Prof. G. Mohan Gopal
Part I. Overall Framework
- Conceptual Framework:
A broad conceptual framework for strengthening court and case management was developed around four key areas set out in a “national framework for enhancing court excellence” that drew on international and national standards: (i) quality; (ii) responsiveness; (iii) timeliness; and (iv) efficiency and effectiveness (QRTE). Programmes in court and case management management in each of these areas were carried out extensively and intensively through national, regional and state programmes of judicial acadamies.
2. Permanent institutional framework for strengthening court excellence.
Based on this framework, a national institutional framework was established to identify problems, develop and implement solutions and monitor overall court and case management.
This framework consists of the National Court Management Systems Committee (NCMS) at the Supreme Court; the State Court Management Systems Committee (SCMS) at the High Court level and District Court Management Systems Committees (SCMS) at the District Level.
The committees were established and made functional at the national and state levels.
3. Performance Standards and Monitorable Performance Indicators
A set of comprehensive and detailed performance standards and and monitorable performance indicators were developed and made available publicly on the Supreme Court web-site as detailed reference material available to High Courts and through them to the District Judiciary across the country in five areas.
- National Framework of Court Excellence (NFCE)
- Court Development Planning System (including architectural standards for new courts and other infrastructure)
- Human Resource Development Strategy
- Court and Case Management
- Judicial Statistics
4. Court Development Planning System
A detailed template and methodology for court development planning at the level of individual courts setting specific standards for improvement of court and case management was developed and extensively offered to courts. This template includes setting vision statements, targets and monitoring indicators, to be established in collaboration with other stakeholders.
5. Judicial Education
established for the development of judicial education calendar of the National Judicial Academy in consultation with State Judicial Academies. A National Judicial Academic Council chaired by the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India was established with judges in charge of education from all High Courts as members to exchange information and coordinate on the work of judicial academies.
Programmes on court and case management and enhancing excellence of judicial education were mainstreamed into judicial education. Over the years, strong state judicial academies have been established in every High Court with excellent infrastructure and active programmes. Judicial education has been integrated into the work of the judicial system in a manner not achieved in other countries. The content and style of judicial academy programmes were reformed and modernized to make them more interactive and participatory. They were also made more inter-disciplinary with greater inputs from external experts as needed and appropriate.
Part II. Specific Areas
1.Enhancing Judge Strength
Extensive research was done to justify expansion of judge strength, resulting in an unprecedented near doubling of judge strength during this period. This includes unprecedented expansion of High Court Judge Strength.
2. Establishing a new method for calculating required judge strength
For the first time, a new national scientific methodology for calculating required judge strength in Subordinate Courts (Imtiyaz Ahmad case) and High Courts was develoepd and accepted by the Supreme Court based on wighted cases and taking realistically into account all responsibilities of judges beyond judicial work.
3. Reduction of Delays
Developed a new approach to delay reduction, the “Five Plus Zero” initiative, resulting in systematic monitoring and reduction of cases in every court. The goal is to first make every court — and state court systems — free of cases more than fiove years old in that case (“five plus zero”). AT the next stage these courts will aim to become free of cases more than four years old and so until they reach the goal of beingf free of cases more than 1 year old (1 plus zero).
4. Judicial Data
Initiatives taken by the National Judicial Academy helped in the eventual development of the National Judicial Data Grid.
5. Budget and Financial Management Systems
Assistance was provided to High Courts to improve their systems for budget preparation and resource mobilization. Presentations were made to the 14th Finance Commission and later Finance Commissions resulting in significant resources being made available for strengtheing judicial systems.
Prof. G. Mohan Gopal 