SC sets up panel to review case sequencing after Bar raises concerns

A three-judge committee will examine concerns over last-minute changes to case sequencing after lawyers said unpredictable listings disrupted court appearances.

The Supreme Court has constituted a three-judge committee to examine concerns over the sequencing of cases after members of the Bar complained that last-minute changes to the daily cause list were disrupting court appearances, Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant said on Monday.

 

The issue was raised by senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia, who told the Bench that advocates across the Bar were facing practical difficulties because the sequence in which matters were taken up was often revised shortly before the court assembled.

 

“Today also the sequence was issued at 10:30 a.m. and 10:29. I have spoken to a lot of advocates and there is a broad consensus,” Bhatia submitted.

 

He said lawyers respected measures adopted for the institution's functioning but argued that uncertainty in listing made it difficult to represent clients effectively.

 

“The Bar accepts with humility whatever is done in the interest of the institution, but Your Lordship will also appreciate that unpredictability would never lead to a good performance even by lawyers. We enter the court and then we come to know that we are supposed to be in Court No. X rather than Y because a new sequence has been issued at 10:29 or 10:30,” he said.

 

Responding, the Chief Justice said the matter had already been deliberated upon by the full court of Supreme Court judges and that a committee had been formed to recommend changes.

 

“The matter was taken in Full Court and it was ultimately resolved to constitute a committee. I have already constituted the committee. Their recommendations will come and then we will see,” the CJI said.

 

An office order issued on July 28 constituted the panel comprising Justice Vikram Nath, Justice P S Narasimha and Justice V Mohana. The registrar (judicial listing) will assist the committee, which has been tasked with examining ways to simplify cause lists and bring greater uniformity to the order in which cases are taken up. It will also consider suggestions submitted by the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA).

 

The issue has been a recurring concern for the Bar. At a recent Supreme Court Bar Association function attended by the Chief Justice, office-bearers had urged the court either to abolish the sequencing system or to indicate the proposed order of hearing in the supplementary cause list itself.

 

At present, Benches frequently depart from the numerical order of cases in the cause list, often taking up fresh admission matters first. The revised sequence is typically announced on the morning of the hearing, prompting complaints that lawyers are left with little time to rearrange appearances across different courtrooms.