Data · Court Statistics
Case Disposal Rate in India: What It Means (2026)
The case disposal rate, usually called the clearance rate, measures whether a court is keeping up with its incoming work. It is the number of cases disposed of in a period divided by the number of new cases filed in the same period, written as a percentage. Rather than quote a single national figure, which moves monthly and differs by court, this page explains the metric, shows how to read it live on the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG), and explains why it is the number that decides whether backlog grows. Last verified October 2026.
- Definition: the disposal (clearance) rate is cases disposed divided by cases instituted in the same period, as a percentage.
- Reading it: above 100% means backlog falls; exactly 100% means it holds; below 100% means it grows.
- National direction: filings exceeded disposals in most years 2018 to 2025 (DataForIndia analysis of NJDG), so the rate has mostly sat below 100%.
- Where to read it: compute it from the live institution and disposal panels on njdg.ecourts.gov.in, and note the period and date.
01What the disposal rate measures
The disposal rate answers one question: is a court clearing cases at least as fast as new ones arrive? It compares two flows over the same period, usually a month or a year:
- Institution: the number of new cases filed.
- Disposal: the number of cases closed, whether by judgment, settlement, withdrawal or transfer.
It is a flow measure, not a stock measure. Pendency is the stock (how many cases are waiting right now). The disposal rate is the flow that decides whether that stock rises or falls. See institution versus disposal of cases for the two flows in detail, and pendency of cases in India for the stock.
02The formula
The clearance rate is a simple ratio:
Clearance rate = (cases disposed in the period / cases instituted in the period) x 100
| Clearance rate | What it means | Effect on backlog |
|---|---|---|
| Above 100% | The court disposed more cases than it received | Backlog falls |
| Exactly 100% | Disposals matched new filings | Backlog holds steady |
| Below 100% | The court received more than it disposed | Backlog grows |
This is why a court can be working hard, disposing of thousands of cases, and still see its pendency climb: if filings are even higher, the clearance rate is below 100% and the pile grows.
03How to read it on the NJDG
The NJDG publishes institution and disposal figures, so you can read or compute the clearance rate yourself rather than rely on a quoted number.
- Open the NJDG at njdg.ecourts.gov.in and choose the tier (Supreme Court, High Court or district) and the court or state you want.
- Find the institution and disposal panels for a chosen period (monthly or yearly views are available).
- Divide disposals by institutions and multiply by 100. Above 100% means the court is gaining ground; below means it is falling behind.
Because the data refreshes close to daily, always note the period and the date you read it. For the mechanics of the dashboard, see how to use the NJDG and what the NJDG is.
04What the national trend shows
We are not quoting a single national clearance-rate figure here, because the honest reading is a range that moves by month and by court, and a made-up precise number would mislead. What the public data does support is the direction of travel.
Independent analysis of NJDG data (DataForIndia) notes that from 2018 to 2025, new cases filed each year exceeded cases disposed of in most years, which is why national pendency has kept rising. In plain terms, the system’s clearance rate has sat below 100% in most of those years. For the current position, read the live institution and disposal panels on the NJDG for the court you care about.
05Common mistakes when using the disposal rate
- Confusing disposal with judgment. A disposed case is not always a decided-on-merits case. Withdrawals, settlements and transfers also count as disposals. See pending, disposed and withdrawn cases.
- Comparing across different periods or courts without care. A monthly rate and an annual rate are not the same thing, and two courts can differ for reasons of case mix, not efficiency.
- Treating one month as a trend. Clearance rates swing month to month. Look at several periods before drawing a conclusion.
- Quoting a rate without a date. Always record the period and the day you read the figure.
For a fuller method, see how to read court pendency statistics.
06Where Claw fits
Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.
Clearance-rate statistics come only from the official source, the NJDG, and the analyses built on it. Claw does not publish disposal rates. Where Claw helps is after the statistics end: it lets you search and track a specific matter across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, sitting on 30 crore or more judgments with results in under 5 seconds, and it sends hearing and order alerts so your own case moves forward whatever a court’s overall clearance rate looks like.
Create a free Claw account and run a case search across Indian courts.
07Sources
- National Judicial Data Grid (institution and disposal panels): njdg.ecourts.gov.in
- Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice: doj.gov.in
- DataForIndia, judicial pendency analysis of NJDG data: dataforindia.com
Compute the rate from the live NJDG panels for the court and period you need, and record the date.
08Frequently asked questions
What is the case disposal rate in India?
It is the clearance rate: cases disposed of in a period divided by new cases filed in the same period, written as a percentage. A rate above 100% means a court cleared more than it received and its backlog fell; below 100% means the backlog grew. The exact figure moves monthly and differs by court, so read it from the live NJDG panels.
How is the disposal rate calculated?
Divide the number of cases disposed in a period by the number instituted (filed) in the same period, then multiply by 100. The NJDG publishes both institution and disposal figures, so you can compute the rate yourself for any court and period.
Does a high disposal rate mean cases are decided on merits?
Not necessarily. Disposal includes settlements, withdrawals and transfers, not only judgments on merits. A high clearance rate shows a court is keeping pace with filings, not that every case ended in a reasoned verdict.
What is India’s national disposal rate?
There is no single stable figure to quote, because it moves by month and by court. The reliable, honest statement is directional: from 2018 to 2025 new filings exceeded disposals in most years (per DataForIndia’s analysis of NJDG data), so the system’s clearance rate mostly sat below 100%. For a current number, read the live NJDG institution and disposal panels and note the date.