SC Signs MoU with Bhutan for Exchange of Law Clerks

Supreme Court of India has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Supreme Court of Bhutan to facilitate the exchange of young legal professionals. Under the MoU, two law clerks from Bhutan will be engaged by the Supreme Court of India for a three-month period, providing them exposure to Indian judicial processes at the highest level.

Key Highlights of MoU

• The Indian Supreme Court will host two Bhutanese law clerks for three months.
• The visiting law clerks will:
  • Receive the same honorarium as Indian Supreme Court law clerks.
  • Have their travel expenses borne by the Supreme Court of India.
  • Be assigned to work across different courts during their engagement.
• The MoU aims to:
  • Strengthen institutional collaboration.
  • Promote knowledge-sharing and skill development.
  • Foster judicial cooperation and professional exchange between India and Bhutan.
• The initiative is expected to build long-term professional and institutional ties through exposure to another country’s judicial ecosystem.

MoUs Signed by Supreme Court of India with Other Nations

The Supreme Court of India has been actively strengthening international judicial cooperation through MoUs with several countries.

Recent MoUs include:

• Nepal (April 7, 2025)
  • Focus on judicial cooperation, legal knowledge-sharing, e-courts, technology adoption, and training exchanges.
• Bhutan
  • Exchange of young legal professionals and law clerks.
• Singapore (September 2023)
  • MoU on judicial collaboration signed during the CJI’s official visit.
• Bangladesh, Israel, Tunisia, Zambia, Morocco, Maldives
  • MoUs enhancing legal exchanges, institutional cooperation, and capacity building.

These partnerships collectively strengthen India’s global judicial engagement and capacity-exchange framework.

India–Bhutan Relations

• Long-standing partnership based on friendship, trust, and cooperation
• Collaboration spans governance, development, education, and capacity building

Judicial Diplomacy

• Encourages cross-border institutional learning
• Helps adopt best practices in court administration and legal processes

Significance of MoU

• Enhances cross-border legal learning and comparative judicial understanding.
• Provides international exposure to young professionals entering public law and judiciary.
• Supports knowledge transfer in court administration, procedures, and technology.
• Reinforces India’s role in regional judicial diplomacy and legal cooperation.

Supreme Court of India

• The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial authority and the final court of appeal in India.
• It exercises the power of judicial review.
• India follows a single, unified judicial system with a three-tier structure:
  1. Supreme Court
  2. High Courts
  3. Subordinate Courts

Constitutional Provisions Related to Supreme Court

• Provided under Part V — The Union, Chapter VI — The Union Judiciary.
• Articles 124 to 147 deal with:
  • Organisation and composition
  • Independence of judiciary
  • Jurisdiction and powers
  • Procedures of the Supreme Court
• Article 124(1):
  • Provides for a Supreme Court consisting of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) and
  • Up to seven other judges, unless Parliament provides for a larger number (which it has done through subsequent amendments).

Jurisdiction of Supreme Court

Broadly classified into:

• Original Jurisdiction
• Appellate Jurisdiction
• Advisory Jurisdiction (under Article 143)
• Along with multiple other constitutional and statutory powers.