Section 29 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985: Transfer of Pending Cases
Section 29 explains when pending service matters stand transferred to an Administrative Tribunal after the Tribunal is established or after its jurisdiction is extended to a covered authority, corporation or society. It also deals with transfer of records and the stage from which the Tribunal may continue the proceeding.
What does Section 29 mean?
Section 29 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 is a transitional provision. Broadly, it moves certain pending suits and proceedings from courts or other authorities to the competent Administrative Tribunal where the cause of action would fall within the Tribunal's jurisdiction if it had arisen after the relevant jurisdictional date.
The provision also addresses cases involving a Joint Administrative Tribunal, permits the Tribunal to continue a transferred matter from the existing stage or, in specified circumstances, from an earlier stage or de novo, and contains provisions introduced in connection with the Administrative Tribunals (Amendment) Act, 1987.
Section 29: Transfer of pending cases
Sub-section (1). Every suit or other proceeding pending before any court or other authority immediately before the date of establishment of a Tribunal, where the cause of action is such that it would have fallen within the jurisdiction of that Tribunal if it had arisen after the Tribunal was established, stands transferred to that Tribunal on the date of establishment.
Proviso: This automatic transfer rule does not apply to an appeal pending before a High Court.
Sub-section (2). Where jurisdiction is later conferred on a Tribunal in relation to a local or other authority, corporation or society, a pending suit or proceeding based on a cause of action that would thereafter fall within the Tribunal's jurisdiction stands transferred on the relevant date.
Proviso: An appeal pending before a High Court is excluded from this automatic transfer.
Explanation: For this purpose, the relevant date is the date from which Section 14(3), or as the case may be Section 15(3), is applied to the local or other authority, corporation or society concerned.
Sub-section (3). If, immediately before establishment of a Joint Administrative Tribunal, one or more participating States already have a State Tribunal, cases pending before those State Tribunals, together with their records, stand transferred to the Joint Administrative Tribunal.
Explanation: A "State Tribunal" for this sub-section means a Tribunal established under Section 4(2).
Sub-section (4). Where a suit, appeal or other proceeding is transferred under sub-section (1) or (2), the court or authority must forward the record to the Tribunal as soon as may be. After receiving the record, the Tribunal may deal with the matter, so far as may be, in the same manner as an application under Section 19. It may proceed from the stage already reached, from an earlier stage, or de novo if it considers that course appropriate.
Sub-section (5). A case transferred to a Joint Administrative Tribunal under sub-section (3) may be continued from the stage reached before transfer.
Sub-section (6). A case pending before a Tribunal immediately before commencement of the Administrative Tribunals (Amendment) Act, 1987, whose cause of action would thereafter fall within the jurisdiction of a court, stands transferred with its record to that court on commencement.
Sub-section (7). A court receiving a case under sub-section (6) may continue the case from the stage reached before transfer.
Clause-by-clause summary
| Provision | Main effect |
|---|---|
| Section 29(1) | Transfers qualifying pending matters when the Tribunal is established; pending High Court appeals are excluded. |
| Section 29(2) | Transfers qualifying pending matters when Tribunal jurisdiction is extended to specified authorities, corporations or societies; pending High Court appeals are excluded. |
| Section 29(3) | Transfers pending State Tribunal cases and records to a newly established Joint Administrative Tribunal. |
| Section 29(4) | Requires forwarding of records and permits continuation from the existing stage, an earlier stage, or de novo as considered fit. |
| Section 29(5) | Allows a Joint Administrative Tribunal to continue a transferred case from the stage already reached. |
| Section 29(6) | Transfers certain cases from Tribunals back to courts upon commencement of the 1987 amendment where the cause would fall within court jurisdiction. |
| Section 29(7) | Allows the receiving court to continue a case transferred under sub-section (6) from the stage already reached. |
High Court judicial review after L. Chandra Kumar
The constitutional position must be read in light of the seven-Judge decision in L. Chandra Kumar v. Union of India. The Supreme Court held that the power of judicial review of the High Courts under Articles 226 and 227, and of the Supreme Court under Article 32, forms part of the Constitution's basic structure. Administrative Tribunals perform a supplemental role rather than replacing the constitutional courts.
Accordingly, decisions of Administrative Tribunals are subject to scrutiny before the jurisdictional High Court. The Supreme Court has subsequently reiterated that Tribunal decisions remain subject to High Court jurisdiction under Article 226.
For the official judgment record, see the Supreme Court of India page for L. Chandra Kumar.
Practical effect of transfer under Section 29
1. Identify the relevant jurisdictional date
The first question is whether the matter was pending immediately before the date on which the Tribunal was established or the date on which Tribunal jurisdiction was extended to the concerned authority, corporation or society.
2. Compare the cause of action with Tribunal jurisdiction
The transfer mechanism applies where the cause of action is of a kind that would have fallen within the Tribunal's jurisdiction had it arisen after the relevant date. The jurisdiction provisions of the Act, including Sections 14 and 15 where applicable, therefore need to be examined together with Section 29.
3. Check the High Court appeal exception
Sub-sections (1) and (2) expressly protect appeals already pending before a High Court from the automatic statutory transfer described in those sub-sections.
4. Records must follow the transferred proceeding
For transfers under sub-section (1) or (2), the transferring court or authority is required to forward the records to the Tribunal. The Tribunal then determines the appropriate procedural stage from which the matter should continue in accordance with sub-section (4).
5. A transferred matter need not always restart
Section 29 is designed to preserve procedural continuity. Depending on the applicable sub-section, the Tribunal or court may continue from the stage already reached; under sub-section (4), the Tribunal also has express power to proceed from an earlier stage or de novo if it considers that appropriate.
Official resources
For current statutory text, Tribunal information, filing facilities and constitutional case law, use the official resources listed in the right-hand panel. The Central Administrative Tribunal's official material describes the Act as the statutory framework for adjudication of specified recruitment and service-condition disputes and provides information about Tribunal jurisdiction and benches.
Last reviewed: 14 September 2026. This page is for general legal information. For proceedings, verify the current statutory text, applicable notifications, rules and binding judgments.