Justice Hrishikesh Roy demitted office on 1.2.2025 after serving for over 5 years as a judge of the Supreme Court of India. Justice Roy's wit, ever-smiling demeanour and encouragement for juniors is well-known but much remains to be said about the judgments and the individual- on and off the bench.

Considering my experience of working for a year at the office of Justice Muralidhar, I received a call for interview for the position of law clerk at Justice Roy's office in December,2022. The questions during the interview ranged from sports, books, constitution bench hearings and even my favourite Harry Potter character- it was in a sense a test of my personality that I managed to pass.

Justice Hrishikesh Roy's Landmark Judgments : A Law Clerk's Account

Tiasha Mukherjee

5 Feb 2025 10:41 AM

 

Soon after I joined, I realised that clerking at Justice Roy's office came with unique perks. Every month, interns and clerks were treated to free tickets from plays, where we got the opportunity to go with him. Evenings came with snacks and those who came early in the morning were provided breakfast and coffee. But the most enriching experience was the opportunity to accompany him to court in the morning, discussing the matters listed in Court along the way.

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Focus on quick disposal of cases

The demanding workload of a Supreme Court judge is well-known. The moment he returned from court or any event, he would be back at his desk, reading files, correcting orders, and working on judgments. Over time, I observed that lengthy orders were dictated in Court but hardly marked as 'Reportable'. When I pressed him on this, he referred to what Fali Nariman describes in 'India's Legal System: Can It Be Saved?' as 'case law diarrhoea'—stressing the importance of judicial discretion to avoid unnecessarily burdening the system and contributing to a 'judgments factory'. Therefore, the practice of making those judgments 'reportable', which restated settled law was tactfully avoided. The focus was primarily on the quick disposal of cases, laying down the law only when needed.

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