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TMI Blog2022 (8) TMI 1366X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ritical to it. The work of a judge cannot be reduced to a statistic about the disposal of a case. Every judgment is an incremental step towards consolidation and change. In adhering to precedent, the judgment reflects a commitment to protecting legal principle - Courts are as much engaged in the slow yet not so silent process of bringing about a social transformation. How good or deficient they are in that quest is tested by the quality of the reasons as much as by the manner in which the judicial process is structured. Lord Burrows of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, in his speech at the Annual Conference of Judges of the Superior Courts in Ireland stressed upon the importance of clarity, coherence and conciseness in judgment writing - Lord Burrows also noted the importance of the judgment being written in a manner that it is accessible to all considering its wide and varied potential audience. Petition are restored to the file of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh for being considered afresh. - Civil Appeal No 5305 of 2022 (Arising out of SLP (C) No 4038 of 2021) - - - Dated:- 16-8-2022 - HON'BLE DR. JUSTICE D.Y. CHANDRACHUD AND HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE A.S ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to be in violation of the principles of natural justice by the Tribunal s order dated 25 September 2018. However, the bank was allowed to lead evidence to justify the charges against the respondent. 6. Based on the evidence led before the Tribunal on the charge of misconduct, the CGIT by its order dated 09 July 2019 came to the conclusion that the first charge against the respondent was proved. The CGIT found the penalty of dismissal to be harsh and disproportionate and modified the punishment to compulsory retirement. 7. The appellant as well as the respondent instituted writ petitions before the High Court of Himachal Pradesh to challenge the order of the CGIT. The High Court affirmed the order of the CGIT. The High Court also directed the Tribunal to compute the consequential benefits conferred upon the respondent. The High Court directed the Tribunal to pass an order in accordance with Section 10(9) and Section 10(10) of the Industrial Disputes Act 1947. 8. On 12 March 2021, this Court issued notice against the impugned judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court while entertaining the Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution. This court observ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... re the learned Tribunal, both by the Workman, and, the employer, unveils, (iii) that the afore evidence, became testified, by all the witnesses concerned, rather with the fullest opportunity, being afforded to the counsel, for the workman, and, to the counsel for the employer, (iv) and, also unveils that the counsel, for, the employer, rather omitting to, during the process, of, his conducting their cross-examination, hence confront them, with their previous statement, recorded before the Inquiry Officer, for therethrough(s), his obviously attempting to, hence impeach their respective credibility(ies). In summa, hence the evidence adduced before the Tribunal concerned, alone enjoins its, if deemed fit, being appraised by this Court. 5. The learned Tribunal, had, upon consideration, of evidence adduced, vis- -vis, charges No. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, hence concluded, qua theirs, not therethrough, becoming proven, rather it made a conclusion, vis- -vis, their being lack, of, cogent evidence, or their being want, of, adduction, of, cogent evidence, qua therewith, by the employer, and, obviously, returned thereon(s) finding(s), adversarial, to the employer. Consequently, hence the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... uing their remedies under the law. Such orders of the High Court as in the present case do dis-service to the cause of ensuring accessible and understandable justice to citizens. 6 Since the High Court has affirmed the award of the CGIT, we have been able to arrive at an understanding of the basic facts from the order which was challenged before the High Court. From the record of the Court, more particularly the award of the CGIT, it emerges that though a serious charge of misconduct was held to be established against the respondent, it has been interfered with and the High Court has dismissed the petition under Article 226. 9. Following the return of notice, we have heard Mr Sanjay Kapur, counsel for the appellant and Mr Colin Gonsalves, senior counsel for the respondent. 10. The judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh is incomprehensible. This Court in appeal found it difficult to navigate through the maze of incomprehensible language in the decision of the High Court. A litigant for whom the judgment is primarily meant would be placed in an even more difficult position. Untrained in the law, the litigant is confronted with language which is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ans a judicial opinion which tells the story of the case; what the case is about; how the court is resolving the case and why. Judgment is defined as any decision given by a court on a question or questions or issue between the parties to a proceeding properly before court. It is also defined as the decision or the sentence of a court in a legal proceeding along with the reasoning of a judge which leads him to his decision. The term judgment is loosely used as judicial opinion or decision. Roslyn Atkinson, J., Supreme Court of Queensland, in her speech once stated that there are four purposes for any judgment that is written: i) to spell out judges own thoughts; ii) to explain your decision to the parties; iii) to communicate the reasons for the decision to the public; and iv) to provide reasons for an appeal court to consider 34. It is not adequate that a decision is accurate, it must also be reasonable, logical and easily comprehensible. [ .] What the court says, and how it says it, is equally important as what the court decides. 35. Every judgment contains four basic elements and they are (i) statement of material (relevant) facts, (ii) legal issues or ques ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the judgment and because of that, matters are required to be remanded for fresh consideration. Therefore, it is desirable that the judgment should have a clarity, both on facts and law and on submissions, findings, reasonings and the ultimate relief granted. (emphasis supplied) 13. Amidst an overburdened judicial docket, a view is sometimes voiced that parties are concerned with the outcome and little else. This view proceeds on the basis that parties value the outcome and not the reasoning which constitutes the foundation. This view undervalues the importance of the judicial function and of the reasons which are critical to it. The work of a judge cannot be reduced to a statistic about the disposal of a case. Every judgment is an incremental step towards consolidation and change. In adhering to precedent, the judgment reflects a commitment to protecting legal principle. This imparts certainty to the law. Each judgment is hence a brick in the consolidation of the fundamental precepts on which a legal order is based. But in incremental steps a judgment addresses the need to evolve and to transform by addressing critical issues which confront human existence. Courts are as muc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y is only one of their several audiences. Judges write first and foremost for the parties appearing before them, for the state's agents who are in charge of enforcement, and for the public. Although judgments are professional legal documents, and sometimes involve complex technical and legal analyses, they should also be accessible, or at least explicable, to people who are not professionals, as they define the law for a larger community. 16. A judgment culminates in a conclusion. But its content represents the basis for the conclusion. A judgment is hence a manifestation of reason. The reasons provide the basis of the view which the decision maker has espoused, of the balances which have been drawn. That is why reasons are crucial to the legitimacy of a judge's work. They provide an insight into judicial analysis, explaining to the reader why what is written has been written. The reasons, as much as the final conclusion, are open to scrutiny. A judgment is written primarily for the parties in a forensic contest. The scrutiny is first and foremost by the person for whom the decision is meant - the conflicting parties before the court. At a secondary level, reasons furnis ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Lecture (20 November 2012) the importance of clearly written judgments: A second small change worth considering would be for more judges to give better guidance to the structure and contents of their longer Judgments. Some judges already provide a clear framework, sometimes with a table of contents, a roadmap, at the beginning, and often with appropriate headings, signposts, throughout the Judgment. Kimble s study confirms that this is not just a good discipline but it is what the legal professional readers want, and, if it is what lawyers want, it is a fortiori what non-lawyers will want. A clear structure aids accessibility. 20. It is also useful for all judgments to carry paragraph numbers as it allows for ease of reference and enhances the structure, improving the readability and accessibility of the judgments. A Table of Contents in a longer version assists access to the reader. 21. On the note of accessibility, the importance of making judgments accessible to persons from all sections of society, especially persons with disability needs emphasis. All judicial institutions must ensure that the judgments and orders being published by them do not carry improperly place ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng judgment: (a) An introductory section; (b) Setting out of the facts: (c) The law and the issues; (d) Applying the law to the facts; (e) Determining the relief (including order for costs); and (f) Finally, the order of the Court. 26. Although it is unfortunate that we have to set aside the impugned judgment and direct its remand due to its incoherence, we have taken the opportunity to lay out the above discussion on judgment writing. Incoherent judgments have a serious impact upon the dignity of our institutions. 27. While we have laid down some broad guidelines, individual judges can indeed have different ways of writing judgments and continue to have variations in their styles of expression. The expression of a judge is an unfolding of the recesses of the mind. However, while recesses of the mind may be inscrutable, the reasoning in judgment cannot be. While judges may have their own style of judgment writing, they must ensure lucidity in writing across these styles. This has also been captured by Justice Corbett, Ibid in the following extract: For lucidity should be the prime aim of any judgment-writer. At the same time, certain aspects of style ha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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