Judicial System under the British

A detailed note on the development of the judicial system under the British. Know more about the transition of the Indian legal system under the British.

First Phase

The British corporation was entrusted with the administration of these three Indian colonies. They devised a basic legal system for the administration of these settlements, in which they handled their mutual conflicts

The administration of law and justice was committed to non-legal and non-professional Englishmen, who belonged to the traders’ community and had little understanding of the law and its processes, which was a significant aspect of this system

In reality, they were required to carry out their judicial powers by the English Law, but in practice, they judged cases based on their common sense and views of fairness. In the Presidency Towns, the court was fully reliant on and submissive to the Executive, which was the highest administrative power in British-controlled India. This job continued for around 150 years

Second Phase (1773 regulating act)

The formation of the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William (Calcutta) under the 1773 regulating act adopted by the British Parliament, which is regarded as a watershed moment in the development of legal institutions in India, begins the second phase of the Indian Judicial System’s history

It was an English Law Court, with professional English justices who were well-versed in the law and judicial procedure. An English Bench was also there to help the Court in the administration of justice. The model for this court was taken from the English Court of Westminster

As a result, the executive government’s powers were severely constrained, resulting in antagonism and frequent disputes between the Supreme Court and the Supreme Council.

The disputes between these two primary institutions of the Company’s governance in India were finally settled following the Settlement Act of 1781, which made the Council independent of the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction

Settlement Act of 1781- The British Parliament approved the Act of Settlement 1781 on July 5, 1781, to correct the flaws in the 1773 regulating act. The Act of Settlement’s main purpose was to define the relationship between the Supreme Court and the Governor-General in Council

Third Phase

The Company took over the administration of justice in Bengal by implementing the ‘Adalat System’ in the mofussils. This is the third phase in the growth of the Indian Judicial System or Anglo-Indian legal history. The Adalats were first manned by the Company’s British executive civil officials who lacked legal expertise

They saw the judicial activity as a secondary role of lower importance because they were essentially executive officials of the Company’s government. However, throughout time, the administrative and judicial duties in civil issues were separated, while the administration of criminal justice remained in the hands of the government

As a result, the Collector-Magistrate played a crucial role in the Indian Government’s civil administration as well as the criminal justice system

The Adalat System was eventually expanded to include the Company’s newly acquired areas in India

Fourth Phase

With the formation of High Courts under the High Courts Act of 1861, the next chapter of India’s legal history is distinguished by the unification of the dual system of courts that existed in the Presidency cities and countryside into a single one

The judicial system in Presidency cities was mostly based on English law with a distinctly British flavour, whilst the Adalat system in Mofussil lands outside of Presidency towns was based on traditional Hindu and Muslim laws

The High Court was established in an attempt to streamline the legal system by removing the Supreme Court and the Sadar Adalats of Presidency Towns. As a result, as Dr. M. P. Jain correctly points out

These High Courts are, without a doubt, the forerunners of India’s contemporary legal and judicial system. Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay were the first to create High Courts, which were eventually expanded to other Northern and Western Provinces

Fifth Phase

The advent of the ‘Privy Council’ as India’s highest court of appeal marks yet another significant step forward in the Indian judicial system. Privy Council encouraged the creation of uniform laws in India and encouraged courts to uphold high judicial standards in carrying out their duties as justice dispensers

Privy Council is one of the main identifiers of this phase

After the establishment of the First Law Commission in 1833, which began the process of codifying Indian laws to guarantee uniformity and clarity in the administration of justice, the proliferation of laws became increasingly visible. The work of codifying India’s principal laws was taken on by the Second and Third Law Commissions

Conclusion

We can conclude that during the British era, India went through a whole lot of experimentation and learning. Many judicial mechanisms were established and many were scrapped then replaced with other mechanisms. The British rule had many positive effects on our legal system as the idea of a fair and impartial system where the judicial body must be separate from the other organs of the state came to India via the British.