The Centre’s bold push to reform litigation and judicial efficiency is a welcome step, though challenges remain
The Indian judiciary can be summed up in one phrase from Bollywood — tareekh pe tareekh. Whether you are a winner or a loser in court, the fact remains that the judicial process takes a heavy toll on litigants. Cases drag on for years, during which money drains and energy saps, making it excruciatingly painful to even fight the case. The irony is that the Government is one of the biggest litigants, putting an extra burden on the courts. However, some respite is in sight. In a landmark initiative that signals a major course correction in India’s legal landscape, the Union Ministry of Law and Justice has rolled out a sweeping reform aimed at tackling one of the most chronic issues plaguing the Indian judiciary — delays caused by the Government’s own overreach as the largest litigant in the country. Titled the Directive for the Efficient and Effective Management of Litigation by Government of India, the new standard operating procedure is more than an administrative adjustment. For years, India’s judiciary has groaned under the burden of a staggering backlog, with over 4.7 crore cases pending across courts.
These legal disputes are often the result of avoidable service-related grievances, policy ambiguities, redundant appeals and poor interdepartmental coordination. The new directive acknowledges this reality and addresses it head-on by laying out a detailed, systemic roadmap for ministries to reform how they engage with the judicial process. A significant part of the directive’s innovation lies in its call for classifying court cases by their urgency and impact. Legal matters will now be categorised as highly sensitive, sensitive or regular, ensuring that cases involving national security, major financial implications or public policy are flagged early and handled at the highest administrative levels.
At the same time, the directive discourages the filing of Special Leave Petitions in the Supreme Court — except in rare and exceptional cases. Central to this reform is the institutionalisation of legal expertise within every ministry. Each department must now establish a legal cell headed by a senior officer with legal training, supported by young professionals and subject experts hired on a contractual basis. This structure is designed to professionalise the Government’s legal handling, replacing the current ad hoc and reactive approach with a more deliberate and informed process. The directive also seeks to curb the impulse to litigate by promoting alternative dispute resolution mechanisms such as mediation and arbitration. By including arbitration clauses in contracts and creating a centralised Arbitration Portal, the Government is taking concrete steps to resolve disputes more swiftly and efficiently.
The reform is heavily technology-driven. All legal matters must now be tracked through the Legal Information Management and Briefing System (LIMBS), a centralised digital platform that will help ministries monitor litigation, process payments to lawyers, track case histories, and detect emerging legal trends.
This system promises transparency and real-time accountability, giving the Government a clearer view of its legal landscape and enabling it to manage risks more proactively. If fully realised, it could help transform the Indian judicial system from a bottleneck into a beacon of timely justice and responsible governance.
