Law Student Writes a Letter to the CJI and Secretary-General Seeking the Use of Double-sided A4 Paper in all Judicial Forums: Read the Letter here!

Vikhyaat Maheshwari, a scholar of Dharmashastra Nationwide Regulation College, Jabalpur just lately wrote a letter addressing the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, and Secretary-Normal, Supreme Court docket of India, Atul M. Kurhekar, emphasizing on the necessity uniformity in the usage of A4 papers with printing on each side throughout all judicial boards of the nation.

There’s a want for uniformity within the utilization of A4 papers with printing on each side and standardization when it comes to high quality, measurement, and specs of A4 paper, margins, font kinds, font measurement, line spacing, and different formatting necessities given by the Hon’ble Supreme Court docket as per the Supreme Court docket Round dated January 14, 2020, and March 5, 2020 (F.No.01/Judl./2020), all through the judicial system.

The letter emphasizes the necessity to place a strict ban on the utilization of Authorized Papers throughout the nation’s judicial boards for 2 major causes, specifically saving exorbitant monetary and authorized prices concerned contemplating the majority measurement of authorized paper in use throughout the judicial boards/quasi-judicial boards/tribunals, and related great undesirable environmental impacts.

Changing Authorized Paper/foolscap/embossed papers or different particular paper sorts in continuance for greater than a century with A4 paper will show to be a potential and progressive initiative the explanation that A4 Paper is well accessible and accessible at virtually each stationary store throughout India. This showcases the attain of A4 Paper within the nation and thereby turns into an affordable option to implement the uniform adoption of the identical in India’s judicial system.

In up to date occasions, the worldwide acceptance of A4 paper resulting from its standardization and acceptance in varied jurisdictions turns into one more reason and inspiration to expedite the blanket implementation of reforms relating to the utilization of A4 paper with printing on each side of the judicial panorama. In distinction, different international locations’ judicial techniques such because the USA & UK have accepted the utilization of A4 paper.

Even the UK which laid the inspiration of the current Indian authorized and judicial system, have introduced adjustments of their guidelines and laws by introducing the provisions reads, “The UK Supreme Court docket Follow route holds: 4.2.1 A discover of enchantment should be produced in Kind 1 on A4 paper, securely sure on the left, utilizing each side of the paper” The nation that launched the age-old standard instructions of utilizing foolscap paper, a paper made within the 1400s had a watermark of a courtroom jester’s (clown) hat – a idiot’s cap. The British Parliament primarily used the scale with the idiot’s cap watermark. That sized paper grew to become often called foolscap paper. Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), UK was maybe the primary Court docket to confess the A4 paper. By Notification No. 01 of 2017, dated 25/01/2017, Rule 8(2) was amended to learn as, “Each memorandum of enchantment, cross-objections, reference purposes, keep purposes or every other miscellaneous purposes shall even be typed neatly in double spacing on the A 4 measurement paper.”

The Supreme Court docket and Excessive Courts, earlier than the passing of the circulars, used just one facet of the papers in circulation for judicial and administrative functions. This turns into an alarming drawback when tons of of papers are used for the disposal of a single case. Thus, it’s not solely a further monetary burden for the events, however it additionally adversely impacts the surroundings.

India has 25 Excessive Courts, having jurisdiction throughout 28 states and eight union territories. Each Excessive Court docket has totally different guidelines and laws to manipulate the courtroom proceedings for administrative communications and judicial filings. The variations in instructions on formatting necessities corresponding to font type, font measurement, margins, line spacing, high quality of A4 paper, paper measurement, and many others., issued by varied excessive courts are ostensibly seen and hampers the reason for justice.

In accordance with a common estimate, a single tree can produce round 16.67 reams of paper or 8,333.3 sheets. One other estimate means that it takes roughly 3 gallons (about 10 liters) of water to create a single sheet of paper. Due to this fact, to supply 16.67 reams or 8,333.3 sheets of paper from one tree, it could require roughly 83,330.30 liters of water. The Technical EIA Steering Handbook for Pulp and Paper Industries, ready for the Ministry of Setting and Forests, Authorities of India, highlights the direct environmental affect of the paper business, involving interactions with environmental, social, or financial elements.

Within the authorized framework, contemplating every case includes not less than two events, a minimal of six units of information can be required – two for the courtroom, one for every social gathering’s counsel, and one for every social gathering. Assuming a median submitting of fifty pages per case, a minimal of 300 pages can be wanted per case. This might quantity to a big quantity, probably within the lakhs, if 1000 instances are filed month-to-month within the Hon’ble Excessive Courts throughout the nation. Using double-sided prints in courtroom filings may doubtlessly save quite a few timber when it comes to contemporary filings.

On the nationwide scale, based on Nationwide Judicial Information Grid (NJDG), in 2023, a complete of 1,05,46,005 (One crore 5 lakh forty-six thousand and 5) have been filed in District and Taluka courts and a complete of 10,47,298 (Ten lakh forty-seven thousand 2 hundred ninety-eight) instances have been filed in 25 Excessive courts of India, amounting to 1,15,93,303 (One crore fifteen lakh ninety-three thousand 300 three) instances filed throughout Excessive Courts, District Courts and Taluka Courts of India. Contemplating all these instances to be of a mere 50 pages, utilizing one facet prints, a complete of 57,96,65,150 (Fifty-seven arab ninety-six crore sixty-five lakh 100 fifty) pages have been used, resulting in the reducing down of 69,562 timber. Had double facet prints been used, it could have saved approx. 34,781 timber together with 2,89,83,00,730 liters of water within the yr 2023. From the aforementioned, it may be deduced that merely through the use of each side of the paper for printing in judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings, roughly 3 billion liters of water and 35 thousand numbers of timber will be saved.

To deliver the change, highlighting the above statistics, a letter has been despatched by the writer to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India and Secretary Normal of the Supreme Court docket of India. Please discover the letter connected under.

Click on right here to entry the letter.

Click on right here to entry the Supreme Court docket Round dated January 14, 2020.

Click on right here to entry the Supreme Court docket Round dated March 5, 2020 (F.No.01/Judl./2020).

Click on right here to learn in regards to the worldwide acceptance of A4 paper resulting from its standardization.