We will appreciate receiving your responses on the Questionnaire latest by 30 June, 1998.

1.1 What are the goals of judicial training?

1.2 How do you distinguish judicial education from judicial training?

1.3 What are the sources from which at present judges receive their training?

1.4 What are the inadequacies of existing training schemes?

1.5 Is training to be limited to fresh recruits to judiciary?

1.6 What are the objects of training to judges who are already in service?

1.7 Is training also expected to fill the gaps in the quality of education imparted in Law Colleges?

1.8 Can the recruitment process ensure the required level of knowledge of law including procedure? If not, do you recommend special pre-selection courses for those whose knowledge base is weak? Who should organise it?

1.9 Training is mainly intended for development of skills, attitudes and ethics. Do you agree? If not, what else?

1.10 If training institutions should teach usual law subjects (perhaps poorly taught in the law colleges), would you agree it being done through special programmes for extended periods outside the normal duration of training? What other alternatives you suggest so that the weaker candidates can measure up to the demands of training standards while the brighter ones do not waste their time?

1.11 Do you recommend instruction in languages in the training institutes? What should be the objects of such language education? In what languages?

1.12 What can be done to motivate (or compel) trainees to take the training seriously?

1.13 Should there be examinations conducted in each subject? What type of examinations? Open-Book, Problem-Type? Project Work? Moot Courts?

1.14 What to do with those who get poor grades in the examinations? Can they be asked to repeat the courses with consequent delay in posting, loss of seniority, entry in service records etc.?

1.15 How to deal with complaints of biases in examinations? An Appeal System?

2.1 Do you approve the proposal to have a National Academy and four Regional Academies in the country to organize judicial training? If not, what is the best alternative?

2.2 The National Judicial Academy at Bhopal is organized as a registered society with representation in the Governing Board from the Supreme Court, High Court, Central Government, the Bar, Academia and others. Do you recommend a similar structure to regional judicial academies as well, in order to give autonomy, flexibility and widest possible participation?

2.3 What are the roles the National Academy is to perform in relation to the Regional Academies? What is the best arrangement for co-ordinated functioning of all training institutions avoiding wastage and maximising use of scarce resources?

2.4 What should be the minimum strength of the Faculty and administrative staff of a regional Academy? What are the basic disciplines to be represented in the Faculty, in what numbers and at what levels (Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Research Officer, Technical Assistant etc.)?

2.5 Do you approve the Law Commission’s recommendation that the existing institutions in Hyderabad, Lucknow and Gauhati may be considered for development as regional Academies for South, North and East? Any alternative suggestions?

2.6 What do you think the average annual budget of an Academy should be like to be able to perform its mandate at a moderate level of efficiency? Please give some broad break-up of expenditure, if possible.

2.7 Please indicate the pool from which the permanent Faculty can be recruited, like Universities, retired / sitting judges etc.? Do you suggest persons to be drawn on deputation for fixed periods? What are its special advantages?

2.8 What is the status, senior members of the Faculty should have in order to attract the best of talents to the Academies – that of a Supreme Court Judge, High Court Judge, University Professor, Secretary to Government?

2.9 What is to be the medium of instruction in the National Academy and in the regional Academies?

2.10 Given the emphasis on skills training, do you recommend the constitution of a strong clinical education department in the Academies? Any suggestion on its organization and functioning?

2.11 What type of academic/professional links you would like the Academies to develop with comparable institutions outside India?

2.12 Given the importance of computers in future legal work, do you recommend the establishment of computerised library services and compulsory computer training to all judicial officers?

2.13 Do you support the idea of judicial academies raising funds through grants and donations from sources within and outside the country? If not, can library resources be sought from foreign donors?

2.14 Can the facilities provided at the L.B.S. Academy of Administration in Missourie or the National Police Academy at Hyderabad be models for developing the Judicial Academies?

3.1 Given the importance and complex variety of courses of study of the Foundation Course for fresh recruits, do you agree that it is to be the mainstream activity of the Academy occupying at least one-third of the total time of the Faculty and Staff?

3.2 How often the short duration Refresher Courses for in-service officers should be organized? What is to be the minimum and maximum duration of Refresher Courses? What is to be the strength of officers participating in each such course?

3.3 What other types of courses, the Academies should offer? To whom? With what objects?

3.4 Should all courses offered by the Academy, be residential in the campus of the Academy? Can the Regional Academies be asked to hold Refresher Courses for officers of a given State in the State itself? If so, under what conditions?

3.5 Can part of training or continuing education be imparted through distance education methods (correspondence)? What part of syllabus can be undertaken by distance education process? How does one monitor or evaluate such programmes?

3.6 Please give as sharply as possible few specific objects of the Foundation Course? How much of it should be management-oriented?

3.7 Please indicate some objects, which should not be attempted in the initial Training?

3.8 What are the objects of Refresher (In-Service) Courses? Do you recommend it to be compulsory and, if so, how often in the career of a judge?

3.9 What should be the objects of short-term Courses/Seminars, which are to remain only as optional? Please give examples of such courses? How to mobilize officers to go for such programmes of continuing education?

3.10 Do you suggest collaboration with judicial academies abroad for training of officers? If so, officers of what rank and qualifications? What should be the objects of such training outside the country?

3.11 Do you approve of foreign judicial officers being trained in India? Any conditions?

3.12 What role the Academies can play in judicial selection and recruitment?

4.1 Do you agree that one of the problems in judicial training is the lack of motivated, competent and committed teachers with appropriate specialization, in adequate numbers? Why is it so? What can be done to improve the situation?

4.3 Do you suggest the National Academy to take up as a priority preparing a cadre of trainers to staff the Regional Academies and Training Directorates in States? How do you identify/select prospective candidates for such training the trainers programme?

4.4 What are the qualities of a good trainer in a judicial training institute?

4.5 Outside the judiciary, which are the institutions from where prospective trainers can be recruited for the Judicial Academies?

4.6 Do you recommend the prospective trainers to be trained in one of the best judicial training institutions abroad? Any suggestions?

4.7 Given the critical importance of the training personnel in Academies to maintain the quality of training, what suggestions you have to generate continuously such a level of efficiency and excellence in the Faculty? Should Judicial Academies be declared Universities for judicial education and training?

4.8 Do you think select Universities in India should be asked to introduce post-graduate courses in "Management in Judiciary" with a view to turn out competent court administrators who can relieve the judges from most of the non-judicial work?

4.9 Give suggestions on the nature and type of R&D work (Research and Development) judicial academies should undertake to improve judicial administration.

4.10 What other steps in terms of infrastructure and support services the judicial academies should plan in order to enable them to respond to future challenges to the justice system?

5.1 The curriculum proposed for Foundation Course has six broad themes reflecting the concerns and content of the year-long preparation of new recruits to the judiciary. Do you think it is adequate? What areas are missed out? What items are avoidable?

5.2 Do you approve of the proposed three-step process of training for fresh recruits? Is the division of time appropriate? What are your suggestions to utilise the last leg of the programme (3 months) in a manner that is more productive and useful to the trainees?

5.3 The outlines of the syllabii for each of the six broad themes are given in the Memorandum. Do you broadly agree with the scheme and the relative weightage given to each subject indicated by the number of credits given within brackets? Please suggest, if any change is required.

5.4 Each subject is proposed to be taught in about 30 Class hours. Naturally, the modules in each subject will have to be carefully chosen keeping in mind the objects intended to be achieved by keeping that subject in the curriculum. Have you any suggestions to convey to the teacher as to what should be taught under any one or more of the given subjects?

5.5 What are the essential skills a trial judge should possess? Please give your suggestions on how to teach particular skills during training?

5.6 Training has to find a balance between knowledge-based teaching and skill-based teaching. What are your suggestions in this regard?

5.7 What is the best way to teach judicial ethics? - A separate subject or integrated with all other subjects? To be taught by sitting judges or retired judges? Through problem solving, role plays or lecture-discussion?

5.8 What are the thrust areas around which in-service refresher courses have to be developed? What are the guidelines to develop Syllabii for such courses?

5.9 There is a view that training should have an individualised agenda to meet the special requirements of each trainee. How does the Academy organize its programme to meet such special needs?

5.10 Do you think the Academies should organize continuing education programmes for Superior Courts and Appellate Judges? Any suggestions?

6.1 The usual method widely prevalent in training institutions is a lecture on an assigned topic by an expert faculty followed by questions, comments and discussion. Sometimes the experts circulate an outline of his presentation; otherwise it is a matter of surprise. What percentage of the total training package can depend on this mode? Which are the subjects ideal for this mode? Any suggestions to improve the same?

6.2 Is it possible to assign some modules of the syllabus entirely for self-study and utilize class hours selectively on more intricate and complex topics? How to select the topics appropriate to be left to self-study?

6.3 Do you recommend independent research and writing as a method of study on identified topics in each subject? What percentage of marks can be assigned to such exercise? Can such project work on a topic be assigned to more than one person to do jointly? If so, how does one evaluate individual performance?

6.4 Should Moot Court, mock trial, negotiation, conciliation, mediation, counselling and similar exercises form the major techniques for skills training? How does one evaluate the performance in such exercises?

6.5 What are appropriate subjects for teaching through small group seminars and workshops?

6.6 How much of skill training can be taught through class-room based simulation exercises? Clinical teachers say almost entirely. Do you agree? Do you support legal clinics in judicial training institutions with facilities for video-taping and role play exercises?

6.7 Can periodic examinations (oral, written or other) be made part of the learning process in the Academies? What are its implications?

6.8 What are the possible training methods for short-term Refresher Courses for in-service officers?

6.9 Do you support examination and evaluation of performance of trainees at Refresher Courses as well?

6.10 Do you recommend a crash programme of correspondence courses with a rigorous assessment system to enable the existing judicial officers (over 15,000) acquire the training benefits quickly and without disturbance to their judicial work? If so, should National Judicial Academy take it up as a priority?