How do I get a certified copy from the Orissa High Court online, or from a district court in Odisha?

Certified copy from the Orissa High Court online: what has changed

You can now apply for a certified copy from the Orissa High Court online, without visiting the Copying Section in Cuttack. A certified copy (pramanita nakal) is a copy of a judgment, order, decree, deposition or document on the court record that an officer of the court has certified as a true copy. Appellate courts, the Tahasil, the Sub-Registrar, banks, passport and service authorities usually ask for one; a plain printout of an order from a website is often not enough.

Two changes matter most:

• Digitally signed orders. The High Court inserted Chapter XXI-A into Part V of the Rules of the High Court of Orissa, 1948. Orders and judgments of the High Court from 1 May 2023 are uploaded on its website with a digital signature. A digitally signed copy of an order, judgment, pleading or other document delivered online is treated as a certified copy and acted on as one, subject to verification on the High Court website.
• Online Certified Copy (OCC) service. Applications for High Court certified copies can be made through the Government's ServicePlus platform, reached from the High Court's e-Services menu. Online applications are optional for private parties but have been made compulsory for the Central and State Governments, public sector undertakings and local bodies. Physical copies from the Copying Section continue.

How to apply online in the Orissa High Court, step by step

1. Open the service. On orissahighcourt.nic.in, choose "Online Certified Copy" under e-Services, or go to serviceonline.gov.in and pick "High Court of Orissa Online Certified Copy" from the list of services.
2. Register once. New users register on ServicePlus with a mobile number and email, then log in and select "Apply for Service".
3. Fill in the case details. Give the case type, number and year, and say exactly which documents you need (for example, the final judgment dated a given date, or an interim order). Fields marked with a red star are compulsory.
4. Attach annexures if needed. The manual allows jpg, jpeg or pdf files up to 1024 KB. If nothing needs to be attached, save without a file.
5. Submit and note the number. An application number in the form OHCOCC/year/serial is generated and an acknowledgement is emailed. After that the application cannot be edited, so check the details before you submit.
6. Track and download. Use "Track Application status". When the Copying Section has prepared the copy, you receive an email and the digitally signed copy appears in your account. Pay any charge the portal shows at the stage it asks for it.

The High Court also publishes lists of copy applications that are pending and copies that are ready on its website, and the e-Services mobile app shows the status of a copying application by its inward number.

Certified copy from a district court in Odisha

For a District Judge's court, a Civil Judge (Senior or Junior Division), a Judicial Magistrate, a Family Court or another subordinate court, the usual route is still the copying section of that court complex (for example, the Civil Courts at Bhubaneswar or the District Court at Cuttack):

1. Fill in a copying application with the court's name, case number and year, names of the parties, the documents required and their dates, and whether you want the copy as an ordinary or urgent application.
2. Pay the copying charges and any court fee the copying rules require. The amount depends on the number of pages and the urgency; the copying section tells you the figure, and court fee can be paid through eCourts (see court fees in Odisha).
3. Keep the receipt. It shows the date you applied, which matters for limitation (below).
4. Check the date given for delivery and collect the copy, or check its status at the court's e-Sewa Kendra, the help desk set up in district court complexes for case status, e-filing, e-payment and copies.

Whether a district can take copying applications online changes from place to place. Ask the copying section or the e-Sewa Kendra; some districts post notices about copies on their district court websites under dcourts.gov.in (for example, Cuttack district court).

Judgment copy download in Odisha: when a free copy is enough

Orders and judgments of Odisha district courts can be seen and downloaded free from eCourts services or the eCourts app, by CNR number or case number (see case status in Odisha). This is fine for knowing what the court ordered and for planning the next step. It is usually not accepted where an authority insists on a certified copy, such as for filing an appeal, for mutation on the basis of a decree, or for a bank releasing a deposit. High Court orders since May 2023 are different, because the digitally signed version is itself treated as a certified copy, subject to verification.

Who can apply

• Parties and their advocates can apply for copies of anything on the record of their own case.
• A person who is not a party can usually get copies of judgments and decrees, but copies of other papers such as pleadings and depositions generally need an application explaining why they are needed and the court's permission. Check the current rule with the copying section.
• An accused person gets copies of the police report and documents relied on free of cost under Section 230 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (old Section 207 CrPC). On conviction and a sentence of imprisonment, a copy of the judgment is given free under Section 404 BNSS (old Section 363 CrPC).

Certified copies and the time limit for appeal

Under Section 12(2) of the Limitation Act, 1963, the day the judgment was pronounced and the time needed to obtain a copy of the decree or order challenged are left out when counting the time for an appeal, revision or review. The Explanation to the section says time taken by the court to prepare the decree before you apply for a copy is not left out. In practice:

• apply for the certified copy as soon as the judgment is pronounced;
• keep the copying application receipt and the copy, since both show the dates;
• an appeal memo generally has to be filed with a copy of the judgment (Order XLI Rule 1 CPC), so the copy is part of the filing, not an afterthought.

The appeal periods themselves are covered in the civil suit process in Odisha.

Copies that come from other offices

• Revenue court orders (Tahasildar, Sub-Collector, Additional District Magistrate, Collector, Board of Revenue): ask the office that passed the order. See revenue courts in Odisha.
• Registered deeds: certified copies come from the Sub-Registrar's office under the IGR Odisha system, not from a court. See encumbrance certificate in Odisha.
• Record of Rights and maps: certified copies come from the Tahasil; see Odisha village maps.

Common problems

• Wrong case number or year: the application is returned as defective. Check the CNR or case number on eCourts first.
• Document not yet signed or uploaded: the copy cannot be prepared until the order is signed. Keep checking status rather than filing a second application.
• Old or archived records: copies of disposed cases from many years ago may take longer because the record has to be called from the record room.
• Authority refuses a digitally signed copy: show the verification facility on the High Court website; if it still refuses, apply for a physical certified copy.

If you are running your own case, the Copying Section and e-Sewa Kendra help parties in person as well as advocates. For work handled in court matters, see civil litigation and the courts page.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Orissa High Court: Online Certified Copy user manual
• Orissa High Court, Cuttack (e-Services, copy status lists)
• ServicePlus: Government of India online services portal
• eCourts services: orders and judgments of district courts
• Limitation Act, 1963 (India Code)
• LiveLaw: Orissa High Court introduces digitally signed copies (Chapter XXI-A, 1948 Rules)

General information, not legal advice. Every matter turns on its own facts and documents, and the law and official procedures change. Check the current position with the concerned office, or take advice on your own facts, before acting.