Real judgements, distilled
Court judgements broken down into the case type, how the decision played out, and the lesson worth remembering, with the full judgement available as a PDF.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1094
An older qualification must still satisfy the eligibility rules governing the appointment sought. Here, the certificate's early date did not secure reinstatement, and rejection of eligibility should not be confused with a conclusive finding that the certificate was forged.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1095
A party benefiting from a conditional stay must meet its deposit requirement or face enforcement. The additional ₹15 crore deposit secures the pending dispute; it does not settle the land's final compensation or amount to an immediate payment to the landowners.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1093
An alleged attempt to kill does not become a lesser offence simply because the victim avoided a fatal injury. Restoring this charge means the accusation must be tried; it does not establish that the accused is guilty.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1090
For the assessment in this case, assistance reducing ordinary manufacturing costs was taxable even though the government wanted to encourage industry. The purpose and actual operation of the particular subsidy mattered more than its general development label.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1091
Proof that someone caused a serious injury does not by itself prove the additional ingredients of robbery. A court can substitute a lesser offence supported by the evidence; the sentencing reduction here depended on Appa's particular circumstances.
Special Leave Petition (Civil) · 2026 INSC 1092
Someone challenging an election must ensure that the personal-presentation requirement is met and can be proved. Merely entering the court building does not establish compliance, and a filing defect can end the challenge before the election allegations are examined.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1088
An employee who retires on 30 June may be entitled to the increment that falls due on 1 July after completing a year of service. Authorities that delay paying the amounts due must pay interest after the deadline set by the court.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1089
Recruitment must follow the qualifications stated in the advertisement and the governing Recruitment Rules. A court will not override a merit-based eligibility decision made under those rules merely because the candidate concerned was higher in the written test.
Writ Petition (Criminal) · 2026:DHC:8797
A person who occupied property only because of employment has no independent right to remain once the employment and decree end. Even when a petition fails, courts can make practical arrangements to let a person recover personal belongings.
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Log in to see moreIn a suit over a Joint Development Agreement for residential apartments, the defendants' counsel gave the trial court an undertaking (in 2007) that the defendants would not sell/alienate the suit property while the case was pending; the court later converted this into a formal injunction. Despite this, the defendants went on to execute several sale deeds transferring parts of the property between 2007 and 2011. The plaintiffs sought to have them punished for contempt/wilful disobedience; the trial court found no proof of wilful violation and dismissed the application, but the Karnataka High Court reversed this, holding the defendants guilty of contempt and ordering imprisonment, property attachment, and compensation.
The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's finding of contempt, rejecting the defendants' argument that their lawyer gave the undertaking without their authorization, noting that if the undertaking had truly been unauthorized, the clients had years to seek its discharge but never did, and instead let it be reaffirmed and converted into a court order. The Court reaffirmed that a lawyer-client relationship is fiduciary, but since the clients never disowned the undertaking despite ample opportunity, they were bound by it, and knowingly executing sale deeds afterward was a clear, deliberate violation warranting contempt punishment to protect the dignity and authority of court orders. However, considering the advanced age (about 68) of one appellant, the Court modified the sentence by deleting the three-month civil imprisonment while keeping the property attachment, and increased the compensation payable from Rs. 10 lakhs to Rs. 13 lakhs with 6% interest.
An undertaking given to a court by your own lawyer is binding on you unless you promptly object and seek its discharge, staying silent for years while it becomes a court order, and then violating it, will be treated as deliberate contempt of court, regardless of later claims that the lawyer overstepped.
