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Section 6: Jurisdiction of Commercial Court

Commercial Courts Act, 2015 • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Commercial Court / High Court
Act 4 of 2016
Section 5 All 23 Sections The Schedule (CPC Amendments) Section 7
Statutory Defined Terms in this Section: (Click any term for official legal definition)
Commercial Court Sec 2 commercial dispute Sec 2 Specified Value Sec 2

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 6

Section 6 of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 defines the territorial and subject-matter jurisdiction of Commercial Courts to adjudicate commercial disputes of a Specified Value.

  • Statutory Powers & Jurisdiction: Under Section 6, the Commercial Court exercises jurisdiction over all suits and applications relating to commercial disputes of a Specified Value arising out of the entire territory of the district over which the court has been vested with authority.
  • Procedural Mechanism: The provision operates in conjunction with the general territorial principles of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Sections 15 to 20), requiring that the cause of action, location of immovable property, or defendant's residence/place of business fall within the notified district.

Importantly, Section 6 bars ordinary civil courts from exercising parallel jurisdiction over commercial suits satisfying the Specified Value threshold. Where a suit involves both commercial and non-commercial claims, jurisdiction is governed by the predominant character of the cause of action and the statutory mandate of commercial adjudication.

Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Ambalal Sarabhai Enterprises Ltd. v. K.S. Infraspace LLP, (2020) 15 SCC 585: The Supreme Court ruled that Section 6 jurisdiction cannot be invoked unless the twin statutory prerequisites are satisfied: the dispute must strictly fit Section 2(1)(c) and the valuation must meet or exceed the Specified Value under Section 12.
  • Patil Automation (P) Ltd. v. Rakheja Engineers (P) Ltd., (2022) 10 SCC 1: The Court emphasized that Section 6 vests exclusive jurisdiction in Commercial Courts to the exclusion of regular civil courts for all covered disputes.
Legal Commentary:

Institution of a commercial suit in a regular civil court constitutes a patent lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. If an ordinary civil court discovers that a matter constitutes a commercial dispute of Specified Value, it is duty-bound under Section 15 to transfer the suit to the competent Commercial Court, rather than dismissing it outright.

Section 5 All 23 Sections The Schedule (CPC Amendments) Section 7