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Section 88: Reference to Competent Authority

The Code on Social Security, 2020 (Act No. 36 of 2020) • Official Statutory Text & Plain English Practice Guide

Statutory Mandate
Chapter VII: Employee's Compensation
Competent Labour Forum
Act No. 36 of 2020
Section 87 All 163 Sections of Code on Social Security, 2020 Section 89

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 88

Section 88 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 establishes the statutory reference mechanism to the Competent Authority for resolving questions regarding employer liability, employee status, and compensation quantum, while imposing an express and absolute bar on the jurisdiction of ordinary Civil Courts.

  • Scope of Statutory Questions for Reference: Provides that if any question arises in any proceedings under Chapter VII as to the liability of any person to pay compensation (including whether a person injured is or is not an employee), or as to the amount or duration of compensation (including any question as to the nature or extent of disablement), such question shall, in default of agreement, be referred to and settled by a Competent Authority.
  • Exclusive Adjudicatory Jurisdiction: Vests exclusive inquisitorial and adjudicatory authority in the Competent Authority, creating an autonomous statutory tribunal framework designed to replace formal civil litigation with expedited labour proceedings governed by principles of social justice.
  • Express Civil Court Ouster (Non-Civil Forum Rule): Enacts an explicit statutory bar: no Civil Court shall have jurisdiction to settle, decide or deal with any question which is by or under Chapter VII required to be settled, decided or dealt with by a Competent Authority, or to enforce any liability incurred under this Chapter.
  • Mandatory Default of Agreement Condition: The statutory gateway requires that a dispute or default of agreement must exist between the employer and claimant before a formal contested reference is adjudicated; where a valid registered settlement exists under Section 96, the Competent Authority's contested reference jurisdiction remains circumscribed.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Premier Automobiles Ltd. v. Kamlekar Shantaram Wadke (1976) 1 SCC 496: The Supreme Court laid down the classic four principles governing civil court ouster, ruling that where a statute creates a new right or liability and provides a special machinery for adjudication, the jurisdiction of the civil court is completely excluded.
  • Rajasthan State Road Transport Corp. v. Krishna Kant (1995) 5 SCC 75: A three-judge bench held that disputes involving rights and liabilities created by labour and social welfare codes must be determined exclusively by the specialized tribunals constituted thereunder, barring common law civil actions.
  • Dhulabhai v. State of M.P. AIR 1969 SC 78: The Constitution Bench established that an express statutory bar against civil court jurisdiction under Section 9 CPC is fully effective where the special statute provides adequate and efficacious remedies for adjudicating statutory rights.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

When an employee or surviving dependent files a common law tort suit or civil damages suit before a Civil Judge seeking compensation for workplace death or disability, corporate counsel must immediately file an application under Order VII Rule 11 of the CPC for rejection of the plaint, citing the absolute statutory ouster under Section 88 of the Code on Social Security, 2020. Conversely, before the Competent Authority, counsel must carefully frame the reference petition to encompass employee status, average wages, and disability assessment under Schedule IV.

Section 87 All 163 Sections of Code on Social Security, 2020 Section 89