The International Bar Association has put forth a study which revealed that there are around 8000 cases pending in the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India. The New York Times has said that seeking justice in India is a lifelong dream due to the prolonged delay in deciding the cases. India is one of the leading economies of the world and yet we are at a standby with the dilemma of number of pending cases.
This gives rise to various other Alternative Dispute Resolutions apart from arbitration or conciliation. The diverse complexities in India requires setting up of various platforms and tribunals where specific and expert – related issues may be addressed. This includes the emergence of various technology and AI related laws, commercial law, environment law, class action as well as climate action related laws.
Setting Up Specialized Tribunals for Complex Disputes
The growing field of Intellectual Property Rights, maritime agreements, franchise etc, are some of the disputes which are dealt in The Commercial courts at the district level as well as in High Courts. With the increase in business and globalisation there are disputations which are related to physical transactions between merchants and bankers, admiralty agreements, joint ventures, shareholders etc. There should be a separate tribunal set up for these commercial transactions as they are expert oriented and generally doles out large amounts of money. This was also mentioned in The Law Commission’s report where it was commented that setting up separate tribunals would expedite these cases especially as they are increasing in number.
Similarly, with the advent of new age technology such as AI, new algorithms brings about recently developed cases such as copyright, plagiarism as well as privacy predicaments. Such kinds of cases needs to be confronted by providing a separate platform to cater to these issues and in order to bring prompt judgements which further plays the role of precedents for future cases.
The recent case, ANI MEDIA PVT LTD Vs. OPEN AI INC & ANR in which a suit was filed by ANI as they claimed that Open AI has trained its chatbot Chatgpt to use ANI’s copyright content. This copyright infringement lawsuit lays on the importance on the growing concern on technology and AI related issue. The expert opinion on these situations would also answer various questions regarding the jurisdiction of these cases as most of the AI’s are currently made outside India and will also help the lawmakers in curating distinct laws to puzzle out these kind of lawsuits.
Climate is one of the thriving trends as it lays a direct impact on the people as well as the economies of various nations’ arounds the globe. The recent chances of weather wars in which there is potential for deployment of weather manipulation, along with the surfacing of geo – political issues will bring forth various climate related disputes among the countries. An example of this is the “Operation Popeye” in which the U.S military attempted to increase monsoon season to flood the enemy supply using cloud seeding during Vietnam War.
In order to curtail such issues, The International Chambers of Commerce has constituted a task force to explore the future role of arbitration in climate related issues. They usually involve multiple claimants, legal systems and a large quantum of money. Henceforth, arbitration is referred in these matters rather than tedious process in litigation especially when climate protection is a sensitive topic and the need of the hour.
Addressing the Rising Costs of Litigation in India
Other than, setting up infrastructure to provide to the resolutions for developing concerns, there are also several ways through which we can increase the efficiency of already existing predicaments in the Indian Judicial System.
The Constitution of India asks states to robust The Judicial System as well as provide free legal aid to the impoverished and deprived sections of the society, ensuring that Justice is provided to all in an equal manner. This however, feels like a far – fetched dream as still the cost of litigation in India is bounty. This generally includes the court – fees, advocate fees, process fees, travelling expenses etc. According to the data obtained by the law commission report, studies have shown that the cost of litigation in India has seen a significant increase in recent times from 1988 to the 20’s.
The concept of litigation funding which is still a lesser – known concept in India in which a third party safeguards the interest of parties who are unable to finance themselves, and provides an opportunity for financers to obtain a better return on their investments. The Establishment of the Indian Association for Litigation Financing in February 2021 by practitioners, law firms and third-party funders is a positive development in this field.
The Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Bar Council of India Vs A.K Balaji observed the legal permissibility of third-party funding in litigation and cleared that legal financing agreements are not prohibited in India.
A class action is also making an appearance in recent times as a dispute resolution in which lawsuit of filed by a large group of people who collectively bring a claim with similar interests against a particular defendant. It allows a larger group to be represented by one or two parties and they will address the common infringement and grievances of the others. The class action provisions are mentioned in the in The Consumer Protection Act where aggrieved consumers can file a lawsuit. Similarly, The Competition Act of India also has a similar provision. Class action can also be used by the shareholders and depositors of a company in way of ‘specialised class actions’ given in The Companies Act, 2013. In India, large class of lawsuits are mostly filed in the cases of Public Interest Litigation. The large class suits can prove to be fruitful if its horizon is increased.
The Role of Lok Adalats in Providing Quick Justice
In a country like India, where this are a lot of overdue matters and a long way to justice, Lok Adalats have proved to be a robust mechanism to cater to the petty offences of people and give effect to quick and equitable remedy. With no court fees, flexibility in procedures, no dire need for a counsel as direct interaction with the judge addresses the grievances better of the public and the award given by Lok Adalat being binding holding the same power of a decree of a civil court makes it a quick and cheap resort for The Indian society.
Conclusion
The Indian judicial system faces a significant backlog of cases, with around 8,000 cases pending in the Supreme Court alone, highlighting the urgent need for reform and alternative dispute resolution methods. Given the rise of complex issues, such as intellectual property, AI-related disputes, and climate change concerns, specialized tribunals and platforms are necessary to address these challenges.
For instance, establishing dedicated tribunals for commercial transactions, technology-related cases, and climate-related disputes would expedite the resolution process and offer expert handling of these issues. The case of ANI Media vs. OpenAI underscores the importance of addressing AI-related legal concerns, and similar specialized forums could set important precedents.
Additionally, the rising costs of litigation in India hinder access to justice for many, although initiatives like litigation funding and class action lawsuits are providing more accessible solutions. Lok Adalats also play a vital role in offering quick and affordable justice for smaller disputes, promoting an equitable legal system.
In conclusion, while challenges persist, reforms such as specialized tribunals, efficient dispute resolution methods, and increased access to funding and legal aid can help streamline the Indian judicial process and ensure justice is more accessible to all.
