The Commercial Courts Act, 2015, is an Act of the Indian Parliament that provides for the establishment of specialized courts and divisions to adjudicate high-value commercial disputes. It came into force on October 23, 2015, to address the problem of significant delays in the conventional judicial system, which was hindering economic growth and India's ranking on the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business index. The Act was based on the recommendations of the 253rd Report of the Law Commission of India.
The Act works by establishing Commercial Courts at the District level and Commercial Divisions and Commercial Appellate Divisions within High Courts. It applies to a "commercial dispute" as defined in Section 2(1)(c), provided it meets the "specified value". A major change came with the Commercial Courts Amendment Act, 2018, which reduced the initial specified value from Rupees One crore to not less than Rupees Three lakhs (under Section 2(1)(i)), thereby expanding the Act's scope.
The mechanism for speedy disposal involves significant amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (CPC), as detailed in the Schedule. These amendments include strict timelines, such as a maximum of 120 days for filing a written statement, and the mandatory filing of a 'Statement of Truth' under Order VI Rule 15A. Furthermore, the 2018 amendment introduced mandatory Pre-Institution Mediation and Settlement under Section 12A for cases where no urgent interim relief is sought. The Act is connected to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, as Section 10 grants jurisdiction to Commercial Courts over certain arbitration matters of specified value.