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 moreSohom Shipping insured its newly built barge for a one-month voyage from Mumbai to Kolkata, but the policy contained a special condition that the "voyage should commence & complete before monsoon sets in." The vessel set sail on 6 June 2013 and ran aground the very next day due to bad weather and engine failure, leading the company to claim a total loss. New India Assurance rejected the claim, arguing the voyage began after the monsoon had already started, breaching the special condition, and the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) sided with the insurer and dismissed the complaint.
The Supreme Court held that a Mumbai-to-Kolkata voyage could never actually satisfy the "before monsoon" condition, since the government's own weather circular showed the monsoon reaches the east coast (Kolkata) by 1 May, before it even reaches the west coast (Mumbai) on 1 June, making literal compliance impossible regardless of when the ship departed. Since insurers knew this voyage plan when they issued the policy covering a period that inherently overlapped the foul-weather season, the Court held the clause could not be treated as an absolute precondition for payment and had effectively been waived as immaterial, rather than a genuine ambiguity requiring the "contra proferentem" (interpret against the drafter) rule. The appeal was allowed, the NCDRC's dismissal was set aside, and the matter was sent back to NCDRC to determine how much compensation is actually owed (leaving the insurer's other objections, like alleged forgery, open for that stage).
An insurance company cannot rely on a policy condition that is impossible to satisfy given the very voyage or risk it agreed to insure. Courts will strike down or disregard contract terms that would make the underlying insurance illusory or absurd.
