Kerala Assembly sends the Court Fees Amendment Bill, which bars refund of additional fees in settled cases, to the Subject Committee

12 October 2026

Chief Minister V D Satheesan moved the Kerala Court Fees and Suits Valuation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 in the Assembly on 12 October 2026. The Bill amends the Kerala Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act, 1959 by inserting a new Section 76A, under which additional court fees collected in cases settled out of court would not be refundable. It would not affect cases in which courts had already ordered refunds before the provision takes effect, or cases settled out of court in which judgments had not yet been pronounced. Satheesan said the High Court had directed that Section 76 of the Act be amended so that such additional fees are not refunded. Satheesan said refunds had become difficult in cases settled through alternative dispute resolution under Section 89 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. He said 70% of the amount collected for the Legal Aid Fund went to the Advocates Welfare Fund and 30% to the Advocates Clerks Welfare Fund. LDF members raised objections but did not press them, and Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan referred the Bill to the Subject Committee.