Full Text
REGD. No. D. L.-33002/99
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
Delhi Gazette
SG-DL-E-17022026-270203
EXTRAORDINARY
PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY
No. 39] DELHI, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2026/MAGHA 20, 1947 [N. . C. T. D. No. 453
PART IV
GOVERNMENT OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL TERRITORY OF DELHI
DEPARTMENT OF LAW, JUSTICE AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS
NOTIFICATION
Delhi, the 6th February, 2026
No. F.1/51/2024-Judl./424-429.— In exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso of Article 309 of the
Constitution read with Government of India, Ministry of Home Affair's Notification No. F.1/2/70/DH(S), dated the 29th
May, 1970 as amended by Notification No. F.1/2/70-DH(S), dated the 25th July, 1970 and all other powers enabling
him in this behalf, the Lieutenant Governor of National Capital Territory of Delhi in consultation with the High Court
of Delhi, hereby makes the following rules to further amend the Delhi Judicial Service Rules, 1970:
1. Short title and commencement
(1) These rules may be called the
Delhi Judicial Service (Amendment) Rules, 2026.
(2) They shall come into force on the date of their
publication in the official Gazette.
2. Substitution of existing Rule 5 of the Delhi
Judicial Rules, 1970
: In the Delhi Judicial Service
Rules, 1970, in place of existing Rule 5, the
following Rule 5 shall be substituted, namely:
5. (1) The number of Civil Judges (Senior Division) shall be 25% of the cadre post strength of the
Service as specified in the Schedule.
(2) 90% of the posts in the cadre of Civil Judge (Senior Division) shall be filled by promotion from
Civil Judges (Junior Division) who have completed not less than five years of service.
Provided that where a person is considered for such appointment, all persons senior to him in Civil
Judge (Junior Division) shall also be considered, irrespective of the fact whether or not they fulfil the
requirements as to the minimum of five year service.
EXPLANATION- For calculating the period of five years of service for the purpose of this rule with
respect to officers appointed to the Service at the time of its initial constitution, the service rendered
by them in the cadre to which they belonged at the time of the initial recruitment to the Service which
was counted for determining the seniority shall also be counted.
(3) 10% of the posts in the cadre of Civil Judge (Senior Division) shall be filled strictly on the basis
of merit through limited departmental competitive examination of Civil Judges (Junior Division)
having not less than three years qualifying service as Civil Judge (Junior Division).
Explanation - The vacancies for the limited departmental competitive examination quota shall be
calculated on the basis of cadre strength. The posts will go to the above two categories [as provided
under sub-rule (2) and (3)], within the quota prescribed under this rule, in the order as given in the
following roster:
The 10 point roster for the cadre of Civil Judge (Senior Division) will be as follows:
a) For 90% of the posts- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 by promotion.
b) For 10% of the posts- 10 by Limited Departmental Competitive Examination.
(4) (a) For the purpose of filling up the posts under sub-rule (3), the High Court shall hold a limited
departmental competitive examination in the following manner:
(i) Written Examination 60 marks
(ii) Viva voce, including
assessment of work performance
and quality of judgments 40 marks
(b) For being considered for the limited departmental competitive examination, the officer must have
minimum grading of B and above in the previous two years.
(c) The Written Examination shall comprise a subjective type paper, the syllabus for which would be
the same as prescribed in Clause B, point No.2, 3 and 4 of Appendix to these Rules.
(d) A candidate shall be eligible to appear in viva voce only in case he secures 50% marks in the
written examination in the case of candidates of General category and 45% marks in the written
examination in the case of candidates of reserved categories.
(e) A candidate of general category must secure a minimum of 50% marks and candidates of reserved
categories must secure minimum of 45% marks out of the total marks to be eligible for being
recommended for appointment as Civil Judge (Senior Division), subject to the availability of
vacancies.
(5) In the event of non-availability of candidates under sub-Rule (3) or the posts remaining vacant on
account of the candidates not having been able to qualify the examination as provided under sub-Rule
(4), the unfilled posts shall be filled up in accordance with sub-Rule (2).
(6) The inter-se seniority of members of Delhi Judicial Service appointed as Civil Judges (Senior
Division) under sub-rule (2) shall be the same as in the cadre of Civil Judges (Junior Division).
(7) The inter se seniority of members of Delhi Judicial Service appointed as Civil Judges (Senior
Division) under sub-rule (3) shall be on the basis of their merit in the limited departmental competitive
examination.
3. Substitution of Rule 14 of Delhi
Judicial Service Rules, 1970
: In the Delhi Judicial Service
Rules, 1970, in place of existing Rule 14, the
following Rule 14 shall be substituted, namely:
14. A candidate shall be eligible to appear at the examination, if he is:-
a) a citizen of India;
b) a person having not less than 3 years of practice as an Advocate as on the last date
prescribed for the submission of applications. To fulfil the said requirement the candidate shall
produce:-
(i) A certificate duly certified either by the Principal Judicial Officer of the Court where the candidate
is practicing or by an advocate of that Court having a minimum standing of 10 years duly endorsed
by the Principal Judicial Officer of such a District or a Principal Judicial Officer at such a station.
(ii) In case the candidate is practicing before the High Court or the Supreme Court, a certificate duly
certified by an advocate who has a minimum standing of 10 years duly endorsed by an officer
designated by the High Court or Supreme Court.
(iii) The experience gained by the candidates while working as Law Clerks with any of the Judges or
Judicial Officers in the country shall also be considered while calculating the total number of years
of practice.
Provided that in case of judicial officers, who are appointed prior to the passing of the judgment of
the Hon'ble Supreme Court dated 20.05.2025 in All India Judges Association & Ors. Vs. UOI & Ors".,
the requirement of three years practice at the Bar would not be necessary, in case they apply for
Judicial Services in any other State. This is, however, subject to them completing three years' service
in their present State.
Note: The number of years of practice completed by a candidate shall be calculated from the date of
his/her provisional enrolment/registration with the concerned State Bar Council.
c) not more than 32 years of age on the [1st day of January of the year in which the applications for
appointment are invited.]
4. Insertion of Rule 19A after the existing
Rule 19 of Delhi Judicial Service Rules, 1970:
In the Delhi Judicial Service
Rules 1970 the following Rule 19A shall be
inserted after the existing Rule 19, namely:
19A TRAINING: The candidates who are appointed to the post of Civil Judge (Junior Division)
pursuant to their selection shall compulsorily undergo at least one year of training before presiding in
a Court.
5. Substitution of Appendix in Delhi
Judicial Service Rules, 1970
: In the Delhi Judicial Service
Rules, 1970, in place of existing Appendix, the
following Appendix shall be substituted,
namely:
"APPENDIX
(See Rule 15)
Syllabus and Scheme for conduct of the Examination
Delhi Judicial Service Examination will be held in two successive stages:-
(i) Delhi Judicial Service Preliminary Examination (Objective type with 25% negative marking) for selection for
the Mains Examination (Written), and
(ii) Delhi Judicial Service Mains Examination (Written) for selection of candidates for calling for Viva-Voce.
A. PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION
1. The preliminary Examination will be a screening test of qualifying nature and will consist of one paper of
multiple choice questions carrying maximum of 200 marks. In the preliminary examination questions on general legal
knowledge and aptitude of the candidate, candidate's power of expression, flair in English, knowledge of objective type
legal problems and their solutions covering The Constitution of India; The Code of Civil Procedure. 1908; The Code
of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023; The Indian Penal Code and Bharatiya
Nyaya Sanhita, 2023; The Indian Contract Act, 1872; The Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008; The Arbitration and
Conciliation Act, 1996; The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023; The Specific Relief
Act, 1963; The Limitation Act, 1963; The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and The Commercial
Courts Act, 2015 will be included."
2. Minimum qualifying marks in the preliminary examination shall be 60% for general category and 55% for
reserved categories, i.e., Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and eligible categories of Persons with Disabilities as
specified for this Service. However, the number of candidates to be admitted to the Mains Examination (Written) will
not be more than ten times the total number of vacancies of each category advertised.
Provided that in case a candidate(s) secures marks equal to the marks secured by the last candidate shortlisted for Mains
Examination (Written), then all such candidate(s) who have secured marks equal to the marks secured by the last
candidate shortlisted for Mains Examination (Written), shall also be shortlisted for the Mains Examination (Written)
irrespective of the fact that by including such candidate(s), the number of candidates shortlisted for Mains Examination
(Written) exceeds the prescribed limit of ten times the number of vacancies in each category advertised.
3. The marks obtained in the preliminary examination by the candidates who are declared qualified for admission to the
Mains Examination (Written) will not be counted for determining their final order of merit.
B. Mains Examination (Written)
The Mains Examination (Written) will include the following subjects (each subject to carry the number of marks shown
against it):
+-----+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| Sl.No. | Subjects | Max. Marks |
+=====+===================================+================+
| 1. | General Legal Knowledge & Language| 250 |
+-----+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| 2. | Civil Law I | 200 |
+-----+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| 3. | Civil Law II | 200 |
+-----+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| 4. | Criminal Law | 200 |
+-----+-----------------------------------+----------------+
1. GENERAL LEGAL KNOWLEDGE AND LANGUAGE
This paper shall comprise of two Sections:-
Section I: General Legal Knowledge:- This is to test the candidate's knowledge of current legal affairs etc. (100 Marks).
Section II: Language (Essay, Translation and Precis Writing):- This is to test the candidate's knowledge and power
of expression in English. Credit will be given both for substance and expression. Conversely deduction will be made
for bad expression, faults of grammar and misuse of words etc. There will be two passages for translations one in English
which will be required to be translated into Hindi (in Devnagri Script) and the second passage in Hindi (in Devnagri
Script) shall be required to be translated into English (150 Marks)
2. Civil Law-I
The Indian Contract Act, 1872; The Sale of Goods Act, 1930; The Transfer of Property Act, 1882: The Specific Relief
Act, 1963; Hindu Law; Mohammaden Law; The Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958; Law of Torts; The New Delhi Municipal
Council Act, 1994; The Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 and The Commercial Courts Act, 2015. (200 Marks)
3. Civil Law-II.
The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908; The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023; The
Limitation Act, 1963; The Registration Act, 1908; The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996; The Trade Marks Act,
1999 and The Copyright Act, 1957. (200 Marks).
4. Criminal Law
The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023; The Indian Penal Code and
Bhartiya Nayaya Sanhita, 2023. The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 The Protection
of Women from Domestic Violence Act. 2005, The Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881; The Sexual Harassment of Women
at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 and The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of
Children) Act, 2015." (200 Marks)
C. VIVA-VOCE
1. Viva-Voce will carry 150 marks. Candidates of general category must secure minimum 40% marks in each written
paper and 50% marks in the aggregate and candidates of reserved categories, i.e., Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes
and eligible categories of Persons with Disabilities as specified for this Service must secure minimum 35% marks in
each written paper and 45% marks in the aggregate in Mains Examination (Written) to be eligible for being called for
Viva Voce.
Provided that the candidates shortlisted for viva voce shall not exceed three times the number of vacancies in each
category advertised. In case, there is a candidate(s) who has/have secured marks equal to the marks secured by the last
candidate shortlisted for viva voce, then all such candidate(s) who have secured marks equal to the marks secured by
the last candidate shortlisted for viva voce, shall also be shortlisted for the viva voce irrespective of the fact that by
including such candidate(s), the number of candidates shortlisted for viva voce exceeds the prescribed limit of three
times the number of vacancies in each category advertised.
2. Candidates of general category must secure minimum 50% marks and candidates of reserved categories, i.e.,
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and eligible categories of Persons with Disabilities as specified for this Service
must secure minimum 45% marks in viva-voce to be eligible for being recommended for appointment to the service.
3. The marks obtained in the viva voce will be added to the marks obtained in the Mains Examination (Written) and the
candidate's position will depend on the aggregate of both.
D. GENERAL
1. In addition to the syllabus mentioned in the Appendix to the Rules, the High Court may include any other Act(s)/law(s)
in the Preliminary and/or Mains Examination (Written). as may be specified by it from time to time.
2. Fee may be charged from the candidates as specified by the High Court from time to time.
3. There shall be no re-evaluation of answer sheets in respect of Preliminary Examination and Mains Examination
(Written). No request for re-evaluation of answer sheets shall be entertained and the same shall be liable to be rejected
without any notice to the candidates.
4. Rounding-off of marks at any stage of the examination shall not be permissible. No request for rounding-off of marks
at any stage shall be entertained and the same shall be liable to be rejected without any notice to the candidates.
5. The candidature of candidates found using unfair means of any nature by exercising or attempting to influence the
result of the examination at any stage of the Examination, i.e., Preliminary Examination, Mains Examination (Written)
or Viva Voce, shall be summarily rejected without any further notice to the candidates.
Moreover, such candidate shall be debarred from the future Examination for such a period as may be decided by the
High Court, which shall ordinarily be not less than three years.
6. All Examination material including OMR answer sheets relating to Preliminary Examination, answer sheets of
Mains Examination (Written), award sheets of viva voce, etc. in relation to each recruitment examination for Delhi
Judicial Service will be destroyed one year after the declaration of the final result. However, if any litigation
pertaining to any examination is pending before any Court, and the question / issue involved in the lis/ touches upon
the answer sheets of the candidate (s) ie. totaling, evaluation, re-evaluation, etc., the Registry shall preserve such
answer sheets before initiating the process of destruction in terms of the above decision.]
By Order and in the Name of the Lieutenant Governor
of National Capital Territory of Delhi,
REETESH SINGH, Principal Secy.