Delhi HC Issues Directions For Acknowledging The Service Of Copies: Court Clerks Violating Rules Will Be Punished [Read Order]

Delhi High Court has passed directions in order to curb the wastage of valuable court time due to confusions regarding the serving of copies to the other party.

In the present case, there was a confusion between the counsels from both sides regarding the supply of an affidavit. While the counsel for the Respondent, Naushad Ahmed Khan, relied upon an affidavit to argue his case, the Petitioner's counsel Mr VP Rana claimed that he has not been supplied with a copy of the said affidavit.

Post lunch, both the counsels submitted that the issue of service of short affidavit has been enquired into with their respective court clerks and sorted out amongst themselves. The copy of the affidavit was actually not served to the other party, which was then remedied.

In order to remedy the confusion that is created around the service of copies amongst the parties and the court clerks, Justice Pratibha Singh issued the following directions:

1. The acknowledgement of advance copies shall be taken on the first or second page of the index. The person acknowledging shall sign, write his name, court clerk's registration number and his mobile number as also the party for whom the acknowledgement is being given (Petitioner/Plaintiff/ Defendant/Respondent no.1 or 2 etc.,)
2. That Counsels shall ensure that their court clerks do not give wrong acknowledgements of service in the original pleadings/documents index filed before the Court.
3. That any court clerk, who puts wrong signatures or ghooghi or wrong acknowledgement of the opposing counsel or court clerk, would be liable for strict action.
4. That the Counsels shall ensure that on the index at the time of filing pleadings or documents, their full names, enrolment numbers and mobile numbers along with their e-mail addresses are specified.
5. Advance copies in addition to the hard copies or courier copies, may also be served through email so that service is not disputed by the parties.
6. It is made clear that in cases where counsels do not have copies of the record, they are permitted to obtain electronic copies of the Court record from the Registry of this Court.

The court deemed it necessary to issue such directions as several adjournments before courts are taking place due to non-receipt or non-supply of copies of complete pleadings and documents. This would also ensure that the court clerks are made accountable in case they give wrong acknowledgements of opposing counsels or clerks on the pleadings and documents.

It also ordered that the aforementioned directions shall be circulated on the notice board and in the cause list of the Delhi High Court Bar Association and the District Court Bar Associations as also to the Court Clerks Association.

The court has also highlighted that any court clerk who is seen to be indulging in any such wrong acknowledgement and wrong receipt, would be liable for strict action by the Court in accordance with law. 

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