'ble Delhi High Court since 09.10.2015 after lapsing of 1 year and 2 months as on 01.12.2016.
ReplyDeleteIs it right ????
Can a judge keep judgment reserved for announcing at later date if serious disturbance of law and order is expected and state has not been able to control gathering of crowd. Can it be reserved in public interest to let gov. take appropriate steps.
ReplyDeleteThanks sir your answers were really helpful
ReplyDeleteThanks sir your answers were really helpful
ReplyDeleteWhat happens if the judge transfers from one court other court by keeping some judgements under reserve
ReplyDeletejudgments of Supreme Court and High Courts of India. Also search acts and rules, gazette notifications, cabinet decisions, government orders and circulars
ReplyDeletemore info - latest supreme court judgements
apart from the fact that he had thereby exposed himself to the liability of being proceeded against for disobedience of a lawful order passed click here
ReplyDeleteCan judgement reserved second time
ReplyDeleteHello sir
ReplyDeleteMere case ki sunvayi 17-04-17 ko Puri Kar li gyi avam ordar reserve Kar Diya 1 saal SE upar ho gye abhi Tak koi b dicigen nahi aaya h case 1982 ka hai...do jagah SE hum jeet chuke h...ISS bare me...do Baar complain latter chief justice ko bhej chuke hai
Ek baar fax Kiya Lakin koi jawab nahi aa Raha ..Kya koi solution hai Iska
?
Sir, our case 2280/2018 is pending in Guwahati High Court
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ReplyDeleteWhat happens to a reserved judgment if the judge get promoted?
ReplyDeleteWhat happens to a reserved judgment if the judge promoted?
ReplyDeleteWhat happens to a reserved judgment if the judge promoted?
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Cases of manipur police constable male/civil 2013 batch has fight in the Manipur High court for the declearation of their result for five(5) long years, but still the highcourt never give an order,and atlast keep it in reserved.
ReplyDeleteMy question is, Is it necessary/appropriate for the judge to take five(5)long years or even more, to take a decision..? And that is also in just one cases...
What is limit in number of days for high court for reserving its judgment?
ReplyDeleteI received a letter from a law office stating that i have a judgment since July 12 2011 and they trying to collect $5000.00 from me. I sent them a dispute letter to let them know that i don't owe that money but they send me a copy of the court judgement and it has my name. What can i do to prove that i don't owe that money.
ReplyDeletehi
ReplyDeletemy criminal case is undergoing in lower court of haryana, last order date was 5th feb then it was extended to 6th march. today judge mentioned that I am not able to give judgement in this case and sent to session judge. Is is possible, what could be the reason behind it
Reserving judgements endlessly in corruption cases benefit the accused. Such cases must not wait. Cast doubts about fairness of trial. SC needs to set rules for subordinate courts.
ReplyDeleteIG a judgement has been pass out by a judge and the unfavoured party didn't appeal till the time giving to them has been exhausted.... Then go ahead doing what the court has told him not to do....if such case is been charge to court how long will it take the judge to deliver the judgement
ReplyDeleteSir,
ReplyDeleteThere is compoundable false criminal case hosted by opponent party due to jealousy and there is no property seized. The local Sub inspector involved with divorced husband and family and harassing me in various ways. The divorced husband's sister and brother in law both are advocates and they are misusing law power. The case is not going to stand. But current judge posted for judgement and keep on posting long dates. Later posting to arguments stage and there is no arguments happened. Later my advocate not appearing due to opponent parties pressure and warrant.
How I can bring this to higher authorities? All other cases hosted by opponents are also in my favour and hence they continuously harassing to withdraw maintainence case of my minor daughter who disputed by biological father since from pregnency. I alone taken care of my daughter and bengalore court judgement ordered that biological father is irresponsible person and hence I got sole guardian and permanent custody of my daughter. The opponents out of jealousy filing new cases after divorce also. I have to focus on my child best future and also have to focus on building my life again.
How I can address this? All the judgement are in my favour and I alone fought the cases as a party in person. But opponents not following orders and keep on filing new cases or applications.
How I can address this?
If I keep any advocates from local they behave good in the initial stage and after taking full fees they are not attending cases.
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If judge has provided the date till which the decision has been reserved then is it mandatory for the judge to give the judgement on the same very date or he/she can change the date of judgement again?
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