Courts identifying cases for settlement at Lok Adalat

95,178 pending cases were settled at the I Lok Adalat

Is your petition among the 12 lakh cases pending in various courts in the State?

Then you have another chance to find a permanent solution to the dispute with your opponent as lakhs of other litigants who saw an amicable end to their legal issues when 95,178 pending cases were settled as part of the I National Lok Adalat in August-November 2013.

Addressing presspersons here on Monday, Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka D.H. Waghela said that all the courts in the State, as part of the II National Lok Adalat, have initiated steps to identify cases among the 12 lakh pending ones for settling them through the on-going Lok Adalat, which will culminate on April 12.

Mindset

Pointing out that the people should realise that the regular judicial process is not the only way to get their disputes adjudicated, Mr. Waghela said that through alternative dispute resolution systems such as the Lok Adalat, people can get their disputes settled amicably.

He said that it is essential to develop a mindset among the people on the alternative systems as Mahatma Gandhi himself had felt that as a lawyer he got more satisfaction when he brought about compromise among litigants through out-of-court process.

He said that the print and electronic media had a vital role to play in developing this mindset as the people now generally believe in “fighting” their disputes through litigation.

“The process of the Lok Adalat is a sustained campaign for the welfare of society and for the benefit of the people,” he said while pointing out that cases which are in pre-litigation state and had not yet reached the courts, could be settled at the Lok Adalat.

He said that litigants should insist on advocates to refer their cases for amicable settlement through the Lok Adalat without any additional expenditure even as he asked advocates to properly advise their clients in bringing about reasonable and amicable resolution of disputes.

Suggestions for effective functioning of the Lok Adalat can be sent to the Member-Secretary, Karnataka State Legal Services Authority through email: karslsa@gmail.com.