Bombay High Court judge hears pleas till 3:30 am to clear backlog

"The courtroom was packed with senior counsels, lawyers and litigants, whose matters were being heard. There were over 100 civil petitions that had sought urgent interim reliefs," a senior counsel, who was present in the court till the judge rose from his seat, said.

Mumbai: A 58-year-old judge has set a new precedent in Bombay High Court. While most judges in the court tried to wrap up the pending matters and urgent hearings by 5 pm yesterday, the last working day before the summer break, this judge presided over his court until the wee hours today, hearing pleas that sought urgent interim reliefs. Justice Shahrukh J Kathawalla presided over a packed courtroom till 3.30 am, hearing arguments and passing orders on petitions. "The courtroom was packed with senior counsels, lawyers and litigants, whose matters were being heard. There were over 100 civil petitions that had sought urgent interim reliefs," a senior counsel, who was present in the court till the judge rose from his seat, said. While this is the first time Justice Kathawalla sat in the court till so late, two weeks ago, he had heard matters in his chamber till midnight. "Justice Kathawalla, even at that hour (3.30 am), was as fresh as one would be in the morning. My matter was one of the last ones to be heard. Even then the judge heard our arguments patiently and passed orders," another senior counsel, Praveen Samdani, said. Justice Kathawalla often begins the court proceedings at 10 am, an hour earlier than the other judges, and hears matters beyond 5 pm, when the court shuts for the day. A staff member of the courtroom said despite hearing the matters till so late, the judge was back in his chambers this morning to finish pending work. About Justice SJ Kathawalla Kathawalla was born on 24th March 1960. He completed his graduated from Wilson College, Bombay and LL.B. from Government Law College, Bombay. According to information on the website of Bombay High Court, he enrolled as an Advocate on the rolls of Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa on 30th September, 1985. He practised on both Original and Appellate Sides in the Bombay High Court in Civil, Constitutional, Company and Arbitration matters. The website says he also represented in the Supreme Court, various High Courts, Tribunals, District Courts etc. Kathawalla was sworn in as Additional Judge of the High Court on 18th July 2008 and confirmed as Permanent Judge of the High Court on 15th July 2011.