Lok Adalat UPSC Notes: Meaning, Types, Composition, Advantages & Disadvantages

Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute resolution procedures; it is a place where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at the pre-litigation stage can be peacefully settled/compromised. The Legal Services Authorities Act of 1987 established Lok Adalats as statutory entities. The award rendered by the Lok Adalats is considered a civil court judgment. It is final and binding on all parties under the aforementioned Act, and no appeal against such an award lies before any court of law. 

This article will help you understand the features and working of the Lok Adalats. Study major topics of Polity from the perspective of UPSC Exams for General Studies Paper 2.

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What is Lok Adalat?

Lok Adalat is a place where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at the pre-litigation stage are peacefully settled/compromised. The Legal Services Authorities Act of 1987 granted the Lok Adalat legislative standing. The award rendered by the Lok Adalats is considered the decision of a civil court under the aforementioned Act and is final and binding on all parties, and no appeal lies before any court against its award.

Nature of Cases to be Referred to Lok Adalat

The following cases are referred to the Lok Adalats:

• Any pending matter in any court.
• Any matter that has not yet been taken before a court but is likely to be presented before a court.
• However, provided that no issue related to an offense that is not compoundable under the law shall be decided in Lok Adalat.

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Some of the significant features of Lok Adalats include:

• The Lok Adalat will not determine the subject at its own initiative but rather based on a compromise or settlement reached between the parties.
• The members shall help the parties in their endeavor to seek an equitable settlement of their dispute in an unbiased and impartial way.
• Lok Adalat is a method of justice dispensation created to address the issue of providing affordable and timely justice.
• Lok Adalat, as the name implies, is the people’s court. Lok means “people,” while Adalat means “court.”

In general, Lok Adalat is not a court in the traditional sense. The distinction between Lok Adalat and a law court is that it has its premises where litigants and their lawyers can appear, but Lok Adalat travels to the people to give justice at their doorstep.

• It is a platform given by the people themselves or by interested parties such as social activists, legal assistance, and public-spirited persons from all walks of life.
• It is simply a firm venue offered by the people themselves for the ordinary people to air their concerns against state agencies or other citizens and, if feasible, seek an equitable resolution.
• The core principle of Lok Adalat is to resolve people’s disputes by conversation, counseling, persuasion, and conciliation to provide quick and inexpensive justice and mutual and free consent of the parties.
• In a nutshell, it is a kind of party justice in which people and judges engage and settle their conflicts via conversation, argument, and mutual accord.

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The Lok Adalat at different levels has the following structure:

At the State Authority Level

The Member Secretary of the State Legal Services Authority would organize the Lok Adalat. Each bench consists of a sitting or retired judge of the High Court or a sitting or retired judicial officer and any one or both of the following: 

• a member of the legal profession; 
• a social worker engaged in the upliftment of the weaker sections and interested in implementing legal services schemes or programmes.

At the High Court Level

The High Court Legal Services Committee Secretary would form Lok Adalat benches. Each of it would include a sitting or retired High Court judge and one or both of the following: 

• a member of the legal profession; 
• a social worker engaged in the upliftment of the weaker sections and interested in implementing legal services schemes or programmes.

At District Level

The Secretary of the District Legal Services Authority would organise the Lok Adalat. Each bench consists of a sitting or retired judicial officer and any one or all of the following:

• a member of the legal profession; 
• a social worker engaged in the upliftment of the weaker sections and interested in the implementation of legal services schemes or programmes; 
• a person engaged in para-legal activities of the area, preferably a woman.

At Taluk Level

The Secretary of the Taluk Legal Services Committee organizing the Lok Adalat would form benches of the Lok Adalat. Each bench consists of a sitting or retired judicial officer and either one or all of the following:

• a member of the legal profession; 
• a social worker engaged in the upliftment of the weaker sections and interested in the implementation of legal services schemes or programmes; 
• a person engaged in paralegal activities in the area, preferably a woman.

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Jurisdiction of Lok Adalats

A Lok Adalat has jurisdiction to determine and reach a compromise or settlement between the parties to a dispute in respect of –

• any case pending before or
• any subject that falls within the jurisdiction of but is not brought before any court for which the Lok Adalat is organized.

However, the Lok Adalat shall have no authority over divorce or offenses that are not compoundable under any law.

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Here are the powers and functions of Lok Adalats:

• Lok Adalats are people's courts that provide informal and speedy justice to common people.
• They can resolve disputes and arrive at a compromise or settlement between the parties involved.
• Lok Adalats can handle pending cases before any court or matters that fall within the jurisdiction of a court but have not been brought before it.
• Parties can voluntarily agree to settle their dispute in a Lok Adalat, or one of the parties can apply for the case to be referred to a Lok Adalat.
• Lok Adalats can handle various cases, such as marital/family disputes, criminal cases (that can be settled), land acquisition cases, labor disputes, workmen's compensation cases, and bank recovery cases.
• However, Lok Adalats have no jurisdiction over cases involving offenses that cannot be settled under any law.
• The decisions made by Lok Adalats are binding on the parties involved and have the same legal force as that of a court judgment.
• The proceedings in Lok Adalats are less formal compared to regular courts. They aim to provide inexpensive and accessible justice to all.

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Different Types of Lok Adalats

There are majorly three types of Lok Adalats as explained below:

National Lok Adalat

National Level Lok Adalats are held at regular intervals. Lok Adalats are held on a single day throughout the country, in all courts from the Supreme Court to the Taluk Levels, when matters are disposed of in large numbers. Every month since February 2015, National Lok Adalats on a certain issue have been held.

Permanent Lok Adalat

The Permanent Lok Adalat, established under Section 22-B of the Legal Services Authorities Act of 1987, is the other form of Lok Adalat.

• Permanent Lok Adalats have been established as permanent bodies with a Chairman and two members to provide a mandatory pre-litigation process for conciliation and resolution of matters pertaining to Public Utility Services such as transportation, postal, telegraph, and so on.
• Even if the parties cannot reach an agreement, the Permanent Lok Adalat has jurisdiction to resolve the issue as long as it does not involve an offence.
• Furthermore, the Permanent Lok Adalat’s decision is final and binding on all parties.
• Permanent Lok Adalats have jurisdiction up to Rs. ten lakhs. If the parties cannot reach an agreement, the Permanent Lok Adalat has the authority to resolve the matter.
• The Permanent Lok Adalat’s decision is final and binding on the parties.
• The Lok Adalat may conduct the proceedings in any way it deems suitable, considering the facts of the case and the preferences of the parties, such as requests to hear oral statements, the expeditious resolution of disputes, and so on.

Mobile Lok Adalats

Kerala State Legal Services Authority launched the mobile Lok Adalat programme. When any voluntary organisation, Panchayet, Municipality, Govt. Undertaking, or NGO, applies and makes necessary arrangements for Mobile Lok Adalat. When there are a sufficient number of pre-litigated cases, the State Authority, District Authorities, and Sub-Divisional Committees may also organize Mobile Lok Adalat by notification at any place outside the Court Complex.

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Advantages of Lok Adalats

Some of the key benefits of the Lok Adalat include the following:

• A Lok Adalat can make decisions in cases where the law allows for a compromise or settlement amongst persons. It can take on pre-litigation cases as well as current court issues.
• Lok Adalat is intended for conciliated settlement of conflicts outside of court, which is what most of our people want if the case permits it.
• Many individuals are afraid of taking disagreements to court, not just for fear of delaying justice but also for financial reasons.
• There is no court charge, and if one has already been paid, it will be repaid if the case is resolved at Lok Adalat. In other words, it is less costly.
• The essential elements of Lok Adalat are procedural flexibility and fast dispute resolution.

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Disadvantages of Lok Adalats

Some of the issues concerning Lok Adalats are:

• The biggest disadvantage is that the Lok Adalat method is mostly predicated on compromise or settlement between the parties.
• If the parties are unable to reach an agreement, the matter is either returned to the court of law or the parties are instructed to seek redress in a court of law.
• The judges are under pressure to resolve cases swiftly for political reasons, which leads to a lack of concern for the parties’ rights and requirements.
• Lawyers are sometimes hesitant to refer a case to Lok Adalat for resolution.
• There have also been reports of parties pressuring their attorneys to follow the court’s rigorous rules.
• There are also instances where a party’s attorney is unprepared or not present, preventing the parties from reaching an agreement.
• There has even been animosity between attorneys and judges.
• In the State of Punjab versus Jalour Singh (2008), the Supreme Court ruled that a Lok Adalat is entirely conciliatory and has neither an adjudicatory nor a judicial role.
• Because compromise is its primary concept, there is fear that the pursuit of expedited case resolution compromises the concept of justice.
• Another significant disadvantage of this method is that the Lok Adalat is organised mostly by agreement or settlement between parties.
• If the parties cannot reach an agreement, the matter is either returned to court or the parties are instructed to seek a remedy in court. It causes needless delays in the administration of justice.

Check the details on the Comparison of the Powers and Positions of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha here.

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