CaseMine vs Indian Kanoon vs Claw
CaseMine and Indian Kanoon both come up when Indian lawyers search for case law online, but one is a free public repository and the other is a paid AI research tool. Here is an honest look at both, and at Claw as a third option.
Comparison · Case Search
"CaseMine vs Indian Kanoon" is a search Indian lawyers run when they are trying to work out whether a free judgment repository is enough, or whether it is worth paying for an AI research tool on top of it. The honest answer is that they are not quite doing the same job: one is a free, broad public-access database, and the other is a paid platform built around AI citation intelligence. This page compares both fairly, then introduces Claw as a third option for teams whose real problem is not just finding a judgment, but acting on it inside a case.
- Indian Kanoon: free core search across 3 crore+ records including Supreme Court and all 25 High Courts; paid Premium (roughly Rs 500/month or Rs 5,000/year) adds AI tools and bulk court-copy downloads.
- CaseMine: paid AI research platform (from roughly $49/month, as published) built around citation intelligence, including a citator for overruled or negatively treated judgments, with coverage across India, the US, UK, and Ireland.
- Claw: AI-based judgement search across 25 High Courts and the Supreme Court (30 crore judgements), combined with full case management; free for individual advocates, roughly Rs 9k to 13k per seat/year for teams.
- No blanket winner: the right pick depends on whether you need free access, citation reliability, or research tied to case management.
01Why CaseMine vs Indian Kanoon is a confusing comparison
CaseMine and Indian Kanoon both show up when someone searches for Indian case law online, and both let you read judgments, so at first glance they look interchangeable. They are not. Indian Kanoon is built as a broad, free public-access repository. CaseMine is a paid, AI-native research platform built around citation intelligence. Three things make the comparison harder than it should be.
Free access is not the same job as citation intelligence
Reading a judgment for free and understanding how that judgment has been treated by later courts are two different problems. Indian Kanoon solves the first at scale, for no cost. CaseMine is built to solve the second, with a citator that flags negatively treated or overruled judgments and tools that map how authorities relate to each other. A lawyer who only needs to pull up a judgment may never need the second. A lawyer building a brief on a contested point of law usually does.
One of the two also operates outside India
CaseMine was founded in India but has grown into a platform used across the US, UK, and Irish jurisdictions as well as India, alongside its Indian case law coverage. Indian Kanoon and Claw are both India-first products. That international scope is not a flaw, but it means CaseMine’s product and pricing are not built around Indian legal research alone, which is worth knowing before you compare it feature for feature against a domestic tool. For a broader look at that distinction, see international vs Indian legal software.
"Free" and "paid" both have fine print
Indian Kanoon’s core search is genuinely free, but it also sells a Premium Membership for AI research and drafting tools and for downloading official court copies in bulk, so "free" does not mean every feature is free. CaseMine, meanwhile, publishes pricing starting at roughly $49 a month or $499 a year on its site, which is dollar-denominated and marketed globally, so an Indian firm should confirm the actual India-specific plan and currency before assuming that figure applies as-is.
A related question: what happens after you find the case
Both CaseMine and Indian Kanoon are research tools. Neither is built to run your firm’s day-to-day case files, deadlines, or client work. If that is the gap you are trying to close, see the best legal practice management software in India.
02What to evaluate before you compare
Before going platform by platform, fix what actually matters for your research workflow.
- Cost model: whether you need a completely free option, or whether a paid tool earns its cost through the time it saves.
- Coverage breadth: how many courts and how many years of judgments and other legal material (statutes, bills, notifications) each tool actually holds.
- Citation intelligence: whether the tool tells you if a judgment has been overruled, distinguished, or negatively viewed by a later court, not just whether the judgment exists.
- Search quality: whether search understands a legal question in natural language, or works mainly as keyword and filter based search.
- Scope beyond research: whether the tool also helps you manage the matter once you have found the judgment, or stops at research.
Finding a judgment for free and knowing whether that judgment still stands are two different problems. Confusing them is how citations go wrong.
03Indian Kanoon: what it is and how it works
Indian Kanoon is a free search engine for Indian law. Its core value proposition is scale at no cost: full-text search across a very large public repository of Indian legal material, with no subscription required to read a judgment.
Indian Kanoon
A free, broad public-access search engine for Indian judgments, statutes, and other legal material.
Strengths
- The core search and document access is free, which makes it the most accessible starting point for Indian case law research, especially for individual advocates and students.
- Very broad coverage: over 3 crore records in total, spanning Supreme Court judgments from 1950, decisions from all 25 High Courts, roughly 17 law tribunals, district court orders where digitised, plus central statutes, bills, rules, notifications, and law commission reports.
- Citations within a judgment are tagged by sentiment (relied by party, accepted by court, negatively viewed by court, or no clear sentiment), and users can filter results by judge, bench, court, and year, all in the free tier.
- A paid Premium Membership adds PRISM, a bundle of AI tools for research, drafting, document review, and predictive insights, plus the ability to download up to 1,000 official court copies a month directly from High Court and Supreme Court websites, for roughly Rs 500 a month or Rs 5,000 a year.
Keep in mind
- The free tier is built around access and filtering, not AI-generated citation intelligence. To get AI research, drafting, and predictive tools, you need the paid Premium plan.
- Judgments are presented largely as retrieved, so the depth of editorial headnotes and commentary is lighter than a curated reported-judgment database.
- It is a research and document-access tool, not a case management or matter-tracking platform.
Best for Individual advocates, students, and teams that want free, broad access to Indian judgments and statutes, with the option to add AI research tools through Premium if needed.
In practical terms, Indian Kanoon is hard to beat on pure accessibility and breadth for the price of zero. The trade-off is that the free tier asks you to do more of the interpretive work yourself, since AI-based citation intelligence sits behind the paid Premium tier rather than being built into every search.
04CaseMine: what it is and how it works
CaseMine is an AI-powered legal research platform, founded in India, that has expanded to cover case law research across the US, UK, and Irish jurisdictions alongside India. Its focus is citation intelligence: not just finding a judgment, but understanding how it fits into the wider body of case law.
CaseMine
AI-powered legal research built around citation intelligence, with Indian coverage alongside US, UK, and Irish case law.
Strengths
- AMICUS AI, a generative AI legal research assistant, and Parallel Search, a natural-language case law search tool, so queries can be phrased as a legal question rather than a set of keywords.
- A citator that identifies judgments that have been negatively treated or overruled, which is a genuine safety feature for anyone building a citation they intend to rely on in court.
- CaseIQ, a contextual precedent discovery engine, and CiteText, which surfaces the exact language a court used within a judgment, both aimed at speeding up how fast you can verify a point of law.
- Case visualisation tools that map the relationships and linkages between authorities, useful for seeing how a line of case law developed.
- Indian coverage spans the Supreme Court, High Courts, and a range of tribunals, alongside its international jurisdictions.
Keep in mind
- Published pricing starts at roughly $49 a month or $499 a year on CaseMine’s site, which is dollar-denominated and set up for a global audience, so Indian firms should confirm the actual applicable plan and currency directly.
- It is a research platform. It is not built for tracking live matters, hearing dates, or case management inside a firm.
- Because it also serves other jurisdictions, its India-specific coverage depth should be checked against your practice areas rather than assumed to match an India-only database.
Best for Lawyers and researchers who want AI-assisted citation intelligence, including overruled-case detection and natural-language search, and are comfortable paying for it.
CaseMine’s real strength in this comparison is what happens after you find a judgment: the citator and the visualisation tools help you check whether it still holds, which a plain free-text search engine does not do on its own. The trade-off is cost, and the fact that it is not a case management tool.
05Claw as a third option
When someone searches "CaseMine vs Indian Kanoon" they are usually trying to decide between free access and paid citation intelligence. Claw enters this comparison from a different angle: it combines all-India AI-based judgement search with case management, so the judgment you find does not sit separately from the matter it belongs to.
Claw
All-India AI-based judgement search with verified citations, combined with case management, in one subscription.
Strengths
- A judgement database of 30 crore judgements, covering 25 High Courts (1980 to 2026) and the Supreme Court (1950 to 2026), with semantic and AI search that understands the legal question, not just keywords.
- Results in under 5 seconds, with verified, court-ready citations, and Chat with Judgements, which lets you ask a judgment a question instead of reading the full text.
- Case management and tracking across 8,200-plus courts including all states, tribunals, and district courts, with auto case updates, cause lists, and WhatsApp and email hearing alerts, so a judgment you find can be attached to a live matter in the same place.
- A free plan for individual advocates that includes Legal GPT, unlimited cases, case search, a daily personalised cause list, client management, and 20 GB storage, which is a genuine option for solo practitioners comparing costs against Indian Kanoon’s free tier.
- Paid plans for teams and enterprises run roughly Rs 9,000 to Rs 13,000 per seat per year, which also covers case management and AI tools in the same price.
Keep in mind
- For a citator specifically built to flag overruled or negatively treated judgments the way CaseMine does, or for research spanning jurisdictions outside India, CaseMine is the more specialised choice.
- For the widest possible free access to raw statutes, bills, and government notifications beyond case law, Indian Kanoon’s free tier has the broadest non-judgment coverage.
- Claw is newer to the market than either, and its case management side is a genuine part of the platform, so teams that want research alone, with nothing else attached, may find it does more than they need.
Best for Advocates and teams that want AI judgement search with verified citations attached to the same platform where they track and manage the matter.
06Side-by-side comparison
The table below lines up all three on the criteria that matter most for Indian legal research.
| Platform | Cost model | Coverage (as published) | AI / citation intelligence | Case management | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Kanoon | Free core search; Premium roughly Rs 500/month or Rs 5,000/year for AI tools and bulk court-copy downloads | 3 crore+ records: SC (1950-), 25 High Courts, ~17 tribunals, statutes, bills, notifications | Citation sentiment tags free; AI research/drafting (PRISM) in Premium | No | Free, broad access to Indian judgments and legal material |
| CaseMine | From roughly $49/month or $499/year, as published | India: Supreme Court, High Courts, tribunals; also US, UK, Ireland | Yes: AMICUS AI, CaseIQ, citator for overruled/negatively treated cases, CiteText | No | AI-assisted citation intelligence and cross-jurisdiction research |
| Claw | Free plan for individual advocates; team/enterprise roughly Rs 9k to 13k per seat/year | 30 crore judgements: 25 High Courts (1980-2026), Supreme Court (1950-2026); case management across 8,200+ courts | Yes: semantic and AI search, verified court-ready citations | Yes, full case management and tracking | AI judgement search combined with case management in one place |
07How to choose
None of the three wins outright. Start with what you are actually short on: budget, citation intelligence, or a place to manage the matter once you have found the case.
If cost is the deciding factor and you mainly need to look up judgments and statutes, Indian Kanoon’s free tier is hard to beat on breadth for the price, and its Premium plan is a relatively low-cost way to add AI research and bulk court-copy downloads if you need them later.
If your work depends on knowing whether a judgment still holds, or you research across jurisdictions beyond India, CaseMine’s citator and AI research tools are built specifically for that, and are worth the subscription if citation reliability is where your risk sits.
If you want AI judgement search and case management in the same subscription, so a case you find does not live in a separate tool from the matter it belongs to, Claw is worth a look, including its free plan for individual advocates.
If your comparison is really about running a full practice, not just researching case law, see the best legal practice management software in India. If you are specifically weighing case-management tools like eLawOffice, see eLawOffice alternatives.
08Where 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.
Compared with Indian Kanoon and CaseMine, Claw is not trying to out-price a free public repository, and it is not trying to out-specialise a citator built for cross-jurisdiction citation checking. Its position is different: it starts from AI-based judgement search across all Indian courts and builds case management, an AI legal assistant, and compliance automation around that, so the research and the matter it belongs to sit in one place. For a lawyer who only needs to look up a judgment occasionally, Indian Kanoon’s free tier may be enough on its own. For a team that lives or dies by citation reliability across jurisdictions, CaseMine’s citator is a real strength worth its cost. For a team that wants AI judgement search tied directly to how they track and manage their caseload, that is where Claw fits, including a free plan for individual advocates who want to start without a subscription.
09Sources and further reading
The platforms discussed here, linked to their official sources:
- Indian Kanoon: indiankanoon.org
- CaseMine: casemine.com
- Claw: clawlaw.in
- Supreme Court of India (official judgments): sci.gov.in
This is not an exhaustive list of legal research vendors in India. Coverage and pricing figures are as published by each vendor and can change, so confirm current details directly with them before relying on this page for a purchase decision.
10Frequently asked questions
Is Indian Kanoon completely free?
Core search and document access on Indian Kanoon are free. It also sells a Premium Membership, roughly Rs 500 a month or Rs 5,000 a year, which adds AI research and drafting tools (PRISM) and the ability to download up to 1,000 official court copies a month. So the free tier is broad, but the AI features are behind a paid plan.
What does CaseMine do that Indian Kanoon does not?
CaseMine is built around AI citation intelligence: a citator that flags judgments that have been negatively treated or overruled, natural-language search through AMICUS AI and Parallel Search, and tools that map how authorities relate to each other. Indian Kanoon’s free tier gives broad access and basic citation sentiment tags, but its deeper AI research tools sit behind its own paid Premium plan.
How much does CaseMine cost in India?
CaseMine publishes pricing starting at roughly $49 a month or $499 a year on its site, which is dollar-denominated and set up for a global audience across India, the US, UK, and Ireland. Confirm the applicable plan and currency for Indian users directly with the vendor before subscribing.
Does Indian Kanoon or CaseMine include case management?
No. Both are research tools, built to help you find and read judgments and legal material. Neither is built to track live matters, hearing dates, or client files. If you need case management alongside AI judgement search, that is where a platform like Claw, which combines both, or a dedicated practice management tool comes in.
Which is better for citing case law safely, Indian Kanoon or CaseMine?
For checking whether a judgment still holds or has been overruled, CaseMine’s citator is a purpose-built feature for exactly that risk. Indian Kanoon’s free tier tags citations by sentiment, which helps, but does not go as deep as a dedicated AI citator. If citation reliability across a contested point of law is your main concern, CaseMine’s paid tools are built for that job.
Is Claw a substitute for Indian Kanoon or CaseMine?
Not a direct substitute for either. Claw does not try to match Indian Kanoon’s free breadth of statutes and government material, and it does not try to match CaseMine’s cross-jurisdiction citator. What Claw offers is AI-based judgement search across Indian courts combined with case management in one subscription, including a free plan for individual advocates, which suits teams that want research and matter tracking in the same place.