Commercial Court Cases in Delhi: Mediation, Timelines and Judgment

Is my dispute a commercial dispute?

Your dispute is commercial if it arises out of one of the transactions listed in section 2(1)(c) of the Act and its value is ₹3 lakh or more. The list is wide: ordinary transactions of merchants, bankers, financiers and traders; sale of goods and provision of services; distribution, franchising and licensing; construction and infrastructure contracts; joint venture, shareholder and partnership agreements; intellectual property; insurance; carriage of goods; and agreements about immovable property used exclusively in trade or commerce.

What matters is the nature of the transaction, not who the parties are. A supplier suing a buyer for unpaid invoices is commercial; a homebuyer suing over a flat bought to live in is not. A dispute over a shop let for business can be commercial if the property was used exclusively for trade, while a dispute over a residential tenancy is not. Courts look at the substance, and a plaintiff cannot label a dispute commercial to get a faster track.

Getting the classification right at the start matters. A commercial suit filed in an ordinary civil court, or an ordinary suit filed in a commercial court, gets returned or transferred, and in the meantime the mediation requirement and limitation keep running.

Common commercial disputes and examples

Trademark and copyright suits in Delhi follow commercial court procedure, with the Delhi High Court's IP Division hearing high-value cases; see trademark and copyright laws.

What is the specified value, and which commercial court in Delhi hears my case?

The specified value is the value of the subject matter of the suit, worked out under section 12 of the Act. For a money claim it is the amount claimed, including interest computed up to the date of filing. For a suit about property, movable or immovable, it is the market value. For intellectual property, it is the market value of the right as the plaintiff reasonably estimates it. The minimum is ₹3 lakh.

In Delhi, commercial suits with a specified value up to ₹2 crore go to the district commercial courts, which sit at the level of District Judge in each judicial district, at complexes such as Tis Hazari, Saket, Patiala House, Karkardooma, Rohini and Dwarka. Territorial jurisdiction follows the ordinary CPC rules: where the defendant is, where the cause of action arose, or where the property is.

Above ₹2 crore, the suit is filed on the original side of the Delhi High Court and assigned to its Commercial Division. The High Court has its own Original Side Rules, and pleadings and admission or denial of documents are often handled before a joint registrar before the matter goes to the judge. In Noida and Ghaziabad, commercial courts are set up at district level under Uttar Pradesh's notification.

Do I have to try mediation before filing a commercial suit?

Yes, unless you are seeking urgent interim relief. Section 12A makes pre-institution mediation mandatory for commercial suits that do not contemplate urgent interim relief. The Supreme Court held in Patil Automation v Rakheja Engineers (2022) that the requirement is mandatory, and that a plaint filed without it is liable to be rejected. That decision applies to suits filed after 20 August 2022.

You apply to the legal services authority designated for the purpose, which in Delhi works through the district legal services authorities at the court complexes. Notice goes to the other side; if they do not appear, a non-starter report is issued and you can file the suit. If they do appear, the mediation must be completed within three months, extendable by two months with the consent of both parties. The time spent in mediation is excluded from limitation.

If the parties settle, the settlement is signed and has the same status and effect as an arbitral award on agreed terms under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. That means it can be enforced like a decree. In our experience many unpaid invoice disputes resolve at this stage, often because the debtor sees a formal process begin for the first time.

Can I skip mediation if I need urgent relief?

You can, if the suit genuinely needs urgent interim relief, such as an injunction to stop a former distributor using your trademark, or an order preventing a buyer from moving goods you have not been paid for. The plaint is then filed directly with an application for interim relief, and the court examines whether the urgency is real.

Do not dress up an ordinary money claim with a token injunction prayer to avoid mediation. Courts look at the substance of the plaint, and where the interim relief claimed is illusory, the plaint can be rejected or the plaintiff sent back to mediate. A rejected plaint costs months, and the defendant gains a point it will use for the rest of the case.

Where urgency is borderline, a practical approach is to start mediation and keep an application for interim relief ready, so that if the other side starts moving assets during the mediation period you can go straight to court.

How a commercial suit runs in Delhi, step by step

1. Legal notice and mediation

   Send a legal notice setting out the claim, then apply for pre-institution mediation under section 12A. Keep the non-starter or failure report, because it must be filed with the plaint.

2. Plaint with all documents

   The plaint is filed with every document in your power and possession, including those that hurt you, a statement of truth under Order VI rule 15A, and a declaration on disclosure under Order XI. Documents left out can be relied on later only with the court's leave and good reason.

3. Summons and written statement

   The defendant must file a written statement within 30 days of service. The court can allow more time, with costs, but not beyond 120 days from service. After that, the right to file it is lost.

4. Replication and documents

   The plaintiff files a replication, and each side inspects and then admits or denies the other's documents by affidavit, with reasons for each denial. Unreasonable denials can attract costs.

5. Case management hearing

   Under Order XV-A, the court holds a case management hearing, frames issues, and fixes dates for evidence and arguments, aiming to close arguments within six months of the first such hearing. Adjournments are restricted and costs are imposed for non-compliance.

6. Evidence and arguments

   Evidence is filed by affidavit and witnesses are cross-examined, in the Delhi High Court often before a local commissioner. Written submissions are filed before oral arguments.

7. Judgment and appeal

   Judgment is to be pronounced within 90 days of the end of arguments. An appeal lies to the Commercial Appellate Division of the Delhi High Court within 60 days under section 13.

What happens if the written statement is not filed in 120 days?

The defendant loses the right to file it, and the court cannot take it on record. Under the amended Order VIII rule 1 for commercial suits, the written statement is due within 30 days of service of summons; the court may extend time for reasons recorded and on payment of costs, but the outer limit is 120 days from service. The Supreme Court has held that this limit is mandatory for commercial suits, unlike the more flexible position in ordinary civil suits.

A defendant without a written statement can still cross-examine the plaintiff's witnesses and argue on the plaintiff's own case, but cannot lead a positive defence. In practice, that often decides the suit. Businesses that receive commercial summons and put them aside while they negotiate find out too late that the clock has run out.

If you have been served with a commercial suit, treat the date of service as the start of a 30-day deadline. Collect your documents immediately, because the written statement too must be filed with all documents in your power and possession, and denials must be specific. A general denial of the plaintiff's case is treated as an admission.

Summary judgment under Order XIIIA

Either side can ask the court to decide a commercial suit, or part of it, without a full trial under Order XIIIA, if the other side has no real prospect of succeeding on the claim or the defence and there is no other compelling reason for recording oral evidence. The application can be made after summons is served and before issues are framed.

Summary judgment works well where the facts are on paper: signed invoices, delivery challans acknowledged by the buyer, emails admitting the debt, a shareholder agreement with clear terms. It works poorly where the case depends on oral understandings or disputed facts. The court can grant judgment, dismiss the application, or pass a conditional order, such as requiring a deposit as a condition for continuing a weak defence.

A plaintiff with a strong documentary case should consider summary judgment at the outset. A defendant facing such an application must show a real defence with documents, not just assertions. Advocate B.K. Singh's approach when assessing a commercial claim is to ask whether the case can be proved from the documents alone; if it can, summary judgment is usually the shortest route.

Order 37 summary suit or Order XIIIA summary judgment?

The choice is made at the drafting stage. Where the claim rests on a written contract for a fixed amount, Order 37 is often stronger; where the claim needs some explanation but the defence is weak, an ordinary commercial suit with an Order XIIIA application may be better.

Key provisions of the Commercial Courts Act and amended CPC

Costs: why delay and weak defences are expensive

In commercial suits, costs follow the result as a general rule under the substituted section 35 CPC. The court can order the losing party to pay the winner's actual costs, including advocates' fees and expenses, and can take into account who caused delay, who made unreasonable denials, and who refused a sensible settlement offer. The Delhi High Court in particular has shown that it will award real costs in commercial matters.

This changes the economics. A defendant who files a sham defence to buy time risks paying the plaintiff's costs on top of the claim with interest. A plaintiff who inflates a claim or refuses a fair offer during mediation can find costs reduced or awarded against it. We discuss this risk with clients before the first pleading, not after the judgment.

Our own fees are discussed at the first meeting and agreed in writing, stage by stage. Court fee, mediation costs, local commissioner fees and other expenses are separate.

Interim relief in commercial suits

The commercial court can grant the same interim relief as any civil court: temporary injunctions under Order 39, attachment before judgment under Order 38 rule 5 where the defendant is about to dispose of assets to defeat a decree, appointment of a receiver, and orders directing deposit or security. In trademark and confidential information cases, ex parte injunctions on the first day are common where there is real urgency.

Attachment before judgment is granted sparingly. The plaintiff must show with specific facts that the defendant is removing or selling property with the intent to obstruct execution, not just that the defendant owes money. Bank statements showing sudden withdrawals, or evidence of a business winding down and assets being shifted to related entities, are what courts look for.

Where the contract has an arbitration clause, interim relief before or during arbitration is sought under section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, which in Delhi usually goes to the commercial court or the High Court depending on value. More on that under arbitration and conciliation.

What to bring for a commercial dispute

Because Order XI requires all documents to be filed with the plaint or written statement, collecting them early is part of the case, not an administrative task.

How long does a commercial suit take in Delhi?

Commercial suits in Delhi generally move faster than ordinary civil suits because of the fixed timelines and case management, but a contested suit that goes to full trial can still take two to four years. Suits that end at mediation, by summary judgment, or because the defendant failed to file a written statement can end in months. No one can promise you a date, and appeals add time.

The pace depends partly on the court and partly on the parties. A plaintiff who files a complete plaint with all documents, opposes unnecessary adjournments and asks for costs when the other side delays will usually see the case move. A defendant who complies with every deadline and makes a reasonable offer early often limits the damage, even where the claim is largely sound.

Mistakes businesses make in commercial litigation

Plaintiffs file without pre-institution mediation and lose the plaint. They leave documents out, thinking they can file them later, and then cannot. They calculate the specified value wrongly, ending in the wrong court. They wait close to the three-year limitation, giving no room for the mediation period and a possible return of the plaint.

Defendants ignore the summons while trying to settle, and lose the right to file a written statement. They file a written statement with general denials instead of a specific response to each fact and document. They deny documents they know are genuine, which brings costs and destroys credibility.

Both sides overlook the arbitration clause in their own contract, or the jurisdiction clause choosing a particular city's courts. A defendant who wants arbitration must apply under section 8 of the Arbitration Act no later than its first statement on the substance of the dispute; after that, the right is usually lost.

When a commercial suit is not the right tool

If the buyer paid by cheque and it bounced, a complaint under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act may produce faster pressure than a suit, and both can run together; see cheque bounce cases. If you are a registered micro or small enterprise, the MSME Development Act 2006 lets you refer delayed payment disputes to the Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council, with interest at three times the bank rate, and a buyer challenging the Council's award must first deposit 75% of the amount.

If the debtor is a company owing an undisputed operational debt of ₹1 crore or more, an insolvency application under section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code is sometimes considered, though the NCLT is not a debt collection forum and a pre-existing dispute will defeat the application; see insolvency cases in Delhi. And where the amount is modest and the relationship matters, negotiated settlement during section 12A mediation may be the commercially sensible end.

How we handle commercial court matters

We act for suppliers, manufacturers, traders, service companies, contractors, franchisees and small and medium businesses, as plaintiffs and defendants, in Delhi's district commercial courts, the Delhi High Court's Commercial Division and commercial courts in Noida and Ghaziabad. Advocate Sadhna Singh builds the document set and chronology at the start, because in a commercial suit the documents filed on day one largely decide the case.

Advocate B.K. Singh assesses the claim or defence, decides the procedural route (mediation, Order 37, summary judgment or a full suit), and argues interim applications and the trial. For corporate disputes that belong before the NCLT, see our page on corporate law in Delhi. Fees are agreed in writing before work begins.

What to do this week about a commercial dispute

• Work out the amount due with interest and check the three-year limitation date
• Read the contract for arbitration and jurisdiction clauses
• Collect every invoice, challan, ledger entry and email in one place
• If you have been served with a commercial suit, mark the 30-day written statement date now
• Check whether your business is registered as a micro or small enterprise
• Do not send admissions or settlement offers in writing without thinking them through
• Send the papers through our online enquiry page for an assessment