Commercial courts

• Indian government has proposed to establish commercial courts in districts to further improve the ease of doing business parameters.
• India has ranked at 100th position in recently released World Bank’s ‘Ease of doing business’ list. Legal remedy to commercial disputes and enforcement of business contracts are parameters of the World Bank ranking. In terms of ease of enforcing contracts, India jumped from 172 to 164. Though the jump in the ranking sounds small, it is substantial given the diversities of laws in our country and the complex demography.
• Parliament has passed the Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Act, 2015 which provides for the creation of commercial courts at the district level and a commercial division at state level in the high courts for providing a dispute redressal mechanism to ensure speedy disposal of high value 'commercial disputes’ above 1 crore worth.

About Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill, 2015 Act:

• The Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill, 2015 Act is enacted to provide for the constitution of Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division in the High Courts for adjudicating commercial disputes of specified value and matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Commercial Courts are a courts equivalent to District Courts and will adjudicate commercial disputes.
• Appellate Division in High Courts would hear the appeals from orders and judgments from the Commercial courts. Suits of a value of Rs one Crore or more that are pending in the high court/ District courts will now be transferred to the commercial division/would be transferred to the commercial court.
• Commercial divisions may be set up in those high courts which exercise ordinary original civil jurisdiction, that is, the High Courts of Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.
• The Act also says that appeals to High Court from the orders passed by tribunals like Competition Appellate Tribunal, Intellectual Property Appellate Board, Company Law Board or the National Company Law Tribunal, Securities Appellate Tribunal and Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate tribunal may be heard by the commercial appellate division of the high court if it relates to a commercial dispute.

By: Vishal