THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 19661

In exercise of the powers conferred by Article 145 of the Constitution, and
all other powers enabling it in this behalf, the Supreme Court hereby makes, with
the approval of the President, the following rules, namely:
PART I
GENERAL
ORDER I
INTERPRETATION, ETC.
1. (1) These rules may be cited as the Supreme Court Rules, 1966.
(2) They shall come into force on such date as the Chief Justice of India may,
by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint and different dates may be appointed
for different provisions of these rules:
Provided that proceedings pending in the Supreme Court or any High Court
in relation to appeals by virtue of certificates granted under Article 132(1), Article
133(1) or Article 135 of the Constitution shall unless otherwise ordered by this
Court, be governed by the rules in force prior to the appointed date, and all steps
therein shall continue to be taken in accordance with the said rules.
2. (1) In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires -
2[(a) ‘advocate’ means a person whose name is entered on the roll of
advocates prepared and maintained by a State Bar Council under
the Advocates Act, 1961 (25 of 1961);]
(b) ‘advocate on record’ means an advocate who is entitled under
these rules to act as well as to plead for a party in the Court;
(c) ‘appointed day’ means the date on which these rules shall come
into force;
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THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 1966
(d) ‘Chief Justice’ means the Chief Justice of India, and includes a Judge
appointed under article 126 of the Constitution to perform the duties
of the Chief Justice;
(e) ‘Code’ means the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908);
(f) ‘Constitution’ means the Constitution of India;
(g) ‘Court’ and ‘this Court’ means the Supreme Court of India;
(h) ‘Court appealed from’ includes a Tribunal or any other judicial body
from which an appeal is preferred to the Court;
(i) ‘High Court’ means-
(i) as respects anything done before the commencement of the
Constitution, a High Court within the meaning of section 219
of the Government of India Act, 1935; and
(ii) as respects anything done or to be done after the
commencement of the Constitution, a High Court established
by or recognised under the Constitution;
(j) ‘Judge’ means a Judge of the Court;
(k) ‘judgment’ includes decree, order, sentence or determination of any
Court, Tribunal, Judge or Judicial Officer;
(l) ‘prescribed’ means prescribed by or under these rules;
(m) ‘record’ in Part II of these rules means the aggregate of papers relating
to an appeal (including the pleadings, proceedings, evidence and
judgments) proper to be laid before the Court at the hearing of the
appeal;
(n) ‘Registrar’and ‘Registry’mean respectively the Registrar and Registry
of the Court;
(o) ‘respondent’ includes an intervener;
(p) ‘the rules’ and ‘rules of Court’ means these rules and include the
forms appended to these rules;
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THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 1966
(q) ‘Senior advocate’ means any advocate so designated under subsection
(2) of section 16 of the Advocates Act, 1961 (25 of 1961),
and all such advocates whose names were borne on the roll of
the senior advocates of the Court immediately before the
commencement of Chapter III of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(r) ‘Taxing Officer’ means the Officer of the Court whose duty is
to tax costs of proceedings in the Court.
(2) The General Clauses Act, 1897 (10 of 1897), shall apply for the
interpretation of these rules as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
3. Where, by these rules or by any order of the Court any step is required
to be taken in connection with any cause, appeal, or matter before the Court,
that step shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be taken in the Registry.
4. Where any particular number of days is prescribed by these rules, or
is fixed by an order of the Court, in computing the same, the day from which
the said period is to be reckoned shall be excluded, and, if the last day expires
on a day when the Court is closed, that day and any succeeding days on which
Court remains closed shall also be excluded.
ORDER II
OFFICES OF THE COURT: SITTINGS AND VACATION, ETC.
1. Except during vacation and on Saturdays and holidays, the offices of
the Court, shall, subject to any order by the Chief Justice, be open daily from
10.00 A.M. to 5.00 P.M. but no work unless of an urgent nature, shall be
admitted after 4.30 P.M.
1[2. The offices of the Court shall, except during vacation, be open on
Saturdays from 10.00 to 1.00 P.M. but no work, unless of an urgent nature,
shall be admitted after 12 Noon]
2[3. Except on the days which are holidays both for the Court and the
1. Subs. by G.S.R. 96(E), dated 16th February, 1987.
2. Subs. by G.S.R. 1857, dated 20th October, 1970 (w.e.f. 31-10-1970).
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THE SUPREME COURT RULES, 1966
offices of the Court, the offices of the Court shall be open during summer vacation
and Christmas and NewYear holidays of the Court at such times as the Chief Justice
may direct.]
4. (1) The Court shall sit in two terms annually, the first commencing from the
termination of the summer vacation and ending with the day immediately preceding
such day in December as the Court may fix for the commencement of the Christmas
and New Year holidays and the second commencing from the termination of the
Christmas and New Year holidays and ending with the commencement of the
summer vacation.
(2) The period of the summer vacation shall not exceed ten weeks.
1[(3) The length of the summer vacation of the Court and the number of holidays
for the Court and the offices of the Court shall be such as may be fixed by the
Chief Justice and notified in the Official Gazette so as not to exceed one hundred
and three days (excluding Sundays) not falling in the vacation and during holidays.]
5. The Court shall not ordinarily, sit on Saturdays, nor on any other days notified
as Court holidays in the Official Gazette.
6. The Chief Justice may appoint one or more Judges to hear during summer
vacation or winter holidays all matters of an urgent nature which under these rules
may be heard by a Judge sitting singly, and, whenever necessary, he may likewise
appoint a Division Court for the hearing of urgent cases during the vacation which
require to be heard by a Bench of Judges.