The complete Indian court case type reference
Every case filed in an Indian court is classified by type. The type determines procedure, jurisdiction, court fees, and appeal routes. There are 137 distinct case type codes in the eCourts search API, organised into 8 major categories: Civil (22 codes), Criminal (24), Writ and PIL (9), Supreme Court matters (11), Appeals and Revisions (9), Corporate / IBC / NCLT (48), Tax and Regulatory (3), and Family and Miscellaneous (10). This encyclopedia defines each code.
Quick Answer
A case type in Indian courts is a code that identifies the procedural category of the matter, for example WP_C for Writ Petition Civil, CRL_A for Criminal Appeal, SLP_C for Special Leave Petition Civil, BA for Bail Application, and COP for Company Petition. Every case has exactly one type. Search cases by type at ecourtsindia.com/search using the caseTypes parameter.
1. Civil Cases (22 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| CS | Civil Suit |
| OS | Original Suit |
| COM_S | Commercial Suit |
| RFA | Review Petition (Appeal) |
| RSA | Review Petition (Second Appeal) |
| SA | Second Appeal |
| FA | First Appeal |
| EA | Execution Appeal |
| CRP | Civil Revision Petition |
| CR | Civil Revision |
| C_REV | Civil Review |
| MA | Miscellaneous Appeal |
| RC | Review Case |
| LC | Letters Case |
| CMA | Civil Miscellaneous Appeal |
| CMAppl | Civil Miscellaneous Application |
| MFA | Miscellaneous First Appeal |
| MJC | Miscellaneous Jurisdiction Case |
| RCS_A | Review Case (A) |
| RCS_B | Review Case (B) |
| OMP | Original Miscellaneous Petition |
| SCA | Suit in Commercial Appeal |
2. Criminal Cases (24 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| BA | Bail Application |
| ABA | Appeal Before Appeal |
| CRL_A | Criminal Appeal |
| CRA | Criminal Review Appeal |
| CRL_MA | Criminal Miscellaneous Appeal |
| CC | Criminal Case |
| SC | Special Case |
| ST | State Case (Sessions Trial) |
| RCT | Review Case (Criminal Trial) |
| CR_REV | Criminal Revision |
| CRLRC | Criminal Review Case |
| CRLP | Criminal Petition |
| CRR | Criminal Revision Request |
| CR_MISC | Criminal Miscellaneous |
| MCrA | Miscellaneous Criminal Appeal |
| NDPS | NDPS – Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances |
| SC_ST | Supreme Court State |
| DREF | Default Referee |
| SUM | Summary |
| DV | Domestic Violence |
| MCOC | Maintenance Case |
| FEMA | Foreign Exchange Management Act |
| CR_WJC | Criminal Written Jurisdiction Case |
3. Writ and Public Interest Litigation (9 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| WP_C | Writ Petition (Civil) – most common High Court writ |
| WP_CRL | Writ Petition (Criminal) |
| HCP | Habeas Corpus Petition |
| PIL | Public Interest Litigation |
| WP_PIL | Writ Petition (PIL) |
| WP_C_PIL | Writ Petition (Civil) PIL |
| CONMT | Contempt Petition |
| CWJC | Civil Written Jurisdiction Case |
| WPC_O | Writ Petition (Original) |
4. Supreme Court Matters (11 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| SLP_C | Special Leave Petition (Civil) – most common SC petition |
| SLP_CRL | Special Leave Petition (Criminal) |
| CA | Civil Appeal |
| TP_C | Transfer Petition (Civil) |
| TP_CRL | Transfer Petition (Criminal) |
| RP_C | Review Petition (Civil) |
| RP_CRL | Review Petition (Criminal) |
| CURP | Curative Petition |
| ADM | Administrative Matter |
| REF | Reference |
| Special_Ref | Special Reference |
5. Appeals and Revisions (9 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| LPA | Letters Patent Appeal (intra-High Court) |
| WA | Writ Appeal |
| G_APP | General Appeal |
| RULE63_APPEAL | Rule 63 Appeal |
| XOBJ | Cross Objection |
| AFT_APPEAL | Armed Forces Tribunal Appeal |
| NGT_APPEAL | National Green Tribunal Appeal |
| MACA | Miscellaneous Appeal in Criminal Appeal |
6. Corporate, IBC, and NCLT Matters (48 codes)
The largest category. Covers company petitions, insolvency matters under IBC, and corporate appeals before NCLT and NCLAT.
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| COP | Company Petition |
| IP | Insolvency Petition |
| CP_IBC | Corporate Petition (IBC) |
| IA_IBC | Interlocutory Application (IBC) |
| IA_IBC_DIS | IA IBC (Dissolution) |
| IA_IBC_LIQ | IA IBC (Liquidation) |
| IA_IBC_PLAN | IA IBC (Resolution Plan) |
| IA_LIQ_PR | IA Liquidation (Process) |
| IB_PREPACK | IBC Pre-Packaged Insolvency |
| CAPP_AT | Corporate Appeal (Appellate Tribunal) |
| CAPP_AT_INS | Corporate Appeal (AT) Insolvency |
| CAPP_CA | Corporate Appeal (Company Act) |
| CAPP_IBC | Corporate Appeal (IBC) |
| COMP_APP | Competent Authority Appeal |
| COMP_APPEAL | Competency Appeal |
| CA_CA | Corporate Appeal Company Act |
| CA_IBC | Corporate Appeal IBC |
| CA_MA_CA | Corporate Appeal (MA) Company Act |
| CP_CA | Corporate Petition Company Act |
| CP_MA_CA | Corporate Petition (MA) Company Act |
| CONT_AT | Contempt (Appellate Tribunal) |
| CONT_CA | Contempt Company Act |
| CONT_IBC | Contempt IBC |
| CROSS_APPEAL_CA | Cross Appeal Company Act |
| CROSS_APPEAL_IBC | Cross Appeal IBC |
| CROSS_CA | Cross Company Act |
| CROSS_IBC | Cross IBC |
| INT_CA | Interlocutory Company Act |
| INT_IBC | Interlocutory IBC |
| MA_CA | Miscellaneous Appeal Company Act |
| MA_IBC | Miscellaneous Appeal IBC |
| RA_CA | Review Appeal Company Act |
| RA_IBC | Review Appeal IBC |
| RCP_CA | Review Corporate Petition Company Act |
| RCP_IBC | Review Corporate Petition IBC |
| REHAB_CA | Rehabilitation Company Act |
| REHAB_IBC | Rehabilitation IBC |
| REV_APP | Revenue Appeal |
| REV_CA | Revenue Company Act |
| REV_IBC | Revenue IBC |
| REST_APP | Restitution Appeal |
| TA_AT | Transfer Appeal (AT) |
| TA_CA | Transfer Appeal Company Act |
| TA_IBC | Transfer Appeal IBC |
| TOP_AT | Transfer Order (AT) |
| TP_CA | Transfer Petition Company Act |
| TP_IBC | Transfer Petition IBC |
| VL_IBC | Voluntary Liquidation IBC |
7. Tax and Regulatory (3 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| ITA | Income Tax Appeal |
| Tax_Ref | Tax Reference |
| TERA | RERA Real Estate Regulation Act matter |
8. Family and Miscellaneous (10 codes)
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| GP | Guardianship Petition |
| PP | Probate Petition |
| EP | Election Petition |
| TS | Testamentary Suit |
| CAV | Case Appeal Verdict |
| IA | Interim Application |
| ARB_PET | Arbitration Petition |
| Arb_Pet | Arbitration Petition (variant) |
| Arb | Arbitration |
| ARB_A | Arbitration Appeal |
Search examples
- All civil writs: ecourtsindia.com/search?caseTypes=WP_C
- All bail applications: ecourtsindia.com/search?caseTypes=BA
- All SLPs (civil): ecourtsindia.com/search?caseTypes=SLP_C
- Company and insolvency petitions: ecourtsindia.com/search?caseTypes=COP,IP
- Writ, PIL and Habeas together: ecourtsindia.com/search?caseTypes=WP_C,PIL,HCP
FAQs
What is the most common case type in India?
Civil Suit (CS) at the district level and Writ Petition Civil (WP_C) at the High Court level together account for the majority of filings. Criminal Case (CC) is also very high in volume at magistrate courts.
What is the difference between SLP_C and Civil Appeal (CA)?
SLP is a special leave to appeal under Article 136 of the Constitution; CA proceeds once leave is granted. Many SLPs never convert to CA because leave is refused.
What is the difference between FA and SA?
FA is First Appeal from an original decree. SA is Second Appeal on a substantial question of law from the first appellate court. SA lies only on legal questions, not facts.
What is a COP case?
A Company Petition under the Companies Act, 2013. Filed in NCLT for matters like winding-up, oppression and mismanagement, and schemes of arrangement.
How do I find out the case type of my case?
Check the cover page of your petition or the case registration receipt. On eCourtsIndia, the case type appears on the case details page under the CNR search.