The CJI expressed hope that High Courts would also use neutral citation for their decisions. Neutral citation has already been implemented in the courts of Delhi, Kerala, and Madras.
![](https://www.dailypioneer.com/uploads/2023/story/images/big/cji-announces-launch-of----neutral-citations--for-sc-judgements-2023-02-23.jpg)
What exactly is a “Citation”?
- A case citation is essentially a tag that identifies a judgement.
- It would typically include a reference number, the year of the judgement, the name of the court that rendered the judgement, and a shorthand for the journal that published the judgement.
And what exactly is a neutral citation?
- A neutral citation means that the court will assign its own citation, which will be distinct from those provided by traditional Law Reporters.
- Law Reporters are periodicals or annual digests that publish judgements, often with an editorial note to make precedents more accessible to lawyers.
- For example, the citation in ‘Supreme Court Cases,’ a journal published by the Eastern Book Company, for the landmark Kesavananda Bharati case is (1973) 4 SCC 225.
- The citation in the All India Reporter (AIR) is AIR 1973 SC 1461.
Why is a neutral system beneficial or necessary?
- Citations are mentioned in judgements when referring to precedents, and they frequently use citations from different Law Reporters.
- A uniform citation is required when using artificial intelligence (AI) to translate judgements and transcribing court proceedings.
- A number of High Courts, including the Delhi High Court, have begun to use a neutral citation format.
- The neutral citation used by the Delhi High Court, for example, is as follows: No-YEAR/DHC/XXXXXX
How will the SC put the neutral citation system into action?
- Our most recent initiative is neutral citations for all Supreme Court decisions.
- As a result, all 30,000 judgements will have neutral citations.
- The first tranche will last until January 1, 2023, the second until 2014 judgements, and the final tranche will go back to 1950.
Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/cji-dy-chandrachud-announces-launch-of-neutral-citations-for-sc-judgements/articleshow/98177366.cms