HIERARCHY OF

COURTS
PRESENTED BY: SHISHIR UPADHYAY
SHUBHAM AGRAWAL
TRIPURESH TRIPATHI
The Indian Judiciary administers a common law
system of legal jurisdiction, in which customs,
precedents and legislation, all codify the law of
the land.
There are various levels of judiciary in India –
different types of courts, each with varying
powers depending on the tier and jurisdiction
bestowed upon them.
 They form a strict hierarchy of importance, in
line with the order of the courts in which they
sit, with the Supreme Court of India at the top,
followed by High Courts of respective states with
district judges sitting in District Courts and
Magistrates of Second Class and Civil Judge
(Junior Division) at the bottom
 SYSTEM OF COURTS IN INDIA
• At National level – Supreme Court of India
• At State level – High Court
• At District and Subordinate level – Subordinate
Courts (Civil and Criminal)
 Supreme Court of India

• The Supreme Court is the highest court of the

country or nation, which is established by
the Constitution.
• According to it, the Supreme Court is a federal
court, guardian of the Constitution and the
highest court of appeal.
• Articles 124 to 147 of the Constitution lay
down the composition and jurisdiction of the
Court.
 Jurisdiction of supreme court
• Court of Record. Has power to punish for
contempt. (A.129)
• Original Jurisdiction. (A.131)
• Highest Court of Appeal in the country.
(A.132,133,134 & 136)
• Writ jurisdiction.(A.32) aa
• Advisory Jurisdiction.(A.143)
• Law declared by the Supreme Court binding on
all Courts in India.(A.141
 High court of india
• There are 24 High Courts at the State level.
• These courts have jurisdiction over a state, a
union territory or a group of states and union
territories.
• Judges in a high court are appointed by the
President after consultation with the Chief
Justice of India, Chief Justice of High Court and
the governor of the state.
 Jurisdiction of high court
• Court of Record. Has power to punish for
contempt. (A.215)
• Original Jurisdiction in civil and criminal
matters in the case of some High Courts.
• Appellate jurisdiction in respect of criminal and
civil cases decided by Subordinate courts.
• Revisional Jurisdiction conferred under the
Civil Procedure Code and Criminal Procedure
Code.
• Writ jurisdiction.(A.226)
• Administrative Jurisdiction over subordinate
courts.
 District Courts of India

• The District Courts of India are established by

the State governments of India for every
district or for one or more districts together
taking into account the number of cases,
population distribution in the district.
• These courts are under administrative control
of the High Court of the State to which the
district concerned belongs.
• The district court is presided over by one
District Judge appointed by the state
Government.
• In addition to the district judge there may be
number of Additional District Judges and
Assistant District Judges depending on the
workload.
• The district court has appellate jurisdiction
over all subordinate courts situated in the
district on both civil and criminal matters.
 Subordinate courts

• Subordinate courts are also known as village

courts, Lok Adalat (people's court) or Nyaya
panchayat (justice of the villages), compose a
system of alternative dispute resolution.
• They were recognized through the
1888 Madras Village Court Act, then
developed (after 1935) in various provinces
and (after 1947) Indian states.
Civil Courts subordinate to the High Court

In Cities
• First Grade Chief Judge and Additional Chief Judge
• Second Grade Assistant Chief Judge or Senior Civil Judge

• Third Grade Munsif or Junior Civil Judge

In Districts
• First Grade District Judge and Additional District Judge
• Second Grade Assistant District Judge or Senior Civil Judge
• Third Grade Munsif or Junior Civil Judge
 Criminal Courts Subordinate to the High Court

In Cities
• Sessions Court (Sessions Judge, Addl. Sessions Judges and Asst. Sessions
Judges)
• Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court
• Metropolitan Magistrates’ Courts

In Districts
• Sessions Court (Sessions Judge, Addl. Sessions Judges and Asst. Sessions
Judges)
• Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court
• Judicial Magistrates of First Class.
• Judicial Magistrates of Second Class.
Hierarchy of courts in india-flow chart
 conclusion
This hierarchy of courts in India is based on the
Constitutional structure. It was developed because of
the huge population of the country. To reduce the
pendency of cases and for people to get justice
easily, we have courts at every level. Yet, our justice
system still has a large number of pending cases.
There are a lot of vacancies in the Judge positions
also. There is a need for reforming the court system
to reduce the pendency of cases so that people can
get justice. Justice delayed is justice denied.
Thank you