National Legal Services Authority 3rd National Lok Adalat Of 2024, Resolves 1.14 Crore Cases

Lok Adalat aids in arriving at an amicable settlement/compromise between the parties outside the confines of a formal court system. The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) remains committed to promoting access to justice for all through its various initiatives, including the organization of Lok Adalats, and continues to make strides in reducing the burden on the formal judicial system by encouraging alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.

In keeping with this objective, NALSA has successfully organised the 3rd National Lok Adalat of the year 2024 in the Taluks, Districts and High Courts of 27 States/UTs. In the remaining States/UTs, the 3rd National Lok Adalat will be held after the prevailing Ganesh Chaturthi and Onam festivities. The present Lok Adalat was organised under the esteemed stewardship of Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge, Supreme Court of India and Executive Chairman, NALSA.

A significant number of 1,14,56,529 cases (One crore fourteen lakh fifty-six thousand five hundred twenty-nine) have been settled at the 3rd National Lok Adalat on 14.09.2024, including 94,60,864 pre-litigation cases (Ninety-four lakh sixty thousand eight hundred sixty-four) and 19,95,665 pending cases (Nineteen lakh ninety-five thousand six hundred sixty-five). This includes the resolution of a wide range of cases including criminal compoundable offences, traffic challans, revenue cases, bank recovery cases, motor accident claims, cheque dishonour cases, labour disputes, matrimonial disputes (excluding divorce cases), land acquisition cases, IPR or consumer matters, and other civil cases. The approximate value of the total settlement amount in these cases was 8482.08 crores (Eight thousand four hundred eighty-two point zero eight). The number of settled cases is expected to rise as reports are awaited from some State Legal Services Authorities. This overwhelming response from citizens aligns with the intention behind Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, and the National Legal Services Authority (Lok Adalats) Regulations, 2009.

The present success reflects the trust of the people in Lok Adalats, significantly enhancing access to justice, especially for the underprivileged and marginalised sections of society. NALSA remains committed to organising more Lok Adalats and promoting alternative dispute resolution mechanisms across the country.