Award of Lok Adalat
Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 deals with award of Lok Adalat. Every award of the Lok Adalat shall be deemed to be a decree of a civil court or, as the case may be, an order of any other court and where a compromise or settlement has been arrived at, by a Lok Adalat in a case referred to it under sub-section (1) of section 20, the court-fee paid in such case sh The Act came into force on 09 Nov 1995.
1 [(1) Every award of the Lok Adalat shall be deemed to be a decree of a civil court or, as the case may be, an order of any other court and where a compromise or settlement has been arrived at, by a Lok Adalat in a case referred to it under sub-section (1) of section 20, the court-fee paid in such case shall be refunded in the manner provided under the Court-fees Act, 1870 (7 of 1870).]
(2) Every award made by a Lok Adalat shall be final and binding on all the parties to the dispute, and no appeal shall lie to any court against the award.
Section 21, The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 (Act 39 of 1987).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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K.N. Govindan Kutty Menon v. C.D. Shaji
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Judgment of Main Case order-7.pdf 2011-11-28 DATE VERIFIED (not same-date ROP order-8). CA 10209/2011. A Lok Adalat award on a CrPC-referred NI Act 138 complaint is a civil-court decree under Legal Services Authorities Act s.21 and is executable as such. Do not remap NI 138 (already filled).
On this section: s.21 treats a Lok Adalat award as a civil-court decree. An award on a CrPC-referred NI 138 complaint is therefore executable as a decree (Govindan Kutty Menon).
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Questions about Section 21
What have the courts held on Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act?
K.N. Govindan Kutty Menon v. C.D. Shaji (28 Nov 2011) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.21 treats a Lok Adalat award as a civil-court decree. An award on a CrPC-referred NI 138 complaint is therefore executable as a decree (Govindan Kutty Menon).
How do I find court cases under Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Legal Services Authorities Act 21, section 21 Legal Services Authorities Act, section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act. People searching for it also type legal services authorities act 1987 section 21 and section 21(1) of the legal services authorities act 1987. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with K.N. Govindan Kutty Menon v. C.D. Shaji (28 Nov 2011).
What should I read with Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 20 (Cognizance of cases by Lok Adalats), so none of them can safely be read on its own.
When did Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act come into force?
Section 21 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, cited as Legal Services Authorities Act 21, came into force on 09 Nov 1995, having been enacted on 11 Oct 1987. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 22C. Cognizance of cases by Permanent Lok Adalat566 words
- 6. Constitution of State Legal Services Authority495 words
- 4. Functions of the Central Authority456 words
- 20. Cognizance of cases by Lok Adalats452 words
- 28. Power of State Government to make rules422 words
- 3. Constitution of the National Legal Services Authority420 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.