Thiruvananthapuram | July 25, 2025

The legal battle over the Kerala Government’s controversial court fee hike took a new turn today, as the Trivandrum Bar Association formally approached the Kerala High Court seeking to become a party in an ongoing Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Kerala High Court Advocates’ Association (KHCAA).

The Association filed an intervention application asserting that the steep rise in court fees under the Kerala Finance Act, 2025 directly affects not only litigants but also lawyers across the state, especially those working in trial courts and representing underprivileged clients.

What’s the Core Issue?

In April 2025, the Kerala Government enforced massive revisions in court fee slabs through amendments to the Kerala Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act, 1959, introduced via the Finance Act. In some categories, court fees surged by up to 9,900%, triggering uproar within the legal fraternity.

The KHCAA filed a PIL in the High Court alleging that such exorbitant hikes violate Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, as they restrict equitable access to justice, especially for economically weaker litigants.

Now, with its move to formally join the PIL, the Trivandrum Bar Association is calling attention to the broader, state-wide implications of the fee hike.

What the Trivandrum Bar Says

In its application, the Bar Association argued that the increased fee structure discourages genuine litigants from approaching the courts and disproportionately affects small practitioners. The application highlights a core disparity:

“While quasi-judicial tribunals like consumer forums or the DRT operate with nominal fee structures, regular civil courts now demand significantly higher fees even for modest claims. This creates a two-tiered system of justice.”

The Association urged the Court to take a comprehensive view of the impact of the new fee regime  not just in High Courts but also across subordinate courts where 90% of litigation unfolds.

The impleadment plea also points out that while State departments and officials are exempt under the amended law, common citizens have no such relief, reinforcing an imbalance the Association believes is constitutionally unjustifiable.

Current Status of the Case

The original PIL (filed as WP (PIL) No. 14 of 2025) was heard earlier this month by a division bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji. Arguments from KHCAA, which led a statewide lawyers’ protest in April, focused on how the hike was enforced without proper stakeholder consultation and lacked any rational basis.

The Court has reserved its judgment, but now, with the Trivandrum Bar Association’s intervention application pending, the issue could return for further consideration or directions.

Case Title : KHCAA v. State of Kerala & Ors.