Supreme Court Rules 2013 - Order XVIII | Order 18

 Supreme Court Rules 2013 and Supreme Court Rules 1966 (Repealed) 

Landmark Cases of India / सुप्रीम कोर्ट के ऐतिहासिक फैसले

Supreme Court Rules 2013: 

Order XVIII

Appeals And Applications By Indigent Person

1. An application for leave to proceed as an indigent person shall be made on a petition. It shall be accompanied by:

(a) a copy of the petition of appeal and the documents referred to in Rule 3 of Order XIX, or of the petition for special leave and the documents mentioned in rule 4 of Order XXI, as the case may be, and

(b) an affidavit from the petitioner disclosing all the property to which he is entitled and the value thereof other than his necessary wearing apparel and his interest in the subject-matter of the intended appeal and stating that he is unable to provide security or surety for the cost of respondent and pay Court fees.

2. The Registrar shall, on satisfying himself that the petition is in order, direct that the petition shall be registered and set down for hearing before the Chamber Judge on a date to be fixed for the purpose.

3. The application shall be posted before the Judge in Chambers who may himself inquire into the indigency of the petitioner after notice to the other parties in the case and to the Attorney-General, or make an order directing the High Court either by itself or by a Court subordinate to the High Court, to investigate the indigency after notice to the parties interested and submit a report thereon within such time as may be fixed by the order. On receipt of the report, the petition shall again be posted before the Judge in Chambers for further orders:

Provided that, if the applicant was allowed to sue or appeal as an indigent person in the Court from whose decree the appeal is preferred, no further inquiry in respect of his indigency shall be necessary, unless this Court sees cause to direct such inquiry.

4. In granting or refusing leave to appeal as an indigent person, the Court shall ordinarily follow the principles set out in Order XXXIII of the Code.

5. Where a petitioner obtains leave of the Court to appeal as an indigent person he shall not be required to pay Court fees on the documents filed in the case or fees payable for service of process. He shall, however, be required to pay fees for obtaining copies of any documents or orders.

6. The Judge in Chambers may assign an advocate-on-record to assist an indigent person in the case, unless the indigent person has made his own arrangement for his representation. Such assignment shall ordinarily be from a panel of advocates willing to assist indigent persons and chosen by the Judge in Chambers. It shall however be open to the Judge in Chambers in his discretion to assign an advocate outside the panel in any particular case.

7. (1) No fees shall be payable by an indigent person to his advocate, nor shall any such fees be allowed on taxation against the other party except by an order of Court. The advocate may however receive from the indigent person money for out of pocket expenses, if any, properly incurred in the case.

(2) It shall be open to the Court, if it thinks fit, to award costs against the adverse party or out of the property decreed to an indigent person and direct payment of such costs to the advocate for the indigent person.

(3) Save as aforesaid no person shall take or agree to take or seek to obtain from an indigent person any fee, profit or reward for the conduct of his case, and any person who takes, agrees to take or seeks to obtain, any such fee, profit or reward, shall be guilty of Contempt of Court.

(4) Soon after an appeal by an indigent person has been heard and disposed of, the advocate for the indigent person shall file in the Registry a statement of account showing what moneys, if any, were received by him in the case on any account from the indigent person or from any person on his behalf and the expenditure incurred. If no moneys had been received, a statement shall be filed to that effect. The Taxing Officer may, where he thinks it necessary, place the statement filed before the Judge in Chambers for his perusal and orders.

8. Where the appellant succeeds in the appeal, the Registrar shall calculate the amount of Court-fees which would have been paid by the appellant if he had not been permitted to appeal as an indigent person and incorporate it in the decree or order of the Court; such amount shall be recoverable by the Government of India from any party ordered by the Court to pay the same, and shall be the first charge on the subject-matter of the appeal.

9. Where the appellant fails in the appeal or the permission granted to him to sue as an indigent person has been withdrawn, the Court may order the appellant to pay the Court-fees which would have been paid by him if he had not been permitted to appeal as an indigent person.

10. The Central Government shall have the right at any time to apply to the Court to make an order for the payment of Court-fees under rule 8 or rule 9.

11. (1) Where the party is not represented by an Advocate of his choice, the Court may in a proper case, direct the engagement of an Advocate from panel of Supreme Court Legal Services Committee or at the cost of the State. The fee of the Advocate engaged at the cost of State shall be such as may, from time to time, be fixed by the Chief Justice, unless otherwise directed by the Court.

(2) After the hearing of the matter is over, the Registrar, the Additional Registrar or the Deputy Registrar shall issue to the Advocate where engaged at the cost of State, a certificate in the prescribed form, indicating therein, the name of the said Advocate and the amount of fees payable to him.

(3) The State concerned shall pay the fees specified in the certificate issued under sub-rule (2) to the Advocate named therein within three months from the date of his presenting before it his claim for the fees supported by the certificate. If the fees are not paid within the period above-said, the Advocate shall be entitled to recover the same from the State concerned by enforcement of the certificate as an Order as to costs under the Supreme Court (Decrees and Orders) Enforcement Order, 1954.

Explanation. - For the purposes of this rule, the term "State" shall include a Union Territory.

12. All matters arising between the Central Government and any party to the appeal under the three preceding rules shall be deemed to be questions arising between the parties to the appeal.

13. In every appeal by an indigent person the Registrar shall, after the disposal thereof, send to the Attorney-General for India a memorandum of the court fees payable by the indigent person.

14. No appeal or other proceeding begun, carried on or defended by an indigent person shall be compromised or discontinued without the leave of the Court.

15. Any respondent, who desires to defend, may be allowed to set up the defence as an indigent person, and the rules contained in this Order shall, so far as may be, apply to him as if he were a petitioner moving the petition for leave to proceed as an indigent person.

Supreme Court Rules 1966: 

ORDER XVIII

PETITIONS GENERALLY

1. Every petition shall consist of paragraphs numbered consecutively and shall

be fairly and legibly written, type-written, lithographed or printed on one side of

standard petition paper, demy-foolscape size1

, [or of the size of 29.7 cm x 21 cm.]

or on paper ordinarily used in High Courts for transcribing petitions, with quarter

margin, and endorsed with the name of the Court appealed from, the full title and

Supreme Court number of the appeal or matter to which the petition relates and

the name and address of the advocate on record of the petitioner or of the petitioner

where the petitioner appears in person. The petitioner shall file along with his petition

such number of copies thereof as may be required for the use of the Court.

2. Where a petition is expected to be lodged, or has been lodged, which does

not relate to any pending appeal of which the record has been registered in the

Registry of the Court, any person claiming a right to appear before the Court on

the hearing of such petition may lodge a caveat in the matter thereof, and shall

thereupon be entitled to receive from the Registrar notice of the lodging of the

petition, if at the time of the lodging of the caveat such petition has not yet been

lodged, and, if and when the petition has been lodged, to require the petitioner to

serve him with copy of the petition and to furnish him, at his own expense, with

copies of any papers lodged by the petitioner in support of his petition. The caveator

shall forthwith, after lodging his caveat, give notice thereof to the petitioner, if the

petition has been lodged.

3. Where a petition is lodged in the matter of any pending appeal of which the

record has been registered in the Registry of the Court, the petitioner shall serve

any party who has entered an appearance in the appeal, with a copy of such petition

and the party so served shall thereupon be entitled to require the petitioner to furnish

him at his own expense, with copies of any papers lodged by the petitioner in support

of his petition.

4. A petition other than memorandum of appeal containing allegations of fact

which cannot be verified by reference to the record in the Court shall be supported

by an affidavit.

2

[5. The Registrar may refuse to receive a petition on the ground that it discloses

no reasonable cause or is frivolous or contains scandalous matter but the petitioner

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THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 1966

may appeal by way of motion, from such refusal to the Court.]

6. As soon as all necessary documents are lodged, the petition shall be set

down for hearing.

7. Subject to the provisions of rule 8, the Registrar shall, as soon as the Court

has appointed a day for the hearing of a petition, notify the day appointed on the

notice board of the Court.

8. Where the prayer of a petition is consented to in writing by the opposite

party, or where a petition is of a formal and non-contentious character, the Court

may, if it thinks fit, make an order thereon, without requiring the attendance of the

parties, but the Registrar shall, with all convenient speed, after the Court has made

its order, notify the parties that the order has been made and of the date and nature

of such order.

9. A petitioner who desires to withdraw his petition shall give notice in writing

to that effect to the Registrar. Where the petition is opposed the opponent shall,

subject to any agreement between the parties to the contrary, be entitled to apply

to the Court for his costs, but where the petition is unopposed, or where, in the

case of an opposed petition, the parties have come to an agreement as to the costs

of the petition, the petition may, if the Court thinks fit, be disposed of in the same

way mutatis mutandis as a consent petition under the provisions of rule 8.

10. Where a petitioner unduly delays the bringing of a petition to a hearing,

the Registrar shall call upon him to explain the delay, and if no Explanation is offered,

or if the Explanation offered is, in the opinion of the Registrar, insufficient, the

Registrar may, after notifying all parties, who have entered appearance, place the

petition before the Court for such directions as the Court may think fit to give thereon.

1

[10 A. (1) Where the petitioner is not represented by an Advocate of his

choice, in any petition including a writ petition, civil or criminal, or any other cause,

the Court may in proper case direct the engagement of an Advocate amicus curiae

at the cost of the State. The fee of the Advocate so engaged shall be Rs. 250 upto

the admission stage and a lump sum not exceeding Rs. 500 for the final hearing of

the case as may be fixed by the Bench hearing the case, and in an appropriate case,

the Bench hearing the case may, for the reasons to be recorded in writing, sanction

payment of a lump sum not exceeding Rs. 750 to the said Advocate.

1. Ins. by G.S.R. 541, dated 26th June, 1987 (w.e.f. 18-7-1987)

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THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 1966

(2) After the hearing of the petition is over, the Registrar or Deputy Registrar

shall issue to the Advocate amicus curiae a certificate in the prescribed form,

indicating therein the name of the Advocate engaged at the cost of the State, and

the amount of fees payable to the said Advocate.

(3) The State concerned shall pay the fees specified in the certificate issued

under sub-rule (2) to the Advocate named therein within three months from the date

of his presenting before it his claim for the fees supported by the certificate. If the

fees are not paid within the period abovesaid, the Advocate shall be entitled to

recover the same from the State concerned by enforcement of the certificate as an

Order as to costs under the Supreme Court (Decrees and Orders) Enforcement

Order, 1954.

Explanation:- For the purpose of this rule, the term ‘State’ shall include a

Union Territory.]

11. At the hearing of a petition not more than one advocate shall be heard on

one side.