JURISDICTIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF A SUBSTANTIAL QUESTION OF LAW – SECOND APPEAL

Understanding of the ‘Substantial Question of Law' plays an important role in deciding the jurisdiction of the High Courts under the second appeal for any civil disputes. The law governing the second appeal very clearly states that unless a substantial question of law is not involved and formulated, the second appeal cannot be entertained by the High Court. But, what may be considered as a substantial question of law for exercising the jurisdiction is neither precisely mentioned nor possible to be mentioned in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. In absence of such possibility of having precise and express provision identifying various issues that may be well covered under the ambit of a substantial question of law, parties to the suit mention anything and everything as a substantial question of law to get their matter admitted in the High Court for the second appeal. It is not only the parties but also the High Courts commit an error in the formulation of such question while admitting the matter under the second appeal. This article tries to identify the meaning, importance, rationale, scope of the term ‘Substantial Question of Law' in context of the second appeal correlating it with the jurisdictional pre-condition, scope and limitation of the power of the High Courts under the second appeal.