Commercial Courts Act, 2015
Section 5: Constitution of Commercial Appellate Division
Section 5 of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 provides for the constitution of a Commercial Appellate Division in the concerned High Court. The provision ensures that appeals assigned by the Act are heard by Division Benches comprising High Court Judges with experience in commercial disputes.
Text of Section 5
5. Constitution of Commercial Appellate Division.—(1) After issuing notification under sub-section (1) of section 3 or order under sub-section (1) of section 4, the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court shall, by order, constitute Commercial Appellate Division having one or more Division Benches for the purpose of exercising the jurisdiction and powers conferred on it by the Act.
(2) The Chief Justice of the High Court shall nominate such Judges of the High Court who have experience in dealing with commercial disputes to be Judges of the Commercial Appellate Division.
What Section 5 means
Section 5 creates the appellate forum within a High Court for matters that the Commercial Courts Act assigns to a Commercial Appellate Division. The provision operates after the relevant Commercial Court is constituted under Section 3 or a Commercial Division of the High Court is constituted under Section 4.
The responsibility to constitute the Commercial Appellate Division lies with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court. The Division may consist of one or more Division Benches. The Judges nominated to it must be High Court Judges having experience in dealing with commercial disputes.
Key features of Section 5
| Authority | The Chief Justice of the concerned High Court constitutes the Commercial Appellate Division by order. |
|---|---|
| Trigger | The provision operates after a notification under Section 3(1) or an order under Section 4(1). |
| Bench structure | The Commercial Appellate Division may have one or more Division Benches. |
| Judicial experience | Judges nominated to the Division must have experience in dealing with commercial disputes. |
| Function | The Division exercises the appellate jurisdiction and other powers conferred on it by the Commercial Courts Act. |
Meaning of Commercial Appellate Division
Section 2(1)(aa) of the Act defines a Commercial Appellate Division as the Commercial Appellate Division in a High Court constituted under Section 5(1). It is therefore a specially constituted appellate division of the High Court rather than a separate court outside the High Court structure.
How Section 5 connects with appeals under Section 13
Section 13 distinguishes between appeals to a Commercial Appellate Court and appeals to a Commercial Appellate Division. In particular, an appeal from the judgment or order of a Commercial Court at the level of District Judge exercising original civil jurisdiction, or from a Commercial Division of a High Court, lies to the Commercial Appellate Division of that High Court within the period prescribed by Section 13, subject to the limits and conditions stated in that provision.
Section 14 further states that the Commercial Appellate Court and the Commercial Appellate Division shall endeavour to dispose of appeals within six months from the date of filing.
Practical significance
The purpose of Section 5 is to place commercial appeals before experienced Division Benches and thereby support specialised and efficient appellate adjudication. It complements the specialised first-instance structure created by Commercial Courts and Commercial Divisions.
Related provisions of the Commercial Courts Act
Updated: 14 September 2026. Statutory text checked against India Code.