Report No. 253

D. No Emphasis on Specialisation in the Commercial Division

2.21 The 188th Report of the Law Commission recognises that across the world, commercial courts are manned by specialist judges specifically pointing to the examples in the United States, UK and Singapore. Given the extremely technical nature of the disputes that are likely to be argued before the commercial court, specialist judges would be better equipped to dispose of the cases efficaciously.

However, the 2009 Bill does not make any provision for any specialisation of the judges who are to be nominated as judges of the Commercial Division by the Chief Justice. Moreover, there is no provision, which requires that the skills of the judges be upgraded during the course of their term as a judge of the Commercial Divisions.

2.22 Though it has been acknowledged that high value commercial disputes involve complex facts and questions of law, there is no effort to ensure that judges with the requisite knowledge and ability in that particular area decide such commercial disputes. The infrastructure to train judges and impart continuous judicial education to help them keep their knowledge updated is already present through the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal and the various state Judicial Academies set up across the country.

The Bill however does not make any effort to ensure that such infrastructure is adequately utilised to ensure that judges are properly equipped to handle complex commercial disputes.

2.23 Apart from judicial specialisation, given the rapid pace of developments in law and commerce across the world, there is a need to ensure that judges stay up to date with contemporary global developments. This entails that training at the stage of appointments, and even continuously thereafter. Commercial court judges must also keep abreast with the use of technology to help dispose of the cases efficaciously.

Back

Index

Next