The Himachal Pradesh High Court is a constitutional institution, established as the apex court for the state of Himachal Pradesh. Its creation was mandated by The State of Himachal Pradesh Act, 1970, which granted full statehood to Himachal Pradesh. The High Court was formally established on January 25, 1971, with its headquarters at "Ravenswood," Shimla. This solved the problem of judicial dependence, as the region's highest court had previously been the Court of Judicial Commissioner (1948-1967) and then the Himachal Bench of the Delhi High Court (1967-1971).
The High Court functions under the framework of the Constitution of India, exercising original, appellate, and supervisory jurisdiction over all courts and tribunals within the state. It is the primary forum for citizens to seek enforcement of fundamental rights through writs under Article 226 and exercises supervisory control over subordinate courts under Article 227. The court connects directly to the Supreme Court of India, as its judgments can be challenged there, and its collegium's recommendations for judicial appointments are subject to the Supreme Court's review.
A recent change involves the pecuniary jurisdiction of the subordinate judiciary, which the High Court has the power to define under Section 29 of the Himachal Pradesh Courts Act, 1976. For instance, a notification dated October 17, 2022, superseded a previous one to adjust the jurisdiction of the District Judge/Additional District Judge for Original Civil Suits to a value exceeding ₹60,00,000 but not exceeding ₹1,00,00,000 (One Crore Rupees). This mechanism of defining jurisdiction remains the same, but the financial thresholds are periodically amended to reflect contemporary needs.