Strict Compliance with Commercial Courts Act Timelines Mandatory – Piecemeal Production of Documents Not Permitted

Case Snapshot

• Case Name: M/s. Levitate Mobile Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. M/s. Standard Chartered Bank & Anr.

• Citation: 2026 INSC 674

• Bench: Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh

• Date of Judgment: July 9, 2026

• Area of Law: Civil Procedure, Commercial Courts Act, 2015, Discovery of Documents

Judgment in Brief

The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the High Court's order rejecting the plaintiff's application to bring additional documents on record at a late stage of the trial. The Court held that the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, mandates strict compliance with procedural timelines to ensure speedy resolution of commercial disputes. The plaintiff had already been permitted to file additional documents once earlier. The second application, filed more than five years later, sought to produce documents that were in the plaintiff's possession from the outset. The Court held that no "reasonable cause" was shown for the delay, and allowing the application would encourage a piecemeal approach, defeating the object of the Commercial Courts Act.

Relevant Facts

• The appellant (Levitate Mobile Technologies) entered into an IT Professional Services Agreement with the respondent (Standard Chartered Bank) on February 19, 2013, to develop and manage a mobile application.

• A dispute arose, and the appellant filed a civil suit before the Delhi High Court on May 27, 2015.

• The suit was renumbered as a commercial suit under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, on January 30, 2018.

• Issues were framed on November 16, 2016.

• The appellant had already filed an earlier application (IA No. 12696 of 2017) to bring additional documents on record, which was allowed on January 30, 2018.

• The appellant's evidence (PW-1) was completed on May 9, 2023.

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