Published on 28 July 2025

NECESSITY OF CREATING UNIFORMITY IN COURT FEES AND LEGAL BENEFIT FUND IN VAKKALATH

Subject : Judicial Administration / Legal Procedures

BY Aswin Joe Pichappilly,

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Aswin Joe Pichappilly

“We’re equal before the law – if we pay the same amount” - David Lagercrantz

“Vakalath” means vakalathama and includes memorandum of appearance or any other document by which an advocate is empowered to appear or plead before any court, tribunal or other authority. In a vakalath there it needs to affix advocate wefare stamp, clerk welfare stamp, court fee stamp and legal benefit stamp. In a vakkalth as per Sch.II Article 12 of the Kerala Court Fees Act and Rules, 1959 by the Amended Finanace Act, 2025 which came into effect from 1-04-2025 needs to affix a court fee stamp of Rs. 25/- when a Mukhtarnama, Vakalatnama or any paper signed by an advocate signifying or intimating that he is retained for a party when presented to any Court other than the High Court or to any Collector or Magistrate or other executive officer.

The Legal benefit fund that needs to be collected in a vakalth is dealt under Chapter VIII, Section 76(2) of the Kerala Court Fees and suit valuation Act, 1959.

As per Section 76 (2) of the Kerala Court Fees and Suit Valuation Act, 1959

There shall be constituted a Legal Benefit Fund which shall be credited –

(i)---

(ii) fifty per cent of the Court-fees levied and collected on mukhtarnama or vakalatnama under [Article 12 of Schedule II] of this Act.

As per the decision in Shree Dhanwantari Chits India Private Limited v. Babu it is held that

“Legal benefit fund is not solely constituted of the additional Court fee so collected; instead, it includes fifty percent of the court fees collected on Vakalathnama under Art. 16 of Schedule 2.”

So that it is clear as per the statute that Rs. 12.50/- needs to be paid as Court fees and Rs. 12.50/- needs to be paid as Legal benefit fund in vakalat.

A representation was also made by the Secretary Bar Assciation Kasargod to the District Judge Kasargod and an official memorandum dated 7-05-2025 was published directing the Judicial officers in Kasargod District to instruct their respective staff to collect only Rs. 25/- on Vakalatnama including Court Fee and Legal Benefit Fund, and not to collect any additional amount for Legal Benefit Fund until further orders. The copy of the said OM is also annexed.

It is also understood that District Court Centers in Palakkad and District Court Centers in Ernakulam are also collecting Rs. 12.50/- towards Court Fees and Rs. 12.50/- towards Legal Benefit Fund in Vakkalathnama. But in other District court centers except Palakkad, Ernakulam and Kasargod it is insisting to pay an amount of Rs. 25/- as Court fees and Rs. 13/- as legal benefit fund. Thus instead of Rs. 25/- an amount of Rs. 38/- is levied in each Vakalathnama, which is a pure violation of the Kerala Court Fees and Suit Valauation Act, 1959.

All are equal before the eye of law and there it requires uniformity in collection of court fees and legal benefit fund as envisaged by the statute. And it is a high time there it requires a judicial intervention upon this matter and to create a uniformity in collection of court fees and legal benefit fund throughout the State as envisaged by the statute.

Vakalathnama - LegalBenefitFund - CourtFees - JudicialIntervention - KeralaCourtFeesAct

#LegalUniformity #CourtFees