The country’s biggest litigator: Some facts & figures

by Aditya AK and Anuj Agrawal

. Of the 3.5 crore cases pending in courts over the country, a sizeable percentage stems from government litigation. And although government litigation has been a well-documented fact, what is lesser known are the facts and figures that keep the litigation machine well oiled.

. Ever wondered how the Central Government goes about managing its legal affairs? How much of the litigation in our courts involves the government? What is the quantum of fees paid to those who appear on behalf of the government?

. The Ministry of Law and Justice has answered all these questions and more in their Annual Report.

. The Law Ministry itself is divided into three divisions – the Department of Legal Affairs, the Legislative Department, and the Department of Justice.

. The Department of Legal Affairs provides legal advice to the Ministries.

. Legal advice tendered to Govt. ministries/departments

. Number of References Head 6,131 References received by Advice ‘A’ Section from various Ministries and Departments of the government of India. 3,853 References made to Advice ‘B’ Section from ministries/departments of the government. 19 Cases referred to the Attorney General of India, the Solicitor General and the Additional Solicitor General. . This department also oversees the payment to lawyers engaged by the government. Although detailed numbers across the different courts have not been provided, the report does provide some insight into how much is spent on litigation.

. Counsel Fees for Govt. litigation

. Counsel Fees Head 4.02 crore Counsel fees for government litigation in the Delhi High Court 22.4 lakh Counsel fees for government litigation in the district courts of Delhi 97.67 lakh Counsel fees for government litigation in Calcutta High Court . Another interesting statistic relates to the number of cases instituted by the government in the previous year.

. Number of cases instituted by and against the Govt. in 2014

. Number of Cases Head 5,166 Central Agency Section (Supreme Court) 4,244 Delhi 880 Mumbai (includes western region) 2,275 Kolkata (includes east and northeast region) 4,772 Chennai (Tamil Nadu and Kerala) 3,700 Bangalore (AP, Telangana and Karnataka) . Lastly, the report also provides information on the budgetary allocations made under various heads. For instance, the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal was sanctioned Rs. 10 crore, while the Central government provides Rs. 10 lac for every Family Court established.

. In fact, the Thirteenth Finance Commission had recommended an investment of Rs. 5,000 crore in the Indian judiciary over a five-year period. Some of the investments are mentioned below.

. Miscellaneous figures

. Figure Head 10.74 crore Annual budget sanctioned for the National Judicial Academy 10 lakh Amount of Central aid for establishment of one Family Court 450 crore Amount allocated for maintenance of heritage court buildings 14, 309 Number of laptops provided to judicial officers under the E-courts integrated mission mode project 495 Number of courts/jails where video-conferencing is to be rolled out . Image taken from here .

. Read the complete report below.

The country’s biggest litigator: Some facts & figures

Bar & Bench

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