Date: 16/01/2023

Relevance: GS-2: Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary—Ministries and Departments of the Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their role in the Polity.

Key Phrases: Backlog, Legal System, Subordinate Courts, High Courts, Supreme Court, Online Dispute Resolution, Third Party Funding.

Context:

• India’s legal system is currently facing an unprecedented backlog of cases, with around 4.4 crore cases pending in 2022.
• This backlog is compounded by various other problems, such as inadequate infrastructure, shortage of judges, and the norm of seeking adjournments, which culminate in a lack of access to justice for many individuals and businesses.

Current status of backlog:

• An analysis of data on the National Judicial Data Grid, a database of the Department of Justice, shows that courts saw an increase of over 27% in pendency between December 2019 and April 2022.
• Subordinate courts: Subordinate courts, comprising district and lower courts, have a record backlog of 4, 15, 12,098 (4.15 crore) cases at present.
  • This includes 3.06 crore criminal cases and 1.08 crore civil cases, the Department of Justice data shows. Over 1.1 lakh cases have been pending for more than 30 years in district and lower courts.
• High Courts: Of the 5.9 million (59 lakh) cases pending in the 25 High Courts of India, 42 lakh are civil cases while around 72,000 cases are more than 30 years old.
• The Supreme Court: The pendency of cases was 70,572 as of May, 2022, according to the Supreme Court site.

What Is Driving The Delay?

• The shortage of judges and the impact of the pandemic are considered the top reasons for high pendency of cases, adding to the burden of the judiciary.
• The 25 High Courts in India have a sanctioned strength of 1,104 judges. But the Department of Justice data shows that there are 387 vacancies with a working strength of 717, as of April 2022.
• This implies that India currently has only 717 HC judges to clear a backlog of 59 lakh cases, which roughly translates to one judge for 8,200 cases.
• This backlog is compounded by various other problems, such as inadequate infrastructure and the norm of seeking adjournments, which culminate in a lack of access to justice for many individuals and businesses.

Viable Option to Reduce This Case Backlog:

• Adopting Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) and Third Party Funding (TPF) is a viable option to reduce this case backlog.
• Online resolution: ODR is conducted electronically, usually via a web platform, and has the potential to improve efficiency and accessibility. ODR can significantly reduce the amount of time required to resolve disputes.
  • ODR can significantly reduce the costs associated with litigation, as parties do not need to pay for physical courtrooms or travel expenses.
  • ODR provides greater accessibility and convenience to parties, as they do not need to be physically present for proceedings.
• Third Party Funding: TPF involves the financing of litigation or arbitration by an external third party, such as a specialist company, in exchange for a percentage of the award or settlement.
  • TPF enables individuals and businesses with limited financial resources to access justice.
  • TPF can provide increased liquidity to litigants and their attorneys, allowing them to pay for expenses involved in litigation or arbitration.

Parliament’s Role:

• Parliament should consider enacting laws that provide clear guidelines for the use of TPF and establish ODR as a viable option for resolving disputes.
• This could involve establishing regulatory frameworks for TPF providers and ODR platforms, as well as training and certification programmes for practitioners.
• In order to ensure the successful implementation of ODR and TPF in India, it is also necessary to educate people about these concepts and their potential benefits for the legal system.

Conclusion:

• Given the potential benefits of ODR and TPF for improving India’s legal system, Parliament must provide clarity on these issues and mandate their use as a primary option for dispute resolution.
• By combining ODR with TPF, it is possible to address several challenges faced by India’s legal system.
• Disputes can be resolved more swiftly as parties have access to greater funds for legal representation and do not need to wait for physical courtroom proceedings. This can help to reduce the backlog of cases and improve the efficiency of the legal system.

Source: The Business Line

Mains Question:

Q. India’s legal system can be greatly improved and made more accessible to all by implementing Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) and Third Party Funding (TPF). Discuss (150 words).