Date:-19.11.2025
Bench:- Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran
The Hon’ble Supreme Court on 19th November, 2025 struck down the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021, relating to the appointments, tenure, and service conditions of the members of various Tribunals.
The Hon’ble Court expressed displeasure that the Union Government repeatedly failed to implement directions issued in earlier Madras Bar Association (MBA) cases. The Hon’ble Court held that the 2021 Act simply repackaged provisions already struck down, without fixing the constitutional defects calling it a “legislative override” of binding judgments.
The Hon’ble Court ruled that the Act violates judicial independence and constitutional separation of powers, as it contradicts settled norms on tribunal tenure, eligibility, and functioning. Until Parliament enacts a fresh law complying with SC directions, the standards laid down in MBA (IV) and MBA (V) judgments, including a minimum 5-year tenure and eligibility for lawyers with 10+ years’ experience will continue.
The Union Government has been directed to set up a National Tribunal Commission within four months to streamline appointments and administration. Anyone whose selection was completed before the 2021 Act but appointed after its enforcement will retain the original tenure and service conditions under parent statutes and MBA cases, not the diluted standards of the 2021 Act.
