Commercial Courts Act | Institution Of Suit Means Presentation, Not Registration, For Mandatory Mediation: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has held that the requirement of pre-institution mediation under Section 12-A of the Commercial Courts Act does not apply where a suit was instituted before the provision was declared mandatory, even if the suit was registered after that date. The court clarified that, for the purposes of Section 12-A, a suit is instituted when the plaint is presented before the court and not when it is subsequently registered by the registry. A Single Judge Bench of Justice Gauri...

Commercial Court Cannot Dismiss Non-Commercial Suit; Must Return Plaintiff: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that when a commercial court finds that a dispute does not qualify as a “commercial dispute” under the Commercial Courts Act, it cannot dismiss the suit on that ground and must instead return the plaint so that the litigant can approach the appropriate civil court. A Division Bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Amit Mahajan set aside a Commercial Court order that had dismissed a recovery suit filed by former employee Pramod Kumar against Gannon...

Suit Liable To Dismissal Cannot Be Transferred To Commercial Division: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has dismissed a 25-year-old suit between Tractel Tirfor India Pvt. Ltd. and Tractel International S.A.S., holding that the case was never legally pending and therefore could not have been transferred to the court's commercial division. A Division Bench of Justices Debangsu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi ruled on January 21 that the failure to lodge a writ of summons, which is mandatory under the High Court's Original Side Rules, rendered the suit liable to dismissal in...

Jurisdictional Maze Of Commercial Courts Act, 2015: A Critical Analysis Of Definition Of 'Commercial Dispute'

The Indian judicial system has long struggled with a backlog of civil cases. This often results in litigation dragging on for decades. This delay acts as a significant deterrent to foreign investment and domestic economic dynamism. The Commercial Courts Act, 2015, was enacted to address this systemic inefficiency by creating a specialised class of courts equipped with distinct procedural mechanisms such as mandatory pre-institution mediation, case management hearings, summary judgments, and...

Employment Cases Cannot Be Characterised As Commercial Disputes Under Commercial Courts Act: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Monday held that disputes arising out of employment agreements cannot be treated as commercial disputes under the Commercial Courts Act merely because they contain business related clauses. The court categorically stated that “any dispute relating to an employment agreement cannot be treated to be a commercial dispute within the purview of Section 2(1)(c) of the CC Act."A single bench of Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav made the observation as it...

Allowing Filing Of Additional Documents Without Reasonable Cause In Trial Defeats Speedy Disposal Of Commercial Suits: Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court has reiterated that permitting a party to bring on record additional documents at the trial stage without a reasonable cause would defeat purpose of Commercial Courts Act 2015 which aims at speedy disposal of commercial suits. It further said that a court cannot permit documents to belatedly brought on the court's record on the sole ground that the documents have already been referred to in the written statement. A division bench of Justice Moushumi...

Any Interpretation Diluting Commercial Courts Act Defeats Its Purpose; No Leniency For Litigants Who Protract Proceedings: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has observed that the Commercial Courts Act was enacted with a specific aim of expediting commercial disputes and the processes adopted by them can't be in such a casual manner, so as to convert them into general civil suit.“Any interpretation of any legal provision that dilutes the provision would militate against the basic philosophy behind creation of commercial courts,” said Justice Girish Kathpalia.The observation was made while dealing with a plea challenging a...

Market Value Of Property Must Be Determining Factor Under Commercial Courts Act, Not Court Fee Value: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that the market value of the property must be the determining factor under Section 12 (1)(c) of the Commercial Courts Act, and not the valuation adopted for the purpose of court fees under the Kerala Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act, 1959.A Full Bench comprising Justice Sathish Ninan, Justice C.S. Dias, and Justice C.S. Sudha delivered the judgement while answering a reference in ICR (CRP) No.11 of 2025, CRP No.133 of 2024, and OP(C) No.753 of 2024.The Court...

Dispute Between Passenger & Airline Over Refund Of Flight Ticket Not 'Commercial Dispute': Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that an agreement containing a provision for providing mere services on payment of certain charges cannot, in every case, be termed to be an agreement, dispute in respect of which can be said to be a commercial dispute.“To constitute a dispute to be a commercial dispute arising out of an agreement which contains a provision of services, the agreement or transaction is to necessarily contain an element of commerce or trade or business,” a division bench of Chief...

Pre-Institution Mediation Is Mandatory When Plaint Is Filed U/S 12A Of Commercial Courts Act Unless Genuine Urgency Exists: HP High Court

The Himachal Pradesh High Court held that when a plaint is filed under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, the plaintiff cannot bypass the mandatory pre-institution mediation unless the relief sought is urgent. The Court remarked that a commercial suit filed without undergoing pre-institution mediation, in cases where no genuine urgency exists, must be rejected under Order VII Rule 11(d) of the Code of Civil Procedure,1908. After perusing the plaint Justice Ajay...

In Jharkhand, Civil Judge (Sr. Division) Has Jurisdiction To Try Trademark Infringement Suits Valued Between ₹3 Lakh & ₹1 Crore: High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that in the State of Jharkhand, where the pecuniary value of a commercial dispute is between ₹3 lakh and ₹1 crore, a Civil Judge (Senior Division) designated as a Commercial Court has the jurisdiction to try a trademark infringement suit. A Bench of Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad held so while allowing a commercial appeal filed by M/s Khemka Food Products Pvt. Ltd. against a 2024 order of the Civil Judge (Sr....

Court Must Scrutinise Invocation Of Expression 'Urgent Interim Relief' By Litigants U/S 12A Of Commercial Courts Act: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the expression “contemplates urgent interim relief” under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act 2015 though not defined under the statute, demands a rigorous scrutiny of commercial suits bypassing mandatory mediation to ensure that the benefit of exemption under the provision is not misused by unscrupulous litigants.For context, Section 12A mandates mediation before the institution of a commercial suit.Sub-section (1) thereof carves out an exception in suits...