How to Check Case Status on eCourts

How-To · eCourts

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

The eCourts portal is the Indian government's free service for checking live case status across district and taluka courts in every state. It sounds simple, but many lawyers and litigants waste time on failed searches, blank results, or stale data because the portal has quirks that are not explained anywhere obvious. This guide walks you through every search method step by step, explains why searches fail and how to fix them, and covers what to do when you need to track dozens of cases at once.

01What eCourts is and what it covers

eCourts (ecourts.gov.in) is the official e-committee portal of the Supreme Court of India. It gives public access to case status, orders, and cause lists for district courts and taluka courts across all Indian states and union territories.

The portal covers district courts and subordinate courts. It does not cover High Courts or the Supreme Court directly. Those courts have their own separate portals, which are explained at the end of this guide.

What you can find on eCourts

• Current case status (pending, decided, disposed)
• Next hearing date and past hearing dates
• Orders and judgments (where uploaded by the court)
• Cause lists for the next day
• Judge and court details for the case

02Before you search: what you need

Before opening the portal, collect at least one of these identifiers. Each maps to a different search method.

The CNR (Case Number Record) number is the most reliable identifier. If you have it, use it. It is unique across all district courts in India and will take you directly to the right case with no ambiguity.

The CNR number is the single most reliable way to find a case on eCourts. It is unique across all district courts in India and leaves no room for confusion.

03Method 1: Search by CNR number (fastest)

This is the fastest and most accurate search. Use it whenever you have the CNR number.

1. Go to services.ecourts.gov.in.
2. On the home page, find the CNR Number search box. It is usually prominent near the top.
3. Enter the 16-character CNR number exactly as it appears on your document. Do not add spaces or hyphens.
4. Complete the CAPTCHA and click Search.
5. The case record will appear showing the case type, parties, current status, next date, and any uploaded orders.

If the search returns nothing despite a valid CNR, scroll down to the troubleshooting section of this guide.

04Method 2: Search by case number

Use this method when you know the case type, number, and year, but do not have the CNR.

1. Go to services.ecourts.gov.in and click Case Status.
2. Select your State from the dropdown. The portal organises courts by state first.
3. Select the District and then the specific Court complex where the case is filed.
4. Choose the Case Type (for example: CS, OS, CRL, WP, FA, and so on).
5. Enter the Case Number and Year.
6. Complete the CAPTCHA and click Go.

Common mistake to avoid

The most common failure here is selecting the wrong court complex. Many cities have multiple court complexes, each with its own cases. If your search returns nothing, try a different court complex in the same district before assuming the case is not on the system.

05Method 3: Search by party name

Use this when you have neither the CNR nor the case number, only the name of one party. This search is broader and may return multiple results.

1. On the Case Status page, select State, District, and Court complex.
2. Click the Party Name tab.
3. Enter the name of the petitioner or respondent. Use a partial name if the full name has spelling variants.
4. Select Petitioner or Respondent from the role dropdown.
5. Complete the CAPTCHA and click Search.
6. A list of matching cases will appear. Click the correct one to view the full case record.

Tips for party name searches

• Try different spellings. Court records often reflect how a name was typed at filing, which may differ from the official spelling.
• Search by first name only if the full name search fails.
• If the party is a company, try just the first word of the company name.

06Method 4: Search by FIR details (criminal cases)

For criminal cases, eCourts allows a search using FIR details, which is useful when neither a case number nor party name is known.

1. Select State, District, and Court complex.
2. Click the FIR Number tab.
3. Enter the Police Station name (select from the dropdown if available), the FIR number, and the year of the FIR.
4. Complete the CAPTCHA and click Search.

This method only works for cases arising from a registered FIR in a criminal court. It will not return civil cases.

07Method 5: Use the eCourts mobile app

The eCourts Services mobile app is available on Android and provides most of the same searches as the web portal, including CNR search, case number search, and cause lists.

The app also lets you save cases to a watchlist so you can check updates without entering details each time. This is useful for litigants following a single case.

How to set up case alerts on the app

1. Install the eCourts Services app from the Google Play Store.
2. Search for your case by CNR or case number.
3. Tap My Cases and add the case to your watchlist.
4. Enable notifications. The app will alert you when a new order is uploaded or a next date is set.

Note that the app notifications depend on the court uploading data to the eCourts system. Delays in data entry at the court level will mean delays in the app too.

08Why your search returns nothing: common causes and fixes

A blank result on eCourts does not always mean the case does not exist. There are several common reasons for failed searches, and most have a fix.

The case has not been digitised yet

Not every filing at every court has been entered into the eCourts system on the day of filing. Older cases and cases in remote courts may have a lag. Wait a few days after filing and try again. If the case remains absent after a week, contact the court directly.

Wrong court complex selected

This is the most common mistake. Districts often have multiple court complexes, and the case is only visible under the one where it is actually filed. Try every court complex in the district before concluding a case is absent.

Spelling mismatch

The eCourts database reflects exactly what was typed at filing, including typos. If a party name search fails, try alternative spellings, initials instead of a full first name, or just the surname.

Case type entered incorrectly

Case type codes vary by court. What is called "CS" in one court may be filed under "O.S." in another. If you know the filing receipt, check the case type code on it exactly.

CAPTCHA timeout

If the page has been open for a while, the CAPTCHA may expire. Refresh the page, re-enter the search, and submit quickly.

Portal downtime

The eCourts portal experiences occasional maintenance windows, especially on weekday evenings and weekends. If searches are failing across multiple cases, try again after an hour or the next morning.

09Checking High Court and Supreme Court case status

eCourts covers district and subordinate courts. For High Courts and the Supreme Court, you need separate portals.

Supreme Court

Use sci.gov.in. The Supreme Court website lets you search by case number, diary number, or party name. You can also view daily cause lists and download orders.

High Courts

Each High Court maintains its own portal. Most can be reached from the official High Court website of that state. Common search options include case number, party name, and advocate name.

There is no single portal that searches district courts, High Courts, and the Supreme Court in one query through the government system. If you need to monitor cases at multiple levels, you typically have to check each portal separately, which is where practice management software becomes useful. For a broader look at how lawyers track matters across courts, see case management for law firms in India.

10Where 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.

For checking a single case on eCourts, the free government portal is the right starting point. Where Claw adds value is when you are managing many cases across courts at once. Its case management module covers 8,457 courts including district courts, tribunals, and higher courts, pulling in live case updates, cause lists, and hearing dates automatically, and sending alerts by WhatsApp and email when something changes.

This matters for law firms and legal departments that cannot afford to check each case manually on multiple portals every morning. Claw also reads a court order and auto-schedules compliance reminders, so a missed hearing or deadline from a late eCourts update is less likely to slip through. To understand whether a full case management platform fits your practice, see case management for law firms in India and what eCourts is and how it works. For corporate legal teams also managing contracts alongside litigation, see Icertis alternatives for contract management to understand how all-in-one platforms compare.

11Frequently asked questions