16 May 2025 Administrative Law >> Constitution & Law Procedure  

In a significant ruling on May 16, 2025, the Supreme Court of India addressed the long-standing issues concerning the service conditions and regularization of Court Managers across the country. The judgment, delivered by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, alongside Justice Augustine George Masih and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, in the case of All India Judges Association & Others v/s Union Of India & Others, mandates the framing of uniform rules and the regularization of Court Managers, recognizing their crucial role in enhancing judicial efficiency.

The concept of Court Managers was initially introduced by the Thirteenth Finance Commission (2010-2015) to provide administrative support to judges, thereby improving case disposal rates and overall court management. The Commission recommended the creation of these posts in each judicial district and High Court, allocating significant funds for their employment. Despite these recommendations and subsequent guidelines from the Finance Ministry detailing their functions and qualifications, many Court Managers were appointed on a contractual or ad-hoc basis with varied pay scales and no benefits.

The Supreme Court had previously highlighted the necessity of Court Managers in its August 2, 2018 judgment in All India Judges’ Association and Others. v. Union of India and Others, directing their regularization due to their indispensable assistance in court administration. However, many states failed to implement these directives, leading to the filing of the present applications and writ petitions.

The Second National Judicial Pay Commission (SNJPC) Report of February 4, 2022, further underscored the underutilization of Court Managers and the prevailing ad-hocism in their service conditions across various states. The SNJPC particularly praised the Gauhati High Court (Appointment and Conditions of Service of Court Managers for the State of Assam) Rules, 2018, as comprehensive, providing for regularization, pay benefits, and annual increments.

Key Directives from the Supreme Court:

The Supreme Court, acknowledging the submissions of amicus curiae Shri Siddharth Bhatnagar, issued the following crucial directions:

• Framing of Rules: All High Courts are directed to frame or amend rules for the recruitment and service conditions of Court Managers within three months, using the Assam Rules of 2018 as a model. States are permitted to make suitable modifications to meet their specific needs.
• Approval by State Governments: State Governments must finalize and approve these rules within a further period of three months from their receipt from the High Courts.
• Rank and Benefits: Court Managers are to be designated as Class-II Gazetted Officers for basic pay, allowances, and other service benefits.
• Supervision: Court Managers in High Courts will work under the Registrar General/Registrars, while those in District Courts will operate under the supervision of Registrars/Superintendents.
• Avoid Overlap: The Rules Committee of the High Courts must ensure that the duties of Court Managers do not overlap with those of Registrars.
• Regularization: Court Managers currently working on contractual, consolidated pay, or ad-hoc bases are to be continued and regularized, subject to passing a suitability test outlined in the new rules.
• Retrospective Regularization: Regularization will be effective from the date of initial appointment, entitling them to continuity in service for all purposes, including terminal benefits. However, they will not be entitled to arrears based on salary differences for the period prior to actual regularization.
• Timeline for Regularization: The regularization process must commence and be completed within three months of the rules being approved by the respective State Governments.
• Accountability: The Registrar Generals of the High Courts and Chief Secretaries of the State Governments will be personally responsible for adhering to these timelines.

The Court emphasized that the regularization of Court Managers is vital to avoid hardship, given their years of service. This ruling aims to bring uniformity and stability to the employment of Court Managers nationwide, acknowledging their pivotal role in modernizing and enhancing the efficiency of the Indian judicial system.