Court Design Handbook

Court Design Handbook for District Courts in India

The Design Handbook seeks to envision and implement a user-centric District Court Complex responsive to the needs of all diverse users, i.e., litigants, judges, lawyers, Court staff, witnesses, accused persons, police, public visitors and other stakeholders in the justice system. A principles-based framework is used to highlight associated guidelines and design considerations, for creating truly inclusive, accessible, efficient, comfortable, adaptable, and sustainable Courts where the experience of seeking and providing justice is significantly improved.

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Projects Authors And Acknowledgements

Shreya Tripathy is a Senior Resident Fellow at Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy working as part of the Justice, Access, and Lowering Delays in India (JALDI) Initiative. Priyamvadha Shivaji is a Research Fellow at Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy working as part of the Justice, Access, and Lowering Delays in India (JALDI) Initiative. Brinda Sastry is an architect, urban designer, and planner with experience in formulating policies, audit frameworks, and design guidelines, with a participatory approach, to ensure inclusive and equitable design of public places. Shreya Shetty is an architect and urban design consultant, Co-Founder of 369 Ochre Studio who assisted in drafting the Harmonised Guidelines & Standards for Universal Accessibility in India 2021, drafted by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) & Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee released by Central Public Works Department, Government of India under Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. Bhagyalaxmi Madapur , Co-Founder of 369 Ochre Studio in Bengaluru, India, is an architect and urbanist who worked as a contract consultant with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on the project "Sponge City: Towards Building Flood Resilient Kolkata," which involved creating educational materials-infographic handbooks, videos, and brochures aimed at strengthening the capacity of Kolkata Municipal Corporation for resilient urban services. Abubakar Shaikh is an architect and Art Lead at Autovrse. Gayatri Ganesh is an architect and Experience Designer at Autovrse. Milind D.P. is the Executive Vice President, Consultancy & Projects, BNA Technology Consulting Ltd. His division is focused on IT Infrastructure Design, Project Management and Monitoring of ICT Projects. Arun Kumar is an acoustic consultant at HMPL Consulting Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, with over 8 years of expertise in Architectural, Environmental, and Industrial Acoustics, dedicated to shaping sound environments for optimal experiences. Akshatha Hariharan is an architect exploring the realms of Visual & User experience design. Rama Raghavan is an Architectural writer and researcher based in Pune. As a pedagogue, she has curated courses in Accessibility and Universal Design. She has worked on several publications that intricately connect the built environment with socio-spatial dimensions. This report has been in the making for over two years and owes a great deal to the inputs provided by a multitude of people. The authors would like to thank the following: Deepika Kinhal (Team Lead, JALDI) for her guidance throughout the project and for reviewing the report. The authors are also grateful to Reshma Sekhar (Former Senior Resident Fellow, JALDI) for her contribution to the conceptualisation of the Handbook. Dr. Gaurav Raheja (Professor of Architecture, IIT Roorkee) and Dr. Rahela Korakhiwala (Author, From the Colonial to the Contemporary: Images, Iconography, Memories, and Performances of Law in India's High Courts) for their guidance in the conceptualisation stage. Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad (Former Chief Justice, Jammu & Kashmir High Court), Justice Ponugoti Naveen Rao (Former Acting Chief Justice, Telangana High Court) and Mr. Suresh Kogilgere (Former Registrar, Karnataka High Court) for their inputs for the project. Dr. Tanya Machado (Professor of Clinical Psychology (Rtd). Consultant Clinical Psychologist) and Dr. Ria Fernandez (Rehabilitation Specialist, Mazumdar Shaw Hospital) for their inputs on child-friendly design and providing trauma-informed design considerations for vulnerable witnesses. Akhilesh (Project Second Chance) for his inputs on safe, secure, and humane design considerations for accused persons. Nilesh Singit (independent accessibility expert) and Dr. Sanjay Jain (Professor at National Law School of India University, Bengaluru), members of the Supreme Court Committee on Accessibility, for their inputs on ensuring universal accessibility. Alok Prasanna Kumar (Co-founder and Team Lead, Vidhi Karnataka), and Vidhi Fellows Manmayi Sharma (Senior Resident Fellow, Disability Inclusion & Access), Yashaswini Basu (Outreach Lead, Nyaaya), Yogini Oke (Impact and Partnerships Fellow), Shireen Yachu (Communications Fellow, Impact Collective) and Somya Jain (Research Fellow, Disability Inclusion & Access) for their inputs on the project. Damini Ghosh (Team Lead, Disability, Inclusion & Access at Vidhi) and Prof. Sanjay Kanvinde (Senior Partner, Kanvinde Rai & Chowdhury) for peer-reviewing the Handbook and providing their invaluable feedback. Over the months of February and March 2024, four round-table consultations were held with experts from various fields, on the following themes covered in the Handbook: Institutional capacity building; Making District Courts safe, secure and comfortable; Incorporating Universal Design Principles; and Facilitating efficient and future-ready Court Complexes. The authors would like to thank the following participants for their inputs during the sessions: Justice (retd.) Ponugoti Naveen Rao (former acting Chief Justice at Telangana High Court), Prof. Jyoti Dogra (Professor at Indian Law Institute), Dr. Sheila Ramaswamy (Technical & Operational Lead at NIMHANS), Ms. Arushi Anthwal (Legal Counsel at Counsel to Secure Justice), Ms. Kushi Kushalappa (Director, Support & Rehabilitation at Enfold India), Ms. Shirisha Reddy (Program Manager at Nyaaya Kannada), Mr. Amar Jain (co-founder at Mission Accessibility), Ms. Anita Iyer Narayan (Managing Trustee, sponsor and volunteer at Ekansh Trust), Prof. Gaurav Raheja (Professor Incharge, Inclusion & Accessibility Services at IIT Roorkee), Ms. Nivedita Krishna (founder-director at PACTA), Ms. Pooja Sastry (PhD candidate in architectural history at University College, Dublin), Ms. Shruti Dixit (practising lawyer in Lucknow), Mr. Akshay Jain (Assistant Program Manager at National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People), Mr. Rahul Bajaj (co-founder at Mission Accessibility) and Mr. R. Sri Kumar (former Head of Police Force in Karnataka and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner). The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy is an independent think-tank doing legal research to make better laws and improve governance for the public good. The JALDI Initiative is a multi-year initiative that aims to advocate for and implement evidence-based reforms to eliminate the existing backlog in Courts and ensure that cases are disposed within reasonable timelines. This report is under the aegis of JALDI Innovation Lab, a multi-disciplinary collaborative of experts to design solutions for the justice delivery systems in India. Errors, if any, rest with the authors. Contact us at jaldi@vidhilegalpolicy.in

Sub Project Title

Design Guide for User-Centric Court Complexes

design

law

Jaldi Lab Aspect Title

Design

Design

Design-thinking and architecture to transform how accessing justice looks and feels

Jaldi Lab Aspect Title

Law

Law

Rules and policies to guide implementation of reforms in a fair, just and transparent manner.

Introducing the Court Design Handbook

Introducing the Court Design Handbook

Court Design Handbook: Reimagining Courts that meet the needs of all users

Court Design Handbook: Reimagining Courts that meet the needs of all users

Designing Justice: Introducing JALDI's New Video Series

Designing Justice: Introducing JALDI's New Video Series

Designing Justice: Interview with Anchal Bhateja

Designing Justice: Interview with Anchal Bhateja

Introduction to the series

Introduction to the series

How can we improve e-Filing in courts?

How can we improve e-Filing in courts?

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Model Video Conferencing Rules, rule 5.

Model Video Conferencing Rules, rule 2(xii).

The Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996.

The Mediation Act 2023.

Objectives

Facilitate efficient functioning of ADR procedures

to help reduce the caseload of the District Courts;

Design the space to

promote mediation and arbitration

by ensuring that the users are comfortable and do not feel intimidated;

Ensure that

all spaces within are inviting, open, and accommodating

for all parties;

Provide

facilities to ensure confidentiality

during the ADR process;

Ensure accessibility of the space for diverse user groups

including Persons with Disabilities, elderly, expectant mothers, children, etc., and

Equip the space with

robust security and fire safety measures.

Users

Arbitrators

Mediators

Advocates

Coordinator(s) appointed under the Model Video-Conferencing Rules

Litigants

Staff

Court-appointed officials involved in the ADR processes

Family Members

Other required persons

Adjacencies

The Arbitration and Mediation Centre may function as a self-contained unit, independent of the general flow of activities in the Court Complex.

In such cases where it is not self-sustained, the Centre must be in close proximity to accessible, family-friendly toilets and drinking water facilities.

The Centre must have spaces which may be closed off to ensure confidentiality during the proceedings.

Design Considerations

The relevant provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act (1996)

and Mediation Act (2023)

which pertain to infrastructural requirements are:

Table 14:

Design considerations arising from the Arbitration and Conciliation Act (1996) and Mediation Act (2023).

Section

Section Title

Details

Design Consideration

Arbitration and Conciliation Act (1996)

S.18.

Equal treatment of parties.

The parties shall be treated with equality and each party shall be given a full opportunity to present this case.

The arbitration rooms must be of an appropriate size, such that the parties may sit side-by-side as well as facing each other, as required.

Mediation Act (2023)

S.5.

Pre-litigation mediation.

(5) The Court-annexed mediation centre and an Authority constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, shall maintain a panel of mediators for the purposes of pre-litigation mediation.

Separate office spaces must be provided for the panel of mediators at the mediation Centre.

S.15.

Conduct of mediation.

(2) The mediator shall assist the parties in an independent, neutral and impartial manner in their attempt to reach an amicable settlement of their dispute.

The mediation rooms must be designed in a manner to facilitate neutrality (allowing parties to sit side-by-side as well as facing each other) as well as ensuring the comfort of all participants.

S.30.

Online mediation.

(1) Online mediation including pre-litigation mediation may be conducted at any stage of mediation under this Act, with the written consent of the parties including by the use of electronic form or computer networks but not limited to an encrypted electronic mail service, secure chat rooms or conferencing by video or audio mode or both.

(3) The conduct of online mediation shall be in the circumstances, which ensure that the essential elements of integrity of proceedings and confidentiality are maintained at all times and the mediator may take such appropriate steps in this regard as he deems fit.

(4) Subject to the other provisions of this Act, the mediation communications in the case of online mediation shall, ensure confidentiality of mediation.

Facilities must be provided to ensure online mediation, including IT infrastructure such as Internet networks, secure chat rooms and video/audio conferencing.

The confidentiality of online procedures must be maintained through provisions for digital security of communications and records. For further details, refer to

PART D, Section 4.2.B.

of this Handbook.

The Arbitration and Mediation Centre must be equipped with its own reception area.

It must have its own segregated waiting area for persons opting for mediation or arbitration.

Separate rooms must be provided to conduct arbitration and mediation proceedings. The Centre must have an adequate number of rooms to ensure that multiple proceedings may proceed parallelly.

All spaces within the Centre must be accessible to diverse user groups, and must be equipped with ramps and elevators, accessible signage, tactile paths, etc.

The Centre must also have its own dedicated pantry, a toilet Complex, and drinking water facilities which are accessible to diverse user groups.

Adequate office spaces must be provided for arbitrators and empanelled mediators.

The space may be designed using natural elements, adequate windows and lighting, comfortable seating, and indoor plants and greenery to ensure comfort for all users.

Adequate security measures must be implemented in the Centre, as with the rest of the Court Complex, to ensure a safe and secure environment. For further details on security measures, please refer to

Annexure 3

Waiting Room

In instances where the Centre is part of the general flow of functions in a Court Complex, the waiting area must be segregated from the general waiting areas of the Court Complex.

The waiting area must have dedicated information kiosks providing information regarding the process and benefits of ADR processes.

The area must have information screens providing information regarding arbitrations and mediations scheduled for the day, along with details of the arbitrators/mediators and the specific rooms in which the respective sessions are scheduled to take place

The waiting area may be designed to be a more casual space to ensure ease and comfort for the persons visiting the Centre.

It must be designed to have a play area for children. For further details on the design of waiting areas, please refer to

Section 2.2.B.

Reception Area

The Centre must have its own dedicated reception area.

It must be manned by at least one receptionist, who must have access to information regarding the ongoing and scheduled proceedings.

The reception area must be designed to be welcoming and non-intimidating for persons participating in the arbitration and mediation processes.

It must be well-equipped to provide information to the litigants regarding the benefits of ADR processes, and their rights during the procedures.

Rooms for Arbitration and Mediation

The rooms provided for conducting arbitration and mediation must have modular and ergonomic furniture for flexible setups, adjustable partitions, and adequate multimedia equipment.

The rooms must have secure access points and must be acoustically treated by using sound-proof materials and techniques to ensure confidentiality. For further details on acoustics, please refer to

Annexure 5

The Centre must have adequate rooms of varying sizes to accommodate various configurations of parties. For example, in some cases, more than two parties may be necessary for the proceedings. In the case of family disputes, consideration must be given for children who may be involved in the proceedings. For further details regarding factors to be considered for a child-friendly design, please refer to

Section 2.3.A

Office Spaces for Arbitrators and Empanelled Mediators

Adequate office spaces must be provided for arbitrators and empanelled mediators, which must be well-equipped with ergonomic furniture and requisite IT services.

A separate room must be provided for the Judge-in-charge of the Arbitration and Mediation Centre.

The offices must have access to accessible sanitary provisions, such as washrooms and drinking water facilities.

The offices must have adequate space to accommodate storage for files, documents, and the arbitrator/mediators’ personal effects.

The offices must have adequate seating for the arbitrator/mediator to interact with either party privately, if necessary.

It must be acoustically treated to avoid noise buildup. Acoustic ceiling materials may be considered.

Acoustic privacy must be ensured for all the closed rooms by using acoustically treated partitions and doors. For further details on acoustics, please refer to

Annexure 5.

Other Spaces

The Centre must be equipped with a Legal Research Centre providing database access for mediators, arbitrators, and Advocates using the Centre.

The Centre may also have Consultation Rooms for strategizing and settling of cases.

Adequate space may also be provided for a space to undertake training sessions for ADR professionals. For further details of a Training Room, refer to

Section 2.9.B.

PART C - THE HANDBOOK

ORGANIZATION AND DESIGN OF SPACES OF THE COURT COMPLEX

2.9.

Legal Facilities

A. Arbitration and Mediation Centre

The Arbitration and Mediation Centre in District Courts is a specialised facility to provide alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) methods, and to foster an efficient, confidential, and fair environment for resolving legal disputes outside the Courtroom. Mediation is a voluntary and confidential process and hence the space should be designed to foster confidence in the process.

The Arbitration and Mediation Centre must have adequate space for a waiting area, dedicated rooms to undertake arbitration and mediation proceedings, and office spaces for the empanelled mediators. All spaces must be designed to ensure accessibility, confidentiality, and neutrality for parties involved in arbitration and mediation processes.

References

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