Bengaluru
The Karnataka High Court has upheld key amendments to the Karnataka Civil Courts Act, 1964, and the Karnataka High Court Act, 1961, concerning how civil appeals are handled in the state.
The court confirmed that appeals from Civil Judge (Senior Division) rulings can now go to the District Court, and first appeals from the City Civil Court can be heard by a Single Judge of the High Court, regardless of the case’s monetary value.
However, the High Court struck down the retrospective application of the amendments, which had sought to apply the new rules to cases dating back to August 28, 2007. Justice M I Arun ruled that such retrospective enforcement was arbitrary and unconstitutional, violating Article 14, which guarantees equality before the law.
Despite this, the court upheld the rest of the amendments and directed that all pending first appeals be transferred to appropriate courts as per the revised law. Judgments already delivered under the earlier rules will remain valid.
The state government had argued that the amendments were necessary to reduce High Court case backlogs and better utilize District Judges. The court accepted that rising caseloads and higher suit values justified these reforms while ensuring that litigants’ rights are safeguarded.