| M J Antony: Urge to litigate | 18-NOV-09 |
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| It is well known that the government is the largest litigant in the courts. It is less known that it starves the judiciary of funds. It is even less known that it chokes the courts with unnecessary suits. The last one frequently invites drubbing from the Supreme Court. |
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| M J Antony: Quick-fix solution | 04-NOV-09 |
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| Two judgments of the Supreme Court delivered in recent weeks are significant as they highlight the problem of long delays in cases involving intellectual property rights and the quick-fix solution suggested by the court. It is well known that disputes over trademarks, patents and designs drag on for years. After the initial bout over interim injunctions, the parties sulk indefinitely, as the main relief has been granted by the interim order itself. |
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| M J Antony: Engineered delays | 28-OCT-09 |
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| Most of us generally know why the wheels of justice are grinding slowly: Courts and judges starved of funds, indiscriminate grant of adjournments, lack of infrastructure and the like. However, there are certain provisions in the procedural laws which carry the secret virus of delays. These are in the details and only the legal profession, which uses the loopholes as part of their stratagems, knows them. They are not visible to the public, nor comprehensible. |
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| M J Antony: The first-charge fluster | 21-OCT-09 |
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| Managing the queue of creditors at the door of a failed industry or a recalcitrant one has become one of the onerous tasks for the courts these days. At the head of the line would be banks, state financial corporations, taxmen, workmen and statutory bodies like the employees’ provident fund commissioner and the employees’ state insurance commissioner. There might be several private lenders too. This meandering column finally shifts their venue to the courts. |
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| M J Antony: Heartless against faceless | 14-OCT-09 |
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| The rate of compensation for land acquired under the Land Acquisition Act has been one of the constant themes in the judgments delivered by the Supreme Court in recent weeks. One among them stands out for the inconsiderate and ungenerous attitude of the state authorities when it comes to compulsory takeover of land that belongs to the poor and inarticulate landholders. |
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| M J Antony: The cause and effect trail | 07-OCT-09 |
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| One of the tricky issues on which insurance lawyers argue incessantly is the ‘proximity’ of a happening to the insured event. The statutes do not define it and there is very little case law in India which deals with it. The recent Supreme Court judgment in New India Assurance Co vs Zuari Industries Ltd was thus one of the significant signposts in this field. |
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| M J Antony: Arbitration tribulations | 23-SEP-09 |
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| Arbitration is supposed to be a speedy and economic way to resolve disputes. But three judgments of the Supreme Court delivered last week shake this trust. |
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| M J Antony: Enhanced immunity | 09-SEP-09 |
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| Two ancient government monopolies, the telecommunications and postal services, have enjoyed undeserved immunity from consumer laws ever since their inception in the 19th century. The Consumer Protection Act 1986 had made a dent in their protective armour. However, the Supreme Court last week took a huge step backward by taking out the telecom sector from the consumer law. |
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| Settle gas row out of court, opine govt counsel | 12-AUG-09 |
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| The government counsel are understood to have advised the Centre to explore out-of-court settlement in the Ambani brothers' gas dispute as it cannot afford to contradict its position in another matter involving power PSU NTPC. |
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Content Guide
