Madras High Court rejects Supreme Court's 2017 precedent, upholds 2010 ruling on court fee refunds in out-of-court settlements

Justice P.B. Balaji refuses to follow Supreme Court’s 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam’s case and instead follows the top court’s 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case

Source

The Hindu — National →

Quick Revision

Prelims-testable facts

01The Madras High Court has ruled that litigants will not be entitled to a refund of court fees if disputes are settled out of court after the commencement of trial.
02The Madras High Court decision is based on the Supreme Court's 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case, not the 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case.
03Section 89 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) covers all methods of out-of-court dispute settlement between parties, as per the Supreme Court's judgment.
04The Supreme Court's 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case expanded the refund of court fees for private out-of-court settlements.
05The Madras High Court has refused to follow the Supreme Court's 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case on the refund of court fees.
06The Afcons Infrastructure case (2010) is the precedent followed by the Madras High Court in its ruling on court fees refund.

Trap alerts

Most people think the Madras High Court followed the Supreme Court's 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case, but actually it followed the 2010 Afcons Infrastructure case.
Most people think litigants are entitled to a refund of court fees if disputes are settled out of court after the commencement of trial, but actually they are not.

Prelims Practice MCQs

Single facteasy

Which of the following courts' ruling on refund of court fees is in line with the Madras High Court's decision?

A.Madras High Court
B.Supreme Court's 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case
C.Supreme Court's 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case
D.Calcutta High Court

The Madras High Court followed the 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case, which ruled that litigants are not entitled to a refund of court fees if disputes get settled out of court after the commencement of trial.

Multiple statementsmedium

Consider the following statements regarding Madras High Court Ruling: 1. The Madras High Court is located in Chennai. 2. The Madras High Court followed the 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case. 3. The Supreme Court's 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case was followed by the Madras High Court. How many of the above statements are correct?

A.Only one
B.Only two
C.All three
D.None

The Madras High Court is indeed located in Madras, which is now known as Chennai. However, the Madras High Court did not follow the 2017 verdict in M.C. Subramaniam's case, as it followed the 2010 judgment in Afcons Infrastructure case instead.

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