In this article, Jeanie Mohanty, of KIIT School of Law has described about the Law Commission of India and its various reports.

Introduction

Law Commission of India is an executive body. It is established through an order of the Government of India. Its core function is to reform laws, comprises of legal experts assigned by the government to take good care of the laws, and create maximum peace, security and justice in the society. It also acts as an advisory body to the Ministry of Law and Justice. The tenure of each Law Commission is five years.  

Current Law Commission of India, 2018; 21st Law Commission

How does the commission function

The commission consists of many staff among whom around twelve staffs are researchers at a different rank with a different experience. A smaller section of the group looks after the administration of the Commission’s operation. The commission meetings take place frequently and that is where the projects are initiated. Different issues are discussed, among which few important topics are chosen to work on. The required work which is to be done is identified and assigned to each member and the sources of data are also identified. Basically, an outline is formed for the research work regarding how to work and proceed. The commission meeting not only help in identification and working on the issue for research but also gives a unanimous decision of all the members and makes the work process easy.

Once the paper is ready it is circulated among all the required and interested group of people to get their views and comments on the paper along with the paper a questionnaire is also circulated to survey the reaction of the people on the same issue. The Law Commission always try to reach a wider section of people including professionals, academic institutes, and others for consultation while preparing the proposal for law reform. Workshop and seminars are also conducted to collect the critic comments and opinions regarding the planned reform.

Once all the data are collected Commission’s staff evaluates and organises the data in a chronological way for a proper introduction in the report which is prepared by either the Member Secretary or any Member or the Chairman of the Commission. After this, the proposed report is put forward in the Commission’s meeting and observed closely. Once the report and its summary are finalised, the Commision may proceed to prepare a draft regarding amendment or a new bill which may be attached to the report and the final report is forwarded to the Government.

The success rate of the commission always depends on their data collection, public view, and criticism. That is why the Commission always looks up to a wider section where the media plays a very important role in this. The Commission also welcomes the inputs and opinions from public or any person which is sent to the Member-Secretary.

Follow up

The Ministry of Law reviews the Law Commission report with the consultation of the concerned Administrative Ministries then submit it in the Parliament time to time. The reports are referred in courts, education or academics, public discussions and the Government departments act upon it according to the Government recommendation.

Development of Law Commision of India

Reforming laws is a continuous process its been in practice for long decades. In ancient times the custom and practices were the only laws prevailing in the society, gradually the codification of laws started and then the sanctions against the law. Earlier there was no uniformity in law, nor there was any check on the fairness of the decision passed. Therefore the law commission was set up with a motive to serve maximum justice to people and deliver fair and just decisions and bring more awareness about the laws. The Law Commision was constituted in the third decade of the nineteenth century by the Government to codify the branches of law and empowered it to recommend legislative reforms.  

Pre-independence

The First Law commission pre-independence was set up in 1834 under the Charter Act, 1833. The chairman of the commission was Lord Macaulay, within a period of fifty years the Indian Statute Book was enriched with a vast variety of legislation which then prevailed in English law but according to India’s condition.

There were four Law commission in India during the British Raj by the British Government

Post-independence

Post-independence, the Indian Constitution gave a new direction to law reform towards the need for a democratic legal order with its Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles of State Policy in the society. According to Article 372, the pre-constitutional laws were to be followed until and unless they are repealed or amended. Though the parliament and others were already demanding Central Law Commission to revise and change the existing laws as per the changing society and the need of the country. The Government of India was in favour of the idea of setting up of such commission and it established the First Law Commission of India post independence in 1995, the Attorney-General of India then Mr. M.C.Setalvad became the Chairman of that Commission. Since then there have been total twenty-one Law Commissions in India post independence, each with a term of three years with different terms of reference.

	Chairman	Report No.	Presented in	Title of Report
First Law Commission, 1955	Mr. M.C. Setalvad (First Attorney General of India)	1	1956	Liability of the State in Tort
		2	1956	Parliamentary Legislation relating to Sales Tax
		3	1956	Limitation Act, 1908
		4	1956	On the proposal that High Courts should sit in Benches at different places in a State
		5	1957	British Statutes Applicable to India
		6	1957	Registration Act, 1908
		7	1957	Partnership Act, 1932
		8	1958	Sale of Goods Act, 1930
		9	1958	Specific Relief Act, 1877
		10	1958	Law of Acquisition and Requisitioning of Law
		11	1958	Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881
		12	1958	Income Tax Act, 1922
		13	1958	Contract Act, 1872
		14	1958	Reform of Judicial Administration
Second Law Commission, 1958	Justice T.V. Venkatarama Aiyar	15	1960	Law relating to Marriage and Divorce amongst Christians in India
		16	1960	Official Trustees Act, 1913
		17	1961	Report on Trusts Act, 1882
		18	1961	Converts’ Marriage Dissolution Act, 1866
		19	1961	The Administrator-General’s Act, 1913
		20	1961	The Law of Hire-Purchase
		21	1961	Marine Insurance
		22	1961	Christian Marriage and Matrimonial Causes Bill,1961
Third Law Commission, 1961	Justice J.L. Kapur	23	1962	Law of Foreign Marriages
		24	1962	The Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952
		25	1963	Evidence of Officers about forged stamps, currency notes, etc. Section 509-A Cr.P.C. as proposed
		26	1964	Insolvency Laws
		27	1964	The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
		28	1964	The Indian Oaths Act, 1873
Fourth Law Commission, 1964	Justice J.L. Kapur	29	1967	Proposal to include certain Social and Economic Offences in the Indian Penal Code, 1860
		30	1967	Section 5 of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, taxation by the States in the course of import
		31	1967	Section 30(2) of the Indian Registration Act, 1908 – Extension to Delhi
		32	1967	Section 9 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
		33	1967	Section 44 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
		34	1967	Indian Registration Act, 1908
		35	1967	Capital Punishment
		36	1967	Section 497, 498 and 499 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
		37	1967	The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
		38	1968	Indian Post Office Act, 1898
Fifth Law Commission, 1968	Mr. K.V.K. Sundaram	39	1968	Punishment for imprisonment for life under the Indian Penal Code
		40	1969	Law relating to attendance of Prisoners in Courts
		41	1969	The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
		42	1971	Indian Penal Code
		43	1971	Offences against the National Security
		44	1971	The Appellate Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Civil Matters
Sixth Law Commission, 1971	Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar	45	1971	Civil Appeals to the Supreme Court on a Certificate of Fitness
		46	1971	The Constitution (Twenty-Fifth Amendment) Bill, 1971
		47	1972	The trial and punishment of Social and Economic Offences
		48	1972	Some questions under the Code of Criminal Procedure Bill, 1970
		49	1972	The proposal for inclusion of agricultural income in the total income
		50	1972	The proposal to include persons connected with the Public examination within the definition of ‘Public Servant’
		51	1972	Compensation of injuries caused by automobiles in hit-and-run cases
		52	1972	Estate duty on property acquired after death
		53	1972	Effect of the Pensions Act, 1871 on the right to sue for pensions of retired members of public service
		54	1973	The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
		55	1973	Rate of Interest after decree and interest on costs under Section 34 and 35 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
		56	1973	Statutory Provision as to the Notice of Suit other than Section 80, Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
		57	1973	Benami Transactions
		58	1974	Stature and Jurisdiction of the Higher Judiciary
		59	1974	Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and Special Marriage Act, 1954
		60	1974	The General Clauses Act, 1897
		61	1974	Certain problems with the power of the States to levy a tax on the sale of goods
Seventh Law commission, 1974	Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar	62	1974	Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
		63	1975	The Interest Act, 1839
		64	1975	The Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act, 1956
		65	1976	Recognition of Foreign Divorces
		66	1976	Married Women’s Property Act, 1874
		67	1977	The Indian Stamp Act, 1899
		68	1977	The Power of Attorney Act, 1882
		69	1977	The Indian Evidence Act, 1872
		70	1977	The Transfer of Property Act, 1882
Eighth Law Commission, 1977	Justice H.R. Khanna	71	1978	Irretrievable breakdown of marriage as a ground for divorce
		72	1978	Restriction on practice after being a permanent judge
		73	1978	Criminal liability for failure by the husband to pay maintenance or permanent alimony granted to the wife
		74	1978	Proposal to amend the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 so as to render Admissible certain statements made by witnesses before Commissions of Inquiry and other Statutory Authorities
		75	1978	Disciplinary jurisdiction under the Advocates Act, 1961
		76	1979	Arbitration Act, 1940
		77	1979	Delay and arrears in trial courts
		78	1979	Congestion of under trial persons in jails
		79	1979	Delays and arrears in High Courts and other Appellate Courts
		80	1979	Method of Appointment of Judges
Ninth Law Commission,1979	Justice P.V. Dixit	81	1979	Hindu Widows Remarriage Act, 1856
		82	1980	Effect of nomination under Section 39, Insurance Act, 1938
		83	1980	The Guardian and Wards Act, 1890
		84	1980	Rape and allied offences-some questions of substantive law, procedure, and evidence
		85	1980	Claims for compensation under Chapter 8 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939
		86	1980	The Partition Act, 1893
		87	1980	Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920
Tenth Law Commission, 1981	Justice K.K. Mathew	88	1983	Governmental Privileges in Evidence
		89	1983	The Limitation Act, 1963
		90	1983	The Grounds for Divorce amongst Christians in India
		91	1983	Dowry deaths and law reform
		92	1983	Damages in applications for Judicial Review Recommendations for legislation
		93	1983	Disclosures of sources of information by mass media
		94	1983	Evidence obtained illegally or improperly
		95	1984	Constitutional Division within Supreme Court
		96	1984	Repeal of certain obsolete Central Acts
		97	1984	Section 28 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872: prescriptive clauses in contracts
		98	1984	Sections 24 to 26 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
		99	1984	Oral and written arguments in the Higher courts
		100	1984	Litigation by and against the Government
		101	1984	Freedom of Speech and Expression under Article 19 of the Constitution
		102	1984	Section 122(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
		103	1984	Unfair Terms in contracts
		104	1984	The Judicial Officers’ Protection Act, 1850
		105	1984	Quality control and inspection of consumer goods
		106	1984	Section 103A, Motor Vehicles Act, 1939
		107	1984	Law of Citizenship
		108	1984	Promissory Estoppel
		109	1985	Obscene and Indecent Advertisements and Displays
		110	1985	Indian Succession Act, 1925
		111	1985	Fatal Accidents Act, 1855
		112	1985	Section 45 of the Insurance Act, 1938
		113	1985	Injuries in Police Custody
Eleventh Law commission, 1985	Justice D.A. Desai	114	1986	Gram Nyayalaya
		115	1986	Tax Courts
		116	1986	Formation of an All India Judicial Service
		117	1986	Training of Judicial Officers
		118	1986	Method of appointment to subordinate courts
		119	1987	Access to Exclusive Forum for victims of motor accidents
		120	1987	Manpower planning in Judiciary
		121	1987	A new forum for Judicial Appointments
		122	1987	Forum for National uniformity in Labour Adjudication
		123	1988	Decentralization in Administration of Justice
		124	1988	The High Court Arrears – A fresh look
		125	1988	The Supreme Court – A fresh look
		126	1988	Government and Public Sector Undertaking Litigation policy and Strategies
		127	1988	Resource Allocation for Infra-Structural Services in Judicial Administration
		128	1988	Cost of Litigation
		129	1988	Urban Litigation – Mediation as alternative to Litigation
		130	1988	Benami Transactions : A continuum
		131	1988	Role of legal profession in Administration of Justice
Twelfth Law Commission, 1988	Justice M.P. Thakkar	132	1989	Need for Amendment of the Provisions of the Chapter IX of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 in order to ameliorate the hardship and mitigate the distress of Neglected Women, Children and Parents
		133	1989	Removal of discrimination against Women in matters relating to Guardianship and Custody of Minor Children and Elaboration of the Welfare Principle
		134	1989	Removing Deficiencies in certain provisions of the Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
		135	1989	Women in Custody
		136	1990	Conflicts in High Court decisions on Central Laws – How to foreclose and how to resolve
		137	1990	Need for creating office of Ombudsman
		138	1990	Legislative Protection for Slum and Pavement Dwellers
		139	1991	Urgent need to amend Order XXI, Rule 92(2),  Civil Procedure Code, 1908
		140	1991	Need to amend Order V, Rule 19A of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908
		141	1991	Need for amending the laws as regards power of courts to resolve criminal revisional applications and criminal cases dismissed for default in appearance
		142	1991	Confessional treatment for offenders who on their own initiative choose to plead guilty without any bargaining
		143	1991	Legislative safeguards for protecting the small depositors from exploitation
Thirteenth Law Commission, 1991	Justice K.N. Singh	144	1992	Conflicting Judicial decisions pertaining to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
		145	1992	Article 12 of the Constitution and Public Sector Undertakings
		146	1993	Sale of Women and Children: Proposed Section 373-A, Indian Penal Code
		147	1993	The Specific Relief Act, 1963
		148	1993	Repeal of Certain pre-1947 Central Acts
		149	1994	Removal of certain deficiencies in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Act No. 59 of 1988)
		150	1994	Suggesting some Amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure (Act No. V of 1908)
		151	1994	Admiralty Jurisdiction
		152	1994	Custodial Crimes
		153	1994	Inter-Country Adoption
Fourteenth Law Commission, 1995	Justice K. Jayachandra Reddy	154	1996	The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Act No. 2 of 1974)
		155	1997	The Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985(Act No. 61 of 1985)
		156	1997	The Indian Penal Code
Fifteenth Law Commission, 1997	Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy	157	1998	Section 52:Transfer of Property Act, 1882 and its Amendment
		158	1998	The Amendment of the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951
		159	1998	Repeal and Amendment of Laws: Part I
		160	1998	Amendment to the All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987 (Act No. 52 of 1987)
		161	1998	Central Vigilance Commission and Allied Bodies
		162	1998	Review of functioning of Central Administrative Tribunal, Customs, Excise and Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal and Income-Tax Appellate Tribunal
		163	1998	The Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 1997
		164	1998	The Indian Divorce Act, 1869 (Act IV of 1869)
		165	1998	Free and Compulsory Education for Children
		166	1999	The Corrupt Public Servants (forfeiture of property) Bill
		167	1999	The Patents (Amendment) Bill, 1998
		168	1999	The Hire-Purchase Act,1972
		169	1999	Amendment of Army, Navy and Air Force Act
		170	1999	Reform of Electoral Laws
		171	2000	The Biodiversity Bill, 2000
		172	2000	Review of Rape Laws
		173	2000	Prevention of Terrorism Bill, 2000
		174	2000	Property Rights of Women: Proposed Reforms Under the Hindu Law
Sixteenth Law Commission, 2000	Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy	175	2000	The Foreigners (Amendment) Bill, 2000
		176	2001	The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2002
		177	2001	Law Relating to Arrest
		178	2001	Recommendations for amending various enactments, both civil and criminal
		179	2001	Public Interest Disclosure and Protection of Informers
		180	2002	Article 20 (3) of the Constitution of India and Right to Silence
		181	2002	Amendment to Section 106 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882
		182	2002	Amendment of Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894
		183	2002	A Continuum on the General Clauses Act, 1897 with special reference to the admissibility and codification of external aids to interpretation of statutes
		184	2002	Legal Education & Professional Training and Proposals for amendments to the Advocates Act, 1961 and the University Grants Commission Act, 1956
		185	2003	Review of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872
Seventeenth Law Commission, 2003	Justice M. Jagannadha Rao	186	2003	Proposal to Constitute Environment Courts
		187	2003	Mode of Execution of Death Sentence and Incidental Matters
		188	2003	The Proposals for Constitution of Hi-Tech Fast – Track Commercial Divisions in High Courts
		189	2004	Revision of Court Fees Structure
		190	2004	The Revision of the Insurance Act, 1938 and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999
		191	2004	Regulation of Funds collected for Calamity Relief.
		192	2005	Prevention of vexatious Litigation
		193	2005	Transnational Litigation, Conflict of Laws, Law of Limitation
		194	2005	Verification of Stamp Duties and Registration of Arbitral Awards
		195	2006	The Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2005
		196	2006	Medical Treatment to Terminally Ill Patients (Protection of Patients and Medical Practitioners)
		197	2006	Public Prosecutor’s Appointments
		198	2006	Witness Identity Protection and Witness Protection Programmes
		199	2006	Unfair (Procedural and Substantive) Terms in Contracts
		200	2006	Trial by Media : Free Speech Vs. Fair Trial Under Criminal Procedure (Amendments to the Contempt of Court Act, 1971)
		201	2006	Medical Treatment after Accidents and During Emergency Medical Condition and Women in Labour
Eighteenth Law Commission, 2006	Justice M. Jagannadha Rao (1st September, 2006 – 28th May 2007) Justice A.R. Lakshmanan (28th May 2007 – 31st August, 2009)	202	2007	Proposal to Amend Section 304-B of the Indian Penal Code
		203	2007	Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 as Amended by the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2005 (Anticipatory Bail)
		204	2008	Proposal to Amend the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 as amended by Act 39 of 2005
		205	2008	Proposal to Amend the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 and other allied Laws
		206	2008	Proposal for the enactment of new Coroners Act applicable to the whole of India
		207	2008	Proposal to amend Section 15 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 in case a female dies intestate leaving herself acquired property with no heirs
		208	2008	Proposal for the amendment of explanation to Section 6 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 to include oral partition and family arrangement on the definition of ‘partition’
		209	2008	Proposal for the omission of Section 213 from the Indian Succession Act, 1925
		210	2008	Humanization and Decriminalization of Attempt to Suicide
		211	2008	Laws on Registration of Marriages and Divorce – A proposal for Consolidation and Reform
		212	2008	Laws of Civil Marriage in India – A proposal to Resolve Certain Conflicts
		213	2008	Fast Track Magisterial Courts for Dishonoured Cheque Cases
		214	2008	Proposal for reconsideration of Judges Case I, II and III – S P Gupta Vs, UOI
		215	2008	L. Chandra Kumar be revisited by Larger Bench of Supreme Court
		216	2008	Non-Feasibility of the introduction of Hindi as the compulsory language in the Supreme Court of India
		217	2009	Irretrievable Breakdown of Marriage – Another Ground for Divorce
		218	2009	Need to accede to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (1980)
		219	2009	Need for Family Law Legislations for Non-resident Indians
		220	2009	Need to fix Maximum Chargeable Court-fees in Subordinate Civil Courts
		221	2009	Need for Speedy Justice – Some Suggestions
		222	2009	Need for Justice-dispensation through ADR etc.
		223	2009	Need for Ameliorating the lot of the Have-nots – Supreme Court’s judgments
		224	2009	Amendment of Section 2 of the Divorce Act 1869 Enabling Non-domiciled Estranged Christian Wives to seek Divorce.
		225	2009	Amendment of Sections 7, 7A, and 7B of Industrial Disputes Act 1947 Making Advocates Eligible to man Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals.
		226	2009	The Inclusion of Acid Attacks as Specific Offences in the Indian Penal Code and a Law for Compensation for Victims of Crime.
		227	2009	Preventing Bigamy via Conversion to Islam – A Proposal for giving Statutory Effect to Supreme Court Rulings
		228	2009	Need For Legislation to Regulate Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinics as Well as Rights and Obligations of Parties to a Surrogacy
		229	2009	Need for the division of the Supreme Court into a Constitution Bench at Delhi and Cassation Benches in four regions at Delhi, Chennai/ Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai
		230	2009	Reforms in the Judiciary – Some suggestions
		231	2009	Amendments in Indian Stamp Act 1899 And Court-Fees Act 1870 Permitting Different Modes of Payment
		232	2009	Retirement Age of Chairpersons and Members of Tribunals – Need for Uniformity
		233	2009	Amendment of Code of Criminal Procedure Enabling Restoration of Complaints
		234	2009	Legal Reforms to Combat Road Accidents
Nineteenth Law Commission, 2009	Justice P.V. Reddi	235	2010	Conversion/reconversion to another religion – mode of proof
		236	2010	Court-fees in Supreme Court vis-à-vis Corporate Litigation
		237	2011	Compounding of (IPC) offences
		238	2011	Amendment of Section 89 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and Allied provisions
		239	2012	Expeditious Investigation and Trial of Criminal Cases Against 2012 Influential Public Personalities
		240	2012	Costs in Civil Litigation
		241	2012	Passive Euthanasia – A Relook
		242	2012	Prevention of Interference with the freedom of Matrimonial Alliances 2012 (in the name of Honour and Tradition ): A suggested legal framework
		243	2012	Section 498 A, IPC
Twentieth Law Commission, 2013	Justice D.K. Jain (January, 2013 – October, 2013) Justice A.P. Shah (November, 2013 – August, 2015)	244	2014	Electoral Disqualifications
		245	2014	Arrears and Backlog: Creating Additional Judicial (wo) manpower
		246	2014	Amendments to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996
		247	2014	Sections 41 to 48 of the Indian Succession Act,1925 – Proposed Reforms
		248	2014	Obsolete Laws: Warranting Immediate Repeal (Interim Report)
		249	2014	Obsolete Laws: Warranting Immediate Repeal (Second Interim Report)
		250	2014	Obsolete Laws: Warranting Immediate Repeal (Third Interim Report)
		251	2014	Obsolete Laws: Warranting Immediate Repeal (Fourth Interim Report)
		252	2015	Right of the Hindu Wife to Maintenance: A relook at Section 18 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956
		253	2015	Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts and Commercial Courts Bill, 2015
		254	2015	The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013
		255	2015	Electoral Reforms
		256	2015	Eliminating Discrimination Against Persons Affected by Leprosy
		257	2015	Reforms in Guardianship and Custody Laws in India
		258	2015	Prevention of Bribery of Foreign Public Officials and Officials of Public International Organisations – A Study and Proposed Amendments
		259	2015	Early Childhood Development and Legal Entitlement
		260	2015	Analysis of the 2015 Draft Model Indian Bilateral Investment Treaty
		261	2015	Need to Regulate Pet Shops and Dog and Aquarium Fish Breeding
		262	2015	The Death Penalty
Twenty-First Law Commission, 2015	Justice Balbir Singh Chauhan	263	2016	The Protection of Children (Inter-Country Removal and Retention) Bill
		264	2017	The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill (Provisions dealing with Food Adulteration)
		265	2017	Prospects of Exempting Income arising out of Maintenance Money of ‘Minor’
		266	2017	The Advocates Act, 1961 (Regulation of Legal Profession)
		267	2017	Hate Speech
		268	2017	Amendments to Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Provisions Relating to Bail
		269	2017	Housekeeping of Egg-Laying Hens
		270	2017	Compulsory Registration of Marriages
		271	2017	Human DNA profiling
		272	2017	Assessment of Statutory Frameworks of Tribunals in India
		273	2017	Implementation of United Nations Convention against Torture
		274	2018	Review of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971
		275	2018	Legal Framework: BCCI vis-a-vis Right to Information Act, 2005

To view all the reports of Law Commission of India click here

The terms of reference of the Twenty-first Law Commission

1. Review or Repeal of absolute laws

1. Identify repeal the laws which are no more in need or relevant.
2. Identify the laws and the need to change them which are not in sync with the current economic condition and liberalisation.
3. Identify laws which require change or amendment and make a suggestion for the same
4. Consider the recommendation for revision or amendments by the experts in a wider sense with a view of coordination and harmonisation.
5. Consider the references made by the Ministries, Departments through the Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of law and justice in respect of legislation working on more than one Ministry or Department.
6. Suggest quick remedies to serve justice to the citizens through law.

  2. Law and Poverty

1. Identify the laws which are affecting the poor section in the society and conduct a post audit for socio-economic legislation.
2. All necessary requirement and support must be taken to ensure that legal service is provided to the poor.

3. Keep under review the administration of justice to make sure that justice is delivered on time and it is secured;

1. Eliminate delays, faster clearance of errors, reduce the cost of the procedure and make it economical but without infringing the basic principle that the decision should be just and fair.
2. Simplify the procedure and eliminate the complexity that becomes a hindrance to achieving justice.
3. Improve the standard of the justice administration.
4.  Examine the present laws in the light of Directive Principles of State Policy, suggest the ways to improve, reform and suggest legislation if necessary to implement the Directive Principles and attain the objectives as per the Preamble to the Constitution.
5. Examine the present laws in the view to promote gender equality and suggest amendments for the same.
6. Revise the Central Acts of general importance to simplify them, and remove the deviations from the standard, inequality and conflicts.
7. Recommend the Government to up-to-date the statute book, by repealing the laws, enactments or part thereof which are not in use and have been exhausted.
8. Observe deliberately and convey the Government about its opinion regarding any law and judicial administration that may be particularly referred to it by the Government through the Department of Legal Affairs (Ministry of Law and Justice).
9. Requests for providing research to any foreign country as referred by the Government through the Department of Legal Affairs (Ministry of Law and Justice) should be considered.
10. Impact of globalization on food security and unemployment to be examined also suggest measures to protect the interest of the discriminated group of people.