Law Points on Judgment Writing

Besides reading, cultivate the art of writing. JudgmentJudgment The statement given by the Judge on the grounds of a decree or order - CPC 2(9). It contains a concise statement of the case, points for determination, the decision thereon, and the reasons for such decision - Order 20 Rule 4(2).  Section 354 of CrPC requires that every judgment shall contain points for determination, the decision thereon and the reasons for the decision. Indian Supreme Court Decisions > Law declared by Supreme Court to be binding on all courts (Art 141 Indian Constitution) Civil and judicial authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court (Art 144) Supreme Court Network On Judiciary – Portal > Denning: “Judges do not speak, as do actors, to please. They do not speak, as do advocates, to persuade. They do not speak, as do historians, to recount the past. They speak to give Judgment. And in their judgments, you will find passages, which are worthy to rank with the greatest literature….” Law Points on Judgment Writing > The judge must write to provide an easy-to-understand analysis of the issues of law and fact which arise for decision. Judgments are primarily meant for those whose cases are decided by judges (State Bank of India and Another Vs Ajay Kumar Sood SC 2022) writing is a creative process. The language should be plain, precise and pointed. Long sentences lose their punch. Words should be chosen with certain precision. The facts should be stated precisely. The issues written clearly. The evidenceEvidence All the means by which a matter of fact, the truth of which is submitted for investigation, is established or disproved. Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Adhiniyam 2023 should be discussed thread bare. The reasoning should be logical and should follow from one point to another. A rambling judgment is a bundle of confusion. Initially, learn from the judgments of your superior officers, from the judgments of the High CourtHigh Court High Court Judges in England and Wales handle complex and tough cases, sitting in London and traveling to court centers around the country. They preside over serious criminal and important civil cases, and support the Lord and Lady Justices in hearing appeals. High Court Judges are commonly referred to as ‘Mr/Mrs/Ms Justice surname’ and are given the prefix ‘The Honourable’. They are assigned to the King’s Bench Division, the Family Division, or the Chancery Division. The King’s Bench Division focuses on civil wrongs and judicial review, the Family Division deals with family law, and the Chancery Division handles various cases including company law and probate. Judges are appointed through a rigorous process overseen by the Judicial Appointments Commission. and the Apex Court. Dissect the judgments, examine its strength and weaknesses. Learn the craft of writing judgments. [Indian Judicial System-Justice Dr. AR. Lakshmanan (09/04/2005)]

Today, there is a general decline, in communication skills. While the electronic communication techniques have improved the speed, they have also led to grammarGrammar English > Greek > Sanskrit Vyakarana: It is the study of the rules governing the use of a language. That set of rules is also called the grammar of the language, and each language has its own distinct grammar. Grammar is part of the general study of language called linguistics. Read Panini and syntax becoming casualties. The legal fraternity and judicial officers are no exception to this general decline. Therefore, some lovers of Tamil actually argue that it is better to allow an alien language than one’s own mother tongue to suffer. This highlights the importance of improving the linguistic skills of Judicial Officers both in Tamil as well as in English since officers who have a long run, may have to acquire proficiencyProficiency Skillfulness, competence, or expertise in a particular field or activity. Efficiency: The ability to accomplish something with the least waste of time and effort. in both. Hence, it is necessary to impart special training periodically for the officers in linguistic skills, as otherwise, the litigants may not be able to decipher what is actually sought to be communicated to them, in the form of Judgments and Orders. [Madras High Court in Solai Subramanian Alias vs The Chief Secretary-1/07 /2014-W.P(MD)No.2394 of 2010]

The High Court has the authority under its powers of superintendence to make rules to be followed by the subordinate judiciaryJudiciary The modern justice system has its roots in Henry II's reign, where the assize system and common law were established. Professional judges and magistrates started to emerge in the 13th century, gradually increasing their independence. However, they faced challenges, including political involvement and potential influence by the sovereign. Changes to the judiciary system, such as the establishment of the Court of Chancery in 1830 and the Judicature Act in 1873, merged common law and equity, leading to the creation of the High Court, Court of Appeal, and Crown Court. Despite this evolution, the judiciary's full independence was not officially recognized until the Constitutional Reform Act in 2005. to ensure dispensation of justiceJustice δικαιοσύνη > judicature ( δικαιοσύνη) > judge (δικαστής / κριτής). The whole purpose of Plato`s Republic is to search for Justice. The purpose of Justice is to establish a perfect State. The State of happiness (ευτυχία) in accordance with acknowledged principles of lawLaw νόμος:  Positive command of sovereign or divine. One can be ruled either by a Statute, a Statue, or a Statement. Legislation is the rule-making process by a political or religious organisation. Physics governs natural law. Logical thinking is a sign of a healthy brain function. Dharma is eternal for Sanatanis. Judiciary > Show me the face, and I will show you the law. Some people know how to bend the law rather than break it. Law Practice. Read a scholarly article and natural justiceNatural justice The rules of natural justice operate in areas not covered by any law. They do not supplant the law of the land but supplement it. They are not embodied rules and their aim is to secure justice or to prevent miscarriage of justice (A. K. Kraipak vs Union of India (1969) 2 SCC 262). Whenever a complaint is made before a Court that some principle of natural justice has been contravened, the Court has to decide whether the observance of that rule was necessary for a just decision on the facts of that case.. So far as those rules do not conflict with any statutory provisions having the force of law, certainly these rules have a binding effect on the lower judiciary. [Gujarat High Court in Ismail Haji Mohammed Abrahani And  vs State Of Bombay – 11/10/ 1965-AIRAIR All India Reporter 1966 Guj 264]

In an article ‘On Writing Judgments’, Justice Michael Kirby of Australia [(1990) (Vol.64. Australian Law Journal p.691)] has approached the problem from the point of view of the litigant, the legal professionLegal Profession The Legal Profession is sui generis i.e. unique in nature and cannot be compared with any other Profession. A service hired or availed of an Advocate is a service under “a contract of personal service,” and therefore, would fall within the exclusionary part of the definition of “Service” contained in Section 2 (42) of the CP Act 2019. [Bar of Indian Lawyers through its President Jasbir Singh Malik v DK Gandhi PS National Institute of Communicable Diseases, 2024 INSC 410], the subordinate Courts/tribunals, the brother Judges and the judges’ own conscienceConscience The mind (depending on bio-electricity) can not work without memory and information, but consciousness can. Dreams come from consciousness. Conscience, in its moral sense, is the innate human ability to discern right from wrong and, based on this awareness, to guide, monitor, evaluate, and regulate one’s actions accordingly. Read: Mind is man.. To the litigant, the duty of the Judge is to uphold his own integrity and let the losing party knowKnowledge Knowledge is derived from the process of an informed person integrating data from sense organs or intuition into their psyche. This concept is explored in the Vedic Nasadiya Sukta, which questions the possibility of ultimate truth or knowledge. In different languages, such as Greek, Latin, Sanskrit, and Chinese, knowledge is expressed as "η γνώση," "Scientia," "ज्ञानम्‌ ," and "知识 Zhīshì," respectively. why he lost the case. The legal profession is entitled to have it demonstrated that the Judge had the correct principles in mindMind We know nothing about its origin, growth, or demise. Where it lives, can it live without a brain? Possibly, the mind is the soul and spirit. See Consciousness, had properly applied them and is entitled to examine the body of the Judgment for the learningLearning Educational learning theories: Cognitive Learning Theory, Behaviorism Learning Theory, Constructivism Learning Theory, Humanism Learning Theory, Connectivism Learning Theory, Transformative Learning Theory, Social Learning Theory, Experiential Learning Theory. and precedent that they provide and for the reassurance of the quality of the Judiciary which is still the centre-piece of our administration of justice. It does not take long for the profession to come to know, including through the written pages of published judgments, the lazy Judge, the Judge prone to errors of factFact Something तथ्य (In-formation) that truly exists or happens or some-thing that has actual existence. Circumstances: a fact or event that makes a situation the way it is. Indian Evidence Act: It means and includes— (i) anything, state of things, or relation of things, capable of being perceived by the senses; (ii) any mental condition of which any person is conscious. “facts in issue” means and includes any fact from which, either by itself or in connection with other facts, the existence, non-existence, nature or extent of any right, liability or disability, asserted or denied in any suit or proceeding, necessarily follows. etc. The reputational considerations are important for the exercise of appellate rights, for the Judges’ own self-discipline, for attempts at improvement and the maintenance of the integrity and quality of our judiciary.

From the point of view of other Judges, the benefit that accrues to the lower heirachy of Judges and tribunals is of utmost importance. Justice Asprey of Australia had even said in Pettit vs. Dankley [(1971 (1) NSWLR 376 (CA)] that the failure of a Court to give reasons is an encroachment upon the right of appeal given to a litigant. In our view, the satisfaction which a reasoned Judgment gives to the losing party or his lawyer is the test of a good Judgment. Disposal of cases is no doubt important but quality of the judgment is equally, if not more, important. There is no point in shifting the burden to the higher Court either to support the judgment by reasons or to consider the evidence or law for the first timeTime χρόνος. Judicial: Where any expression of it occurs in any Rules, or any judgment, order or direction, and whenever the doing or not doing of anything at a certain time of the day or night or during a certain part of the day or night has an effect in law, that time is, unless it is otherwise specifically stated, held to be standard time as used in a particular country or state. (In Physics, time and Space never exist actually-“quantum entanglement”) यमः , पुं, (यमयति नियमयति जीवानां फलाफलमिति । यम् + अच् । विश्वे च कलयत्येव यः सर्व्वायुश्च सन्ततम् । अतीव दुर्निवार्य्यञ्च तं कालं प्रणमाम्यहम् ॥यमैश्च नियमैश्चैव यः करोत्यात्मसंयमम् । स चादृष्ट्वा तु मां याति परं ब्रह्म सनातनम् ॥ to see if the judgment needs a reversal. [M/s. HindustanHindu הִנְדּוּאָה (hinĕḋẇʼáh), ινδουϊσμός: Hend  (Hendu). The establishment of a satellite state of the Ghaznavid Empire (capital: Lahore) in the Punjab (first half of the 11th century) was known as Hindustan—a geographical name given by the Persians, who came to visit Bharatvarsha (​हिन्दुस्तान). Asadi’s Garsasp-nama, expeditions to Hend and Sarandib (Sri Lanka) have been featured. Sanatan Dharma is the actual Dharmic tradition of the Hindus. People who live in Hindusthan are Hindu (The word is an original word), whether they follow Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Mahavira, or Nanaka. In this way, Tribals are also Hindu. Indian sword (šamšir-e hendi in zaḵm-e hendi). Anbar-e hendi (India perfumes) by Farroki. Ebn Battuta (Toḥfat al-noẓẓār fi ḡarāʾeb al-amṣārwa ʿajāʾeb al-asfār: ca. 1330) first mentioned 'Hindu Kush.' Times Limited vs. Union of IndiaIndia Hind/ hend >hindia. Bharat Varsha (Jambudvipa used in Mahavamsha) is the name of this land mass. The people of this land are Sanatan Dharmin and they always defeated invaders. Indra (10000 yrs) was the oldest deified King of this land. Manu's jurisprudence enlitened this land. Vedas have been the civilizational literature of this land. Guiding principles of this land are : सत्यं वद । धर्मं चर । स्वाध्यायान्मा प्रमदः । The place also been called Hindusthan in Pesia. The word Hendu is mentioned in Avesta. Read more & Others’ (1998)2 SCCSCC Supreme Court Cases 242 ]

1-Conclusion of Distt. Judge that trial Judge had recorded his judgment with pencil in his own hands comprising 33 pages and it was impossible that such a judgment could be written in 45 minutes and that too while Trial Judge (Senior Civil Judge) was in bathroom.

2-Constitutional jurisdictionJurisdiction Authority by which courts receive and decide cases. Limited Jurisdiction: the authority over only particular types of cases, or cases under a prescribed amount in controversy, or seeking only certain types of relief, the District Court is a court of limited jurisdiction. Original Jurisdiction: Jurisdiction of the first court to hear a case. of High Court, delayed pronouncement of judgment after 10 months of hearing argumentsArguments It is not quarreling. It can be divided into Deductive, inductive, and conductive > Functional includes include: “because”, “since”, “for”, and “as”; typical conclusion indicators include “therefore”, “thus”, “hence”, and “so”. पंच अवयव तर्कः प्रतिज्ञा हेतू उदाहरणम् निगमनम् अवयवाः > premises to conclusion or conclusion to premises to Proof something. Proof is a derivation of a conclusion from premises through a valid argument., proceedings involved civil rights, hence, considered as civil proceedings, Regardless of whether jurisdiction exercised by High Court was original appellate or constitutional, once proceeding before High Court were of civil nature ,the C.P.C would apply unless specifically excepted. UnreasonableUnreasonable The meaning of “unreasonable” cannot be determined by recourse to a dictionary, nor, for that matter, by reference to the rules of statutory construction. The task of expounding a constitution is crucially different from that of construing a statute. A statute defines present rights and obligations. It is easily enacted and as easily repealed. A constitution, by contrast, is drafted with an eye to the future. … Once enacted, its provisions cannot easily be repealed or amended. It must, therefore, be capable of growth and development over time to meet new social, political, and historical realities often unimagined by its framers. The judiciary is the guardian of the constitution and must, in interpreting its provisions, bear these considerations in mind (Hunter v. Southam Inc., [1984] 2 S.C.R. 145.) delay of 10 months had caused prejudice. Bulk of documentary evidence going to the root of the case did not find mention in the High Court Judgment. Supreme CourtSupreme Court The Court of last resort. Supreme Court of India (26/01/1950), Supreme Court of the United States (1798), Supreme Court of UK (1/10/2009), Supreme Court of Canada (1949), International Court of Justice (22/05/1947), > Supreme Court Network converted Leave petitionPetition αναφορά > παρακαλώ (Prayer) into appeal and remanded the case.

3-Contents of judgment and decree excepted from judicial officer that he would pass the speakingSpeech 400 million years ago, the larynx was developed and allowed for communication with other animals. 60 million years ago, human beings talked about Dynosure or like animals in India. The vocal tract was in place to support modern human discourse as early as 300,000 years ago in the Indian subcontinent.   order to enable everyone to have an idea or the view which found favour with the presiding officer or such court or Tribunal- Judgment should contain concise statement of the case, points for determination which had been raised, the decision thereon reason for such decision judicial order must be speaking and meaningful by it self exhibiting that the court had applied its mind to the resolution of all the material issues.

4-Decree in suit for rendition of accountsAccounting It is the process of recording, summarizing, analyzing, and reporting financial transactions of a business or individual. Types of Accounts > Assets- Things you own (cash, property) Liabilities- Things you owe (loans, bills) Equity- Owner’s stake in the business Revenue- Money you earn (sales, services) Expenses- Costs to run the business – levy of stamp duty on such decree, scope, phrase any property” as used in section 2(15) of Stamp Act 1989 would include both types of moveable or immovable properties.

5-Decree must agree with judgment.

6-Discretion is to be exercised according to rational reasons which means that; (a) there be finding of primary facts based on good evidence and (b) decisions about facts be made for reasons which serve the purposes of statuteStatute A formal written legal enactment by a sovereign law-making body (Νόμος) > National Constitutions  > National Laws >  Indian Laws in an intelligible and reasonable manner. Actions which doe not meet these threshold equipments are considered arbitrary and misuse of powerPower The amount of energy transferred or converted per unit of time. In the International System of Units, the unit of it is the watt, equal to one joule per second. The capacity of energy infrastructure is rated using watts, which indicate its potential to supply or consume energy in a given period of time. A Power-plant rated at 100 MW has the potential to produce 100 MWh if it operates for one hour..

7-Disposal of interconnected and interlinked issues would not cause any prejudice to a party.

8-DivorceDivorce The lawful thing Allah hates most is divorce. (Abu Dawud) – Khula – Decree for dissolution of marriage can be passed even though the other issues of crueltyCruelty Physical, mental, social and non-maintenance are not provedProved A fact is said to be proved when, after considering the matters before it, the Court either believes it to exist, or considers its existence so probable that a prudent man ought, under the circumstances of the particular case, to act upon the supposition that it exists;.

9-Even ex-partyEx parte The term means proceeding without prior notification and participation of the affected party or Defendant. order/judgment is required to be a speaking order/judgment even if passed under Order IX Rule 6. If initial order was void, no limitation;

10-Findings of the Rent Controller on the issue of default were given in a single sentence and did not discuss the accumulative effect of statement of the tenant where he had explained reasons for non-tendering of the rent. Judgment was violative of O .XX irrespective that C.P.C did not apply in the rent matters.

11-Ground in the Appellate Court, inter alia, that Trail Court was not legally competent to decide four issues collectively being against O XX R.5 C.P.C -held – no doubt Trial CourtTrial court Court of original Jurisdiction > the court which examines the evidences for the first time. should have given finding on each issue separately, but where certain issue were linked with each other and where considered together, such consideration was not violative of O XX R. 5 C.P.C.

12-In a pre-emption suit, the parties themselves modified original decree. Court  can accept it,  and modify the original decree in terms thereof.

 13-Issues in civil proceedings are to be decided on preponderance of evidence. In case of wordWord Λόγος  against word party on whom onus lay must fail.

14-Judgment did not conform to the provisions of law as it was to be based on evidence in the case and not other material or factor was to be taken into consideration. Furthermore the relief had to follow findings on the issue and should have been consistent with those findings. Such a disposition of the matterMatter Normal matter is made of molecules, which are themselves made of atoms. Inside the atoms, electrons are spinning around the nucleus. The nucleus is made of protons and neutrons. Inside the protons and neutrons, exist indivisible quarks, like the electrons. All matter around us is made of elementary particles. ( building blocks of matter > quarks and leptons). All stable matter in the universe is made from particles that belong to the first-generation. Fundamental forces result from the exchange of force-carrier particles, which belong to a broader group called “bosons”. The strong force is carried by the “gluon”, electromagnetic force is carried by the “photon.” could not qualify to be a judgment in law and was liable to be set aside.

15-Judgment passed without hearing and without informing the party of the existence of the ex-parte order is no judgment question of limitation does not arise against void order.

16-Judgment to be signed. Sending of the files to the officeOffice Αξίωμα > Officer > Office-bearer (1593) > Opus, officium, ex officio (Latin). Box-office (Cash Box). of the Court was a ministerial act and could not be determinative of the date of the signing the judgment.

17-Judgment would mean the judicious determination of the dispute between parties specifying grounds and substantial reasoning for arriving the particular decision. Judgment, held ought to be self-contained, un ambiguous, conveniently intelligible, lucid and capable of only one interpretation without leading for guess or probabilities with regard to matters sought to be determined. Proper or valid judgment would be devoid of apparent vagueness, ambiguity or possibility of different or double interpretation. Bar of limitation for filing appeal , against decrees passed in utter disregard of legal requirement viz recording of reasons for granting decree would not be applicable”;

18-Judgment written and signed after its pronouncement would be a mare irregularity.

19-Lack of issue-wise findings not fatal-however, issue-wise judgment from the original trial court is thumb rule. Issue-wise discussion not mandatory for Appellate Court.

20-Limitation does not run where impugned orderImpugned order Order under challenge is passed without hearing and notice to a party whose presence was otherwise necessary.

21-Member Board of Revenue, reserved the judgment/order and passed order after about ten months of hearing the case. Statutory obligation under Order XX Rule 1 C.P.C was to decide matters within thirty days of hearing the case. The order was not sustainable and was declared to be of no effect.

22-Mere observation in a case under Order 37 C.P.C based on Pronote while considering the grounds of leave on P.L.A that the defendant has not given any justification for grant of leave not considering the affidavitAffidavit An ex parte statement in writing made under oath before a notary public or other officer authorized to administer oaths, about facts which the affiant either knows of his own personal knowledge or is aware of to the best of his knowledge. attached thereto, and asking the plaintiff to prove his case , the conclusion drawn by the trial judge was wrong. Judgment feel short of requirements of order XX C.P.C”

23-Mere reproduction of evidence by the Appellate Court did not mean that the evidence of the parties has been discussed or referred to, judgment revealed cursory and casual approach of Appellate Court to the case. Judgment suffered from non-reading of evidence on record. The trial court had acted illegally etc. The judgment of the appellant was set aside and case was remanded to the Appellate Court;

24-No need to specifically give the issue no or reference as long as the question in question i.e. the “limitation” was consciouslyConscience The mind (depending on bio-electricity) can not work without memory and information, but consciousness can. Dreams come from consciousness. Conscience, in its moral sense, is the innate human ability to discern right from wrong and, based on this awareness, to guide, monitor, evaluate, and regulate one’s actions accordingly. Read: Mind is man. dealt with.

25-Order appealed against found to be a nullity – Appellate Authority can entertain and decide on merit even a time barred appeal against a void order.

26-Order of a tribunal found to be without jurisdiction. All successive orders based upon it are illegal and liable to be quashed in writ jurisdiction.

27-Order void ab initio- A nullity- such order does not require to be set aside in appeal or any other proceedings.

28-Order XX ,  Correction in judgment except u/s 152 C.P.C or a review after announcement , when the court becomes ” functus officio”. Therefore “correction” is not sustainable in the eye of law;

29-Service Tribunal mentioned in detail respective pleadings but had not resolved those points. No reason given in support of conclusion nor evaluation of documentary evidence made/discussed .It is no judgment in the eye of law.

30-Specific performanceSpecific performance The remedy of specific performance is special and extraordinary and is at the court’s discretion, which the court would only exercise “if, under all the circumstances, it is just an equitable to do so”. Factors affecting the court’s discretion include considerations such as: (a) whether damages would be an adequate remedy; and (b) whether the person against whom the relief of specific performance is being sought would suffer substantial hardship., Rescission of contractContract An agreement enforceable by law is a contract. All agreements are contracts if they are made by the free consent of parties competent to contract, for a lawful consideration and with a lawful object, and are not hereby expressly declared to be void. Indian Contract Act.. Decree of the Court for specific performance of agreementContract An agreement enforceable by law is a contract. All agreements are contracts if they are made by the free consent of parties competent to contract, for a lawful consideration and with a lawful object, and are not hereby expressly declared to be void. Indian Contract Act. is like preliminary decree and extension of the time for deposit of sale consideration – conveyance deed has to take place- during this period decree-contra continues to subsist-extension of the time is not an alteration or modification of a decree;

31-Successor judge can pronounce judgment written by his predecessor-Transferred judge who heard the case could complete the judgment which could have been announced by his successor. If case had been heard by Court or presiding officer, such officer could pronounce judgment/order even if he had been transferred or promoted. Where a presiding officer had concluded the hearing of the matter before his transfer, such officer could decide the matter before relinquishing the charge. The ratio is that if the outgoing judge has already heard the case, he could decide the same;

32-The requirements that orders of court ought to be publicly made and announced is not only a matter of accepted judicial procedure,but invariably a requirement of law regulating the functioning of Civil and Criminal Courts.

33-The signing of judgment as envisaged under Cr. P.C. is signing in open court at the time of pronouncement of the judgment and not signing at homeHome Αρχική >  , therefore, the simple writing and signing of the judgment was wholly ineffective and did not operate as a bar to further proceedings.

34-TIME FOR PRONOUCEMENT OF JUDGMENT “Order XX, R.1, High Court Rules & Orders had no prescribed time for pronouncement of the judgment, nevertheless, it was desirable to deliver the judgment without inordinate delay so that the justice must not only be done by manifestly appear to be done.

35-Trail Court failed to give issue-wise findings- Appellate Court while maintaining the judgment did not form points for determination ignoring mandatory requirements of O. XLI R.31 C.P.C judgments & decrees of both the lower courts set aside.

36-Trail court had properly dealt with the matter and the omission to discuss the issue-wise ratio had not resulted in injustice. High Court can decline to interfere with the concurrent judgments below.

37- The trail court while recording its findings on merit of the case did not further discuss the evidence. It is not a reasoned judgment under Order XX.

39-Where law provides for writing, announcing and signing a judgment that must be done in a way to get validity to the judgment.

40-Where no evidence was produced on the issue framed, the Courts below were left with no other option but to decide the same against the side on which onus of proofProof Mathematical proof, Direct proof, Proof by contraposition, Proof by contradiction, Proof by construction, Proof by exhaustion, Closed chain inference, Probabilistic proof, Combinatorial proof, Nonconstructive proof, Computer-assisted proofs. lay.

41- Section 33, Civil P. C. lays down that the Court, after the case has been heard, shall pronounce judgment & on such judgment, decree shall follow. Order 20 Rules 1 to 3 lay down when & in what manner a judgment is to be pronounced. Rule 2 says that a ”Judge may pronounce a judgment written but not pronounced by his predecessor”. Rule 8 of 0. 20 says:

“Where a Judge has vacated office after pronouncing judgment, but without signing the decree, the decree drawn up in accordance with such judgment may be signed by his successor, or if the Ct. has ceased to exist , by the Judge of any Ct. to which such Ct, was subordinate.”

It is significant that in Section 33 & Order 20 Rule 1, the word used is “Court” while in Rules 2 to 8 the word used is “Judge”. The use of the different words is deliberate & not accidental. It is the function of the Ct. which tries a case to pronounce judgment on it in open Ct. after notice has been given to the parties or to their pleaders. The actual delivery of the judgment may be done by a Judge who succeeded the Judge who heard the case or wrote the judgment. Such a procedure is absolutely necessary for the convenience of the litigants as. indeed, it frequently happens that a Judge who has heard arguments & written out his judgment is prevented by illness or other cause from attending court to pronounce it.

It is doubtless true that in such cases the judgment so prepared, until it is pronounced in open Court. merely remains a memorandum prepared by the Judge & does not take the effect of a judgment, & that it comes into effect as a judgment only after it has been pronounced in open Ct. in the manner prescribed. It is also clear from the language of R. 2 that the Successor Judge is not bound to pronounce the judgment prepared by his predecessor it is left to his option either to deliver the judgment prepared by his predecessor Judge who does no more than read in open Ct. a judgment prepared by his predecessor, adopts that judgment as his own, & can it be said by any stretch of language that the judgment so pronounced becomes the judgment of the successor Judge himself?

A judgment is defined as “a statement given by the Judge of the grounds of a decree or order”. How can a judge, who has not heard the evidence or the arguments in a case, give a statement of the grounds for the decree in that case? The statement of the grounds of the decree is given by the Judge who writes out the judgment after hearing arguments & taking evidence It is a judicial act of a Ct. But the mere reading of that judgment in open Ct, by his successor is an officialOffice Αξίωμα > Officer > Office-bearer (1593) > Opus, officium, ex officio (Latin). Box-office (Cash Box). act in his capacity as Judge. There is a fundamental distinction between the two acts. [AIR 1951 Ori 313]

42- Rights & obligations under a decree arise not from the date when the decree is drafted & signed but from the very moment that the judgment is pronounced. This has been pointed out in the judgment in Ramchandra v. Bhalu Patnaik, I. L. R. 1950 cut. 253 at pp. 270 & 271 : (A. I. R. (37) 1950 Ori. 125, F. B.). It is also indisputable that the mere writing of the judgment does not constitute the passing of the decree, though in fact it has been later on pronounced. Order 20, R. 3 shows that a judgment becomes final & unalterable only when it is pronounced & not before it, and the judgment becomes operative only from the date of the pronouncement. There can, therefore, be no doubt that a decree cannot be said to have been, passed before the judgment has been pronounced. According to Section 33, C. P. C. the Ct. after the case has been heard, shall pronounce the judgment & on such pronouncement, a decree shall follow. [AIR 1951 Ori 313]

43- Sec 264(Cr. P.C)  casts a statutory obligation of the Magistrate to record substance of the evidence and the substance of the evidence and the substance of the evidence so recorded is therefore, necessarily a part of the record of the case and is not longer a private property of the Magistrate as it used to be, before the amendment.

44-The memorandum of the substance of the evidence of witness, to be treated as a part of the record and this should apply also in cases of summary trials. The Sessions Judge while disposing of a criminal appealCriminal Appeal Shankar Kerba Jadhav and others vs. The State of Maharashtra (AIR 1971 SC 840): "An appeal is a creature of a statute and the powers and jurisdiction of the appellate Court must be circumscribed by the words of the statute. At the same time a Court of appeal is a "Court of error" and its normal function is to correct the decision appealed from and its jurisdiction should be co-extensive with that of the trial Court. It cannot and ought not to do something which the trial Court was not competent to do. There does not seem to be any fetter to its power to do what the trial Court could do." should not remand the case to the trying Magistrate to write out proper judgment after rehearing the parties as in his opinionOpinion A judge's written explanation of a decision of the court. In an appeal, multiple opinions may be written. The court’s ruling comes from a majority of judges and forms the majority opinion. A dissenting opinion disagrees with the majority because of the reasoning and/or the principles of law on which the decision is based. A concurring opinion agrees with the end result of the court but offers further comment possibly because they disagree with how the court reached its conclusion. the judgment of the Court was unsatisfactory. The Sessions Judge sits for appeal and is the final Court of fact and entitled to go into the evidence and give his finding himself. It is, therefore, not necessary for him to remand the case to the trial Court for re-writing judgment. [Tara Chand Singh v. Emperor. (1905) ILR 32 Cal 1069]