The High Court of Karnataka on Friday ordered that family courts cannot insist on personal appearance of parties if they have authorised legal representatives to appear on their behalf.
A division Bench of Chief Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Vishwajith Shetty issued this order while hearing a Suo Motu petition regarding the hearing of case through video conferencing and the technical issues that arise due to the same.
According to the Court, even in cases of offences under the Negotiable Instruments Act, the complainant doesn’t need to appear before the magistrate personally in all the cases, and an authorised advocate can appear on his behalf or the complainant can submit an affidavit before the Court. The family Courts in the State do not have a legal basis to insist on personal appearance of the petitioner or the respondent during filing of petition and after issuance of notice respectively, if they have authorised legal representatives
The Bench noted that in cases of requirement, summons can be issued by the magistrate after perusing the affidavit. With regard to the payment of maintenance in matrimonial cases, they added that monetary transactions of the Court should not be done manually, and directed the Registrar to make a note on the legal and technical issued as far as the Treasury Rules are concerned.
-India Legal Bureau