Special Lok Adalat Week, 2024- A Stellar Beginning!

The recently concluded Special Lok Adalat Week in the Supreme Court from 29th July, 2024 to 2nd August, 2024 has been a grand success on so many different parameters. More than 1000 cases pending before the Supreme Court have been settled. But the numbers are only part of the story.The settled cases relate to diverse areas such as motor accident & insurance claims, matrimonial &...

An Ode To Sadhana Ramachandran

I had seen Sadhana as an educationist from a distance as part of an audience. That was many years ago. Fate would conspire with me to see her at close quarters years later. It was Madhavi Divan, who understanding the issues, suggested wisely that only Sadhana could mediate in and resolve a particularly fratricidal litigation. The Supreme Court agreed and appointed Sadhana as one...

Euthanasia: Legal Aspects In India And Around The World

The term Euthanasia comes from two Ancient Greek words: 'Eu' means 'Good', and 'thantos' means 'death', so euthanasia means good death. Euthanasia, often referred to as "mercy killing" or "physician-assisted death," is a complex and highly debated topic within legal and ethical realms. Western Philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle have debated the ethics of euthanasia for centuries,...

A Fly In The Ointment: Legislative Error In Consumer Protection Act 2019

The mischief of the Consumer Protection Act, of 1986 (“Act”) was to provide the consumers with a redressal mechanism. It was a “social benefit-oriented legislation”[1], enacted to provide 'protection' to the interests of the consumer of both the goods and the services alike. According to the object of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (“New Act”), the New Act...

The Stance Of Euthanasia In India

Euthanasia in the simplest sense involves intentionally ending a person's life to relieve ongoing suffering such as suffering from an irrecoverable or an incurable state of being and is a complex and evolving issue in the Indian landscape. While death with dignity is not only a legal issue but simultaneously a cultural and spiritual issue as well, a country secular as India possesses...

“Microsoft Blues”: A Call For Regulatory Shift & Invoking No Fault Liability

In the digital age, the security and resilience of critical infrastructure has become a paramount concern for nations worldwide. The recent Microsoft cloud outage, which caused widespread disruptions to various services and applications, has highlighted the world's uninhibited dependency on private companies and the urgent need for policymakers to mitigate the risks of such data outages with...

Need For Policy-Driven Digital Rehabilitation In India

In today's technological era, the research ecosystem around digital services is getting richer. There is curiosity-driven literature around the assistive role of digital rehabilitative interventions (DR) being developed across the globe. The National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA, in 2023 defined DR as a part of the rehabilitation process that utilises technology as a...

Applicability Of Section 17 To Foreign Seated Arbitrations

Currently under the framework of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (“Act”), Section 17 (which deals with powers of the arbitration tribunal to grant interim measures) –by virtue of it being under Part I of the Act– is applicable only to arbitration that are seated in India. However, in arbitrations seated outside India, the party seeking interim reliefs against the...

Genetic, Environmental, Legal Challenges Of Antisocial Personality Disorders In Criminal Justice System

In recent years, the Indian judiciary has emphasized that no one is born a criminal, highlighting the influence of environmental factors on criminal behaviour. However, scientific evidence indicates that genetic traits also play a significant role. Conduct disorder, sociopathy, and psychopathy are conditions that manifest as a pervasive pattern of behaviour where individuals infringe...

Applicability Of CrPC After July 1, 2024: A Conflict In The Twilight Zone

Within days of coming into force, the much celebrated new criminal laws which repealed the "colonial remnants" have provoked a legal conundrum qua their applicability to offences registered prior to July 1, 2024.There is also uncertainty regarding applicability of the old statues to proceedings after the said date. This article is an attempt to dissect some of these issues.If an offence...

Chaining Freedom: The Conflict Between Use Of Handcuffs Under BNSS And Right To Life And Personal Liberty

On 1st July, 2024, the new criminal laws i.e., Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 ['BNS'], Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 ['BNSS'] and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 ['BSA'] have come into force replacing the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ['CrPC'] and the Evidence Act, 1872 respectively. Though the objective behind enforcement of these new criminal...

Lawyers Advertising Through Online Portals, Commodification Of Profession Against Ethical Mandate

In ancient Greece, Socrates warned against the sophists who, much like hawkers in a bustling marketplace, peddled their teaching services purely for profit. Fast forward to the present day, and the tension between commercial interests and professional integrity has found a modern parallel in India's legal practice. The recent Madras High Court judgment in P.N. Vignesh v. Bar Council of...