Break on date on date! 3 big decisions of the new CJI, rules will change from December 1

Last Updated:November 29, 2025, 21:05 IST

CJI Suryakant: As soon as the new CJI Suryakant took charge, he made major changes in the listing and adjournment system of the Supreme Court. From December 1, senior lawyers will not be able to mention and automatic listing of liberty cases like bail, anticipatory bail, habeas corpus will happen in two days. Now date after date will not be easy. Postponement will be available only for reasons of mourning, health or urgent reasons.

CJI took important decisions.

New Delhi. CJI Surya Kant has made big announcements as soon as he took charge in the Supreme Court as Chief Justice of India. Now it will not be easy to attend court date after date. Announcing the implementation of major administrative changes, the Supreme Court on Friday talked about reorganizing the entire process related to case listing, early hearing and adjournment. The new rules will come into effect from December 1. According to the Bar and Bench report, the biggest impact of these four circulars will be that senior advocates will no longer be able to make oral mention of any case and all important cases related to personal liberty will be automatically listed within two working days and that too without the need for any mention. The court has also made it clear that issues seeking immediate interim relief such as bail, anticipatory bail, habeas corpus, death penalty, stay of eviction or demolition will be listed directly without any delay.

Now it is not easy to date after date
These reforms, issued soon after CJI Surya Kant took charge, have been implemented with the aim of curbing uncontrolled oral mentioning in the Supreme Court, making the hearing timeline transparent and speedy disposal of liberty-related cases. Now advocates will not have to compete for slots or resort to multiple mentions. Also, the court has molded the adjournment process into a strict and uniform structure. Now the request for adjournment will be accepted only with the prior consent of the opposing party, and that too within the stipulated time limit.

Complete system redesign
According to the new instructions, oral mentioning in the court will be done only for those cases which are included in the ‘mentioning list’ released a day earlier. Senior counsel have been completely banned from mentoring while young junior lawyers have been encouraged to take up this responsibility. On the other hand, the biggest improvement in cases of automatic listing has been in the bail system. As soon as a bail petition is registered, it will be mandatory for the Advocate-on-Record to immediately serve an ‘advance copy’ to the Standing Counsel of the concerned State/Union Territory or Central Government. Without submitting its ‘Proof of Service’, the petition will neither be verified nor listed. This also makes clear the responsibility of the government to ensure effective representation in the court.

Time-bound route in non-automatic cases
Where automatic listing is not applicable, lawyers will have to apply in the prescribed proforma and with detailed urgency letter by 3 pm. This limit will remain till 11:30 pm on Saturday. In extremely urgent cases this document can be submitted by 10:30 pm, but only if the urgency letter proves that the matter cannot wait for the normal procedure.

Strict rules even in adjournment process
The Supreme Court has clarified that adjournment will be given only in cases of mourning, serious health reasons or extremely urgent circumstances. It will be mandatory to send it by email in the online prescribed format and the number of adjournments taken earlier will have to be mentioned. These four circulars together are considered a major step towards a disciplined, time-limited and predictable listing system in the Supreme Court—especially for cases that directly relate to the liberty of a citizen.