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If your case is pending at Rohini Courts, the judge can send it to the court-annexed mediation centre in the same complex, or you can ask for it to be placed before a Lok Adalat. In both routes a settlement only binds you if you sign it, and once the court or the Lok Adalat records it, it has the force of a decree. Mediation suits disputes where both sides want to keep talking; a Lok Adalat suits disputes where the numbers are already close. If you need advice on which route fits your case, see our civil cases at Rohini Courts page or call the Pitampura office.
Two different routes, both inside the court complex
People often mix the two up, so it helps to separate them.
Court-annexed mediation. Under section 89 of the Code of Civil Procedure, a civil court that sees a chance of settlement can refer the parties to mediation. In Delhi the district court complexes, Rohini included, have a mediation centre run under the supervision of the Delhi High Court, with trained mediators drawn from the Bar and the judiciary. The mediator does not decide anything. The job is to run private sessions, sometimes jointly and sometimes with each side alone, until either an agreement is written down or it is clear there will not be one.
Lok Adalat. A Lok Adalat is a bench organised by the District Legal Services Authority under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987. It usually sits for a day, takes up a list of referred cases, and records compromises. National Lok Adalats are held across the country several times a year on dates announced in advance, and the legal services authorities at Rohini also hold Lok Adalats of their own. A Lok Adalat does not hear evidence or argument in the ordinary way; it records settlements that the parties accept.
Which cases at Rohini are usually sent
Most referrals we see from the civil and family courts at Rohini fall into a few groups:
- Money and recovery suits between traders, landlords and tenants, or family members who lent each other money. These often settle on an instalment schedule. See also our page on money recovery suits.
- Cheque bounce complaints. An offence under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act is compoundable under section 147 of that Act, so a payment plan agreed in mediation or a Lok Adalat can end the prosecution.
- Family property and partition disputes, where brothers and sisters agree who takes which floor or share of the sale price. Our partition suit page explains the litigation side.
- Matrimonial cases pending before the family courts, including maintenance and custody, where courts routinely refer couples to mediation before trial.
- Motor accident claims and bank recovery matters, which form a large share of Lok Adalat lists.
Criminal cases are referred only where the offence can lawfully be compounded. Serious offences are not settled by agreement.
What happens at the mediation centre, session by session
The referral order. The judge records that the matter is referred and fixes a date for the parties to appear before the mediation centre. Your next date before the court is usually kept a few weeks or months later, to allow time.
The first session. The mediator explains the ground rules: confidentiality, no recording, and that either side can walk away. Each party, with its lawyer, sets out what the dispute is really about. Expect the mediator to ask questions the pleadings never answer, such as why a brother stopped paying his share of the house tax or what monthly figure a wife actually needs.
Private sessions. Much of the work happens when the mediator meets each side alone. This is where realistic numbers come out. Anything you say in a private session stays with the mediator unless you allow it to be shared.
Drafting the settlement. If terms are agreed, the mediator prepares a written settlement agreement. Read every line: dates for each instalment, who withdraws which other case, who bears stamp duty on any transfer, what happens if a payment is missed. Vague wording here is the most common reason a settlement unravels later.
Back to the court. The signed agreement goes back to the referring judge, who checks that it is lawful and voluntary, and then passes a decree or order in its terms. From that point it is enforceable by execution like any other decree.
How a Lok Adalat settlement works differently
A case reaches a Lok Adalat either because the court refers it, often at the request of one party, or as a pre-litigation matter before any case is filed. On the day, the bench, usually a judicial officer with a lawyer or social worker member, talks to both sides and records a compromise if one is reached.
The resulting award is treated as a decree of a civil court under section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act. It is final, and no appeal lies against it. That finality is the attraction, and also the risk: if you agree in a hurry on the day, you cannot go back. If no compromise is reached, the case simply returns to the regular court.
A separate body, the Permanent Lok Adalat, can decide disputes about public utility services, such as electricity, water or transport, even where the parties do not agree. That is a different procedure and is not covered here.
Preparing so the settlement holds
From our office in Pitampura we prepare clients for these sessions much as we would for a hearing:
- Know your figure before you walk in. Work out the lowest amount or the least favourable terms you would accept, and why.
- Bring the documents that prove the numbers: ledgers, bank statements, rent receipts, property tax bills, salary slips.
- List every connected case. A settlement that ends the civil suit but leaves a police complaint or a cheque case running is only half a settlement.
- Insist on a default clause. If an instalment is missed, the agreement should say exactly what follows.
- Get it recorded. Do not leave the complex with an unsigned draft or a settlement the court has not taken on record.
No lawyer can promise that the other side will settle, and mediation is not right for every dispute. But a well-prepared settlement at Rohini often ends in months a case that might otherwise run for years. To discuss whether your matter is suitable, visit our Pitampura office or contact us.
Please note. This article is general information about Indian law, not legal advice on your situation. Laws and court practice change — speak to an advocate before you act on it.
