Internship Report

(Clinical Paper-II)

2020-2021

INTERNSHIP REPORT
Submitted to: Dean’s Office

Pari Agrawal
190401427051
BBA LL.B.
Class of 2021

1
 CONTENTS OF THE REPORT

1. Preface

2. Acknowledgment

3. Internship Certificate

4. Internship Record

a. Daily factual log

b. Pre-Trial Preparations and Case Records

c. Client Interview Sessions

5. Record of Observation of Trials

6. General Observations during Court Visits

7. Personal Experience

2
 1. PREFACE:

This report is an outcome of the four weeks summer internship of District and Sessions Court,
Surat, Gujarat for the students of 4th semester, 2nd year. The main constituents of the report are
the cases observed on Motor Vehicle Accidents in the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal during
the internship, the research on related issues, and the weekly report of the work done.

Date of Internship: July 31st, 2021. Name & Signature

Pari Agrawal

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 2. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

I would first of all like to thank my mentor and supervisor, Advocate Twinkle B. Patel for giving
me an opportunity to intern at her office and help me understand the field of law from the basics.
I have gained professional exposure to the working of the district and sessions court, and motor
vehicle accident claims petitions (MACP). This also allowed me to be a part of various aspects
and stages of a trial which helped me in understanding the concepts of such laws properly. I am
also grateful to other professors who have helped me through this internship period.

I would also like to thank my co-interns and seniors who constantly supported and guided me to
deliver my best work. I would further like to thank my parents, brother, and friends. Without
their support, I would not have been able to go forward in my career. I shall continue to put on
effort to improve and attain my desired career goals.

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3. INTERNSHIP CERTIFICATE:

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 4. INTERNSHIP RECORD:

Internship Type: District and Sessions Court, Surat, Gujarat

Name of the Advocate: Advocate Twinkle B. Patel

Duration of Internship: 01/07/2021 to 31/07/2021

No. of weeks: 4 weeks

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 a) RECORD OF DAILY FACTUAL LOG

Place: District and Sessions Court, Surat, Gujarat

Date/Day Project/Lit/Task Hours put Output

in
01/07/2021 Check the status of the case 2 hours Went to the District and Sessions
, Thursday Court of Surat and enquired about
the status of the case from the court
staff
02/07/2021 Visited the District and 6 hours Presented appellants from two
, Friday Sessions court with the different cases before the Hon’ble
advocate judge for verification
03/04/2021 Visited the court for 4 hours Presented and submitted a written
, Saturday submitting arguments argument before the Hon’ble judge
05/05/2021 Visited the court with the 5 hours Enquired about the status of the
, Monday advocate case from the court staff and
presented appellants of two cases
before the Hon’ble judge for
verification
06/07/2021 Check the status of the case 4 hours Checked the status of a case with
, Tuesday respect to the payment of the
accident claim and presented three
appellants before the Hon’ble judge
for verification
07/07/2021 Client Counseling 3 hours Observed and noted the legal
, advice given to a client in the client
Wednesday counseling session
08/07/2021 Withdraw a case 3 hours Went to the court with a senior to
, Thursday withdraw a case
09/07/2021 Visited the court with the 6 hours Presented the appellant before the
, Friday advocate for a case hearing Hon’ble judge for verification and
observed the case hearing
10/07/2021 Settle the cases 5 hours Visited the court with the advocate
, Saturday and settled two cases with
compromise and withdrew one
other case
12/07/2021 Check the status of the case 4 hours Enquired about the status of the
, Monday case with the court staff and
submitted Muddat Arzi (letter to
shift the hearing of the case) to the
court
13/07/2021 Present the appellant 8 hours Presented appellants of three cases
, Tuesday before the judge before the Hon’ble judge for
verification, withdrew a case, and
called a doctor in the court for the
judge to examine him
14/07/2021 Read a fresh or ongoing 4 hours Read a fresh case Kanchan Ben
, case Vasant Bhai Patel v. Pintu Shree
Wednesday Kishan Sharma and researched on
the acts applied in the case and the
judgments supporting similar issues
15/07/2021 Present the parties in the 5 hours Presented two respondents and one
, Thursday court appellant before the Hon’ble judge
of the court for verification

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16/07/2021 Present the parties in the 6 hours Presented two appellants and two
, Friday court respondents before the Hon’ble
judge for verification
17/07/2021 Read a fresh or ongoing 4 hours Read an ongoing case and
, Saturday case researched on the acts applied in
the case and the judgments
supporting similar issues

19/07/2021 Read a fresh or ongoing 5 hours Read an ongoing case Shailesh

, Monday case Bhai Deva Bhai Chauhan v.
Champalal Narsaji Meena and
researched on the acts applied in
the case and the judgments
supporting similar issues
20/07/2021 Visited the court with the 8 hours Went to the court with the advocate
, Tuesday advocate for a case hearing and noted down
the arguments of the respondent’s
advocate
22/07/2021 Check the status of the case 4 hours Enquired with the court staff about
, Thursday the status of the case
23/07/2021 Check the status of the case 7 hours Enquired about the status of the
, Friday case with the court staff and called
the appellant to be present before
the judge
24/07/2021 The office was closed - No work done
, Saturday
26/07/2021 Took a leave - Couldn’t work as I was ill
, Monday
27/07/2021 Took a leave - Couldn’t work as I was ill
, Tuesday
28/07/2021 Read a fresh or ongoing 5 hours Read an ongoing case and
, case researched on the acts applied in
Wednesday the case and the judgments
supporting similar issues
29/07/2021 Went to the court with the 7 hours Enquired about the status of the
, Thursday advocate case with the court staff, presented
an appellant before the judge for
verification, and observed the
arguments of the advocate in a case
hearing
30/07/2021 Present the appellants and 6 hours Presented five appellants and one
, Friday respondents before the respondent before the Hon’ble
judge judge for verification
31/07/2021 Apply for a warrant 3 hours Applied for the warrant
, Saturday

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 b) Pre-Trial Preparations and Case Record

Case No. 1:

Appellants: i) Shaileshbhai Devabhai Chauhan [MACP No. 278/2018]

ii) Meenaben Bhanubhai Chauhan [MACP No. 280/2018]

iii) Bhanubhai Devabhai Chauhan [MACP No. 283/2018]

[Advocate Twinkle B. Patel]

v.

Respondents: i) Champalal Narsaji Meena

ii) Kaushikbhai P. Shah (Prop. Akash Transport Company)

iii) Bajaj Alliance General Insurance Company Ltd.

[Advocate R. J. Chauhan]

This suit was filed against the accused for relief from a motor vehicle accident. On 09.07.2018,
the appellant on his owner’s car GJ-5-CU-6697 was traveling from Surat to Amroli. On the way
to Amroli, the appellant was passing by Dumbhal Chaukdi when respondent no. 1, on his
owner’s (respondent no. 2) tanker GJ-06-AT-4164 hit the appellant’s vehicle. Respondent no. 1
very carelessly, inadvertently, while violating traffic rules and endangering human life, took a
sudden turn without showing any kind of signal or hand movement. The accident caused serious
injuries to the abdomen, chest, and other parts of the body of the appellant and thus, he was
immediately admitted to the Shreeji Hospital, Vadodara for immediate treatment. Regarding the
accident, First GR No. 37/2018 was registered in the Chaani Police Station.

Issues:

1. Whether the accident was caused on 09.05.2018 by driver Champalal Narsaji Meena,
driving Tanker, vehicle no. GJ-6-AT-4164, vehicle in question, in rash and negligent
manner?
2. Whether the driver was driving the said vehicle while being in the employment of the
vehicle owner in the owner’s interest or with his permission/knowledge?
3. Consequent to occurring injuries of the appellant in the alleged accident, how much valid
amount of compensation and in what matter are the applicants entitled to get and from
which opposite parties?
4. Relief?

Research conducted: Researched on Sections 279, 331, 338, and 427 of the Indian Penal Code,
1860, and Sections 134, 140, 166, 177, and 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, as well as case
laws supporting similar issues.

Filing procedure:

a) Jurisdiction:

9
The appellant was a resident of Surat, along with other members of his family. The appellant,
after returning to their home, filed a complaint to the investigating officer who was investigating
the F.I.R. filed by the appellant. Hence, the District and Sessions Court of Surat city had the
jurisdiction to file this case.

b) Documents filed:

Sr. No. Document Filed Purpose of the Document

1. FIR Complaint filed by the investigating officer at the police
station for the records
2. Panchnama Written statement of the inquiry done with the witness of the
incident to get an idea of who is at fault
3. R.C. Book To verify that the vehicle is valid for driving at public places
4. Bima Policy Proof and copy of the insurance policy of the respondent’s
vehicle. Compensation will be based on the insurance
policy’s amount

c) Maintenance of files/documents/court papers:

There is a separate room for keeping and maintaining files and documents related to various
cases. The case files have a hardcover that contains information about the parties, such as, the
MACP No., the names of the appellants and the respondents, their lawyers, the amount of
compensation claimed, and the date of the next hearing. For convenience, the MACP No. is also
written on the left-hand side of the file so that it can be identified even when kept together with
various other files.

d) Essential formalities with the client before filing:

Before filing the case in court, the client is asked to sign a ‘Vakil Patra’. Vakil Patra is a
document signed by the client whereby the client authorizes and hires the Advocate to fight
his/her case. The client is asked to state and provide proof for his/her job and salary per month,
provide his Aadhar Card, Insurance Policy, if any, R.C. Book, and his driving license.

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Case No. 2:

MACP No. 255/2021

Appellants: i) Kanchanben Vasantbhai Patel

ii) Divyeshbhai Vasantbhai Patel

[Advocate Twinkle B. Patel]

v.

Respondents: i) Pintu Shree Kishan Sharma

ii) Ghelabhai Jagmal Bhai Odh

iii) Royal Sundaram Insurance Company Limited

[No advocate authorized yet]

This suit was filed against the accused for relief from the death of a family member arising out of
a motor vehicle accident. Vasant Bhai Rathod, husband, and father of the appellant no. 1 and no.
2, respectively, on 16.06.2021, at around 19:30 hours, by riding his motorcycle no. GJ-5-LJ-5514
was driving to Kudiyana from his home. Near Kachol village, when he was driving at slow
speed, respondent no. 1, who was driving his owner’s (respondent no.2) truck no. GJ-05-BV-
9122, very carelessly, while violating traffic rules and endangering human life, drove the truck
on the wrong side of the road and hit Vasant Bhai’s motorcycle. Due to this Vasant Bhai suffered
serious injuries on his head and other parts of his body and died on the spot from these injuries.
Immediately, a case was registered by appellant no. 1 in the Olpad Police Station.

Issues:
1. Whether the accident was caused on 16.06.2021 by driver Pintu Shree Kishan Sharma,
driving Truck, vehicle no. GJ-05-BV-9122, vehicle in question, in rash and negligent
manner?
2. Whether the driver was driving the said vehicle while being in the employment of the
vehicle owner in the owner’s interest or with his permission/knowledge?
3. Consequent to occurring death of the appellant in the alleged accident, how much valid
amount of compensation and in what matter are the applicants entitled to get and from
which opposite parties?
4. Relief?

Research conducted: Researched on Sections 279, 304 (a), 331, and 338 of the Indian Penal
Code, 1860, and Sections 134, 140, 166, 177, and 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, as well
as case laws supporting similar issues.

Filing procedure:

e) Jurisdiction:

The deceased was a resident of Surat, along with other members of his family. The appellants,
immediately after the incident, filed a complaint to the investigating officer who was

11
investigating the F.I.R. filed by the appellant. Hence, the District and Sessions Court of Surat
city had the jurisdiction to file this case.

f) Documents filed:

Sr. No. Document Filed Purpose of the Document

1. FIR Complaint filed by the investigating officer at the police
station for the records
2. Panchnama Written statement of the inquiry done with the witness of the
incident to get an idea of who is at fault
3. Inquest Panchnama Dead body’s report made by the police officers to record the
assumed reason for death
4. Postmortem Report Dead body’s official and formal report by the hospital to
record the actual reason for death
5. Bima Policy Proof and copy of the insurance policy of the respondent’s
vehicle. Compensation will be based on the insurance
policy’s amount

g) Maintenance of files/documents/court papers:

There is a separate room for keeping and maintaining files and documents related to various
cases. The case files have a hardcover that contains information about the parties, such as, the
MACP No., the names of the appellants and the respondents, their lawyers, the amount of
compensation claimed, and the date of the next hearing. For convenience, the MACP No. is also
written on the left-hand side of the file so that it can be identified even when kept together with
various other files.

h) Essential formalities with the client before filing:

Before filing the case in court, the client is asked to sign a ‘Vakil Patra’. Vakil Patra is a
document signed by the client whereby the client authorizes and hires the Advocate to fight
his/her case. The client is asked to state and provide proof for his/her job and salary per month,
provide his Aadhar Card, Insurance Policy, if any, R.C. Book, and his driving license, and the
death certificate of the deceased.

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Case No. 3:

MACP No. 65/2021

Appellants: i) Rasileben Naranbhai Patel
ii) Ajay Naranbhai Patel
iii) Jignesh Naranbhai Patel
[Advocate Twinkle B. Patel]
v.
Respondents: i) Bhimnath Sinh Harinathsinh Patel
ii) Sureshbhai Gangaram Basure
iii) Bajaj Alliance General Insurance Company Ltd.
[Advocate A. P. Sabnani]
Jayeshbhai Naranbhai Patel, father of appellant no. 1 and brother of appellant no. 2 and no. 3, on
07.02.2021, at around 13:00 – 15:00 hours, was traveling from Saroli to Olpad by riding his
motorcycle no. GJ-5-HN-4162. On the way, when he was driving on the left side of the road
from the village boundary of Masma at a slow speed, respondent no. 1, riding his owner’s
(respondent no. 2) car no. GJ-5-CH-3998, while riding on the wrong side of the road at an
extremely fast speed, very carelessly, and endangering human life hit the motorcycle which
Jayeshbhai was riding. He suffered serious injuries and died on the spot. Immediately, a case was
registered by appellant no. 1 in the Olpad Police Station.

Issues:
1. Whether the accident was caused on 07.02.2021 by driver Bhimnath Sinh Harinathsinh
Patel, driving Car, vehicle no. GJ-05-HN-4162, vehicle in question, in rash and negligent
manner?
2. Whether the driver was driving the said vehicle while being in the employment of the
vehicle owner in the owner’s interest or with his permission/knowledge?
3. Consequent to occurring death of the appellant in the alleged accident, how much valid
amount of compensation and in what matter are the applicants entitled to get and from
which opposite parties?
4. Relief?

Research conducted: Researched on Sections 279, 304 (a), and 337 of the Indian Penal Code,
1860, and Sections 134, 140, 166, 177, and 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, as well as case
laws supporting similar issues.

Filing procedure:

i) Jurisdiction:

The deceased was a resident of Surat, along with other members of his family. The appellants,
immediately after the incident, filed a complaint to the investigating officer who was
investigating the F.I.R. filed by the appellant. Hence, the District and Sessions Court of Surat
city had the jurisdiction to file this case.

13
 j) Documents filed:

Sr. No. Document Filed Purpose of the Document

1. FIR Complaint filed by the investigating officer at the police
station for the records
2. Inquest Panchnama Dead body’s report made by the police officers to record the
assumed reason for death
3. R. C. Book To verify that the vehicle is valid for driving at public places
4. Bima Policy Proof and copy of the insurance policy of the respondent’s
vehicle. Compensation will be based on the insurance
policy’s amount

k) Maintenance of files/documents/court papers:

There is a separate room for keeping and maintaining files and documents related to various
cases. The case files have a hardcover that contains information about the parties, such as, the
MACP No., the names of the appellants and the respondents, their lawyers, the amount of
compensation claimed, and the date of the next hearing. For convenience, the MACP No. is also
written on the left-hand side of the file so that it can be identified even when kept together with
various other files.

l) Essential formalities with the client before filing:

Before filing the case in court, the client is asked to sign a ‘Vakil Patra’. Vakil Patra is a
document signed by the client whereby the client authorizes and hires the Advocate to fight
his/her case. The client is asked to state and provide proof for his/her job and salary per month,
provide his Aadhar Card, Insurance Policy, if any, R.C. Book, and his driving license, and the
death certificate of the deceased.

14
 c) Record of Client Interview Sessions

Date, Day: 07/07/2021, Wednesday

Place: Advocate’s Office, Surat, Gujarat

Client: Sanskar

Legal concern: The client’s father died in a motor vehicle accident, and he wanted advice if they
are eligible for getting compensated and how to go about with the case proceedings?

Legal advice given: The advocate assured that they are eligible to seek compensation for their
financial losses and the personal injury compensation can cover a range of things such as:

 Medical expenses,
 Hospital bills,
 Past and future economic loss,
 Physical and psychological suffering,
 Past and future domestic assistance

There may be many economic damages in a serious car accident case, including property
damage, medical bills, out-of-pocket expenses, lost income, and more. There may also be more
intangible losses: pain and suffering, physical impairment, emotional distress, and others. Some
damages are more clear-cut than others; for instance, past medical costs are much simpler to
calculate — and easier to prove — than pain and suffering.

Observations:

During the whole consultation, the client was very tense and feared the whole process. They had
lost a family member and were scared if they had an upper hand in the case and that they might
end up on the wrong path.

However, after getting the answers to their questions from the advocate, they were quite
confident about winning the case.

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 5. RECORD OF OBSERVATION OF TRIAL:

In the Court of Hon’ble Motor Accident Claim Tribunal, Surat

Date and Day: 06/07/2021, Tuesday

Time and No. of hours spent: 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM, 5 hours

Court Room No: 402

Name of the Judge: J. L. Shreemani, 16th Additional District Judge

Item No. Case No. Case Title Stage of the Case

2 MACP No. Rasilaben Naranbhai Patel Case disposed
65/2021 v.
Bhimnath Sinh Harinathsinh Patel

Plaintiff/Petitioner/Appellant – i) Rasileben Naranbhai Patel

ii) Ajay Naranbhai Patel
iii) Jignesh Naranbhai Patel
Advocate appearing – Twinkle B. Patel

Defendant/Respondent – i) Bhimnath Sinh Harinathsinh Patel

ii) Sureshbhai Gangaram Basure

iii) Bajaj Alliance General Insurance Co. Ltd.

Advocate appearing – A. P. Sabnani

OBSERVATIONS

Issues involved –

1. Whether the accident was caused on 07.02.2021 by driver Bhimnath Sinh Harinathsinh
Patel, driving Car, vehicle no. GJ-05-HN-4162, vehicle in question, in rash and negligent
manner?
2. Whether the driver was driving the said vehicle while being in the employment of the
vehicle owner in the owner’s interest or with his permission/knowledge?
3. Consequent to occurring death of the appellant in the alleged accident, how much valid
amount of compensation and in what matter are the applicants entitled to get and from
which opposite parties?
4. Relief?

Details of Proceedings –
Jayeshbhai Naranbhai Patel, father of appellant no. 1 and brother of appellant no. 2 and no. 3, on
07.02.2021, at around 13:00 – 15:00 hours, was traveling from Saroli to Olpad by riding his
motorcycle no. GJ-5-HN-4162. On the way, when he was driving on the left side of the road

16
from the village boundary of Masma at a slow speed, respondent no. 1, riding his owner’s
(respondent no. 2) car no. GJ-5-CH-3998, while riding on the wrong side of the road at an
extremely fast speed, very carelessly, and endangering human life hit the motorcycle which
Jayeshbhai was riding. He suffered serious injuries and died on the spot. Immediately, a case was
registered by appellant no. 1 in the Olpad Police Station.

Order –
The court disposed of the petition as the case was settled in the Lok Adalat.

ANNEXURE

MOTOR ACCIDENT CLAIM PETITION NO. 65 /2021

The parties have made to the satisfaction of this NATIONAL LOK ADALAT the compromise for Rs.
10,25,000/- (Rupees Ten Lakh Twenty-Five Thousand ONLY)

The compromise is recorded as per Order below Exh. 19.

Accordingly, Award be drawn in terms of compromise.

The Opponent Insurance company shall deposit the amount of compensation as per
compromise within 30 days from the date of this Order.

As per section 21 of the Legal Service Authority Act 1987 where a compromise or settlement has
been arrived at, in a Lok Adalat in the case referred to it under sub-section (1) of Sec.20, the court fee
paid in such case shall be refunded in the manner provided under the Court Fees Act., 1870 (7 of 1870)

It is provided in sec. 16 of Court Fees Act.1870 that where the court refers the parties to the suit
to any one of the modes of settlement of dispute referred to in section 89 of the Code of Civil
Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), the claimant shall be entitled to a certificate from the court authorizing him
to receive back from the collector, the full amount of the fee paid in respect of such plaint. Hence, no
court fee is required to be deducted in this case and if any court fee is paid the claimant is entitled to get
a refund of the same.

(A) Applicable to case wherein amount of compensation is up to Rs.1 lakh:

Upon deposit of amount before the Nazir of this Tribunal, it is directed that the entire amount of
settlement including the number of medical bills be paid to the applicant/applicants equally by
A/C payee cheque, after proper identification.

(B) Applicable to cases wherein the amount of compensation is more than Rs.1 lakh.

Upon deposit of amount before the Nazir of this Tribunal, it is hereby directed that the number
of medical bills of Rs. /- be paid by A/c Payee Cheque and out of the remaining amount,
50 % amount be deposited in F.D.R in any Nationalized Bank for 5 (Five) years and remaining
50% amount be paid to the applicant/s equally by Account Payee Cheque after proper
identification.

(C) The entire amount coming to the share of minor applicant no…. be kept in FDR in any
nationalized bank in the name of the minor through their guardian or for 5 years till the minor applicant
attains the age of the majority, whichever is later. However, the Applicant shall be entitled to the
periodical interest on the FDR.

The conditions as regards the F.D.R. will be made at the time of withdrawal of the amount.

Signed and pronounced in open Tribunal on 10th day of July 2021, at Surat.

Date: 10/07/2021 (AMITA MAHENDRABHAI VAISHNAV)

Motor Accident Claim Tribunal (Auxi)

Surat.

UID.GJ00565

17
 In the Court of Hon’ble Motor Accident Claim Tribunal, Surat

Date and Day: 09/07/2021, Friday

Time and No. of hours spent: 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM, 3 hours

Court Room No: 106

Name of the Judge: V. K. Vyas, Principal District Judge

Item No. Case No. Case Title Stage of the Case

2 MACP No. Shailesh Bhai Deva Bhai Chauhan Case disposed
278/2018 v.
Champalal Narsaji Meena

Plaintiff/Petitioner/Appellant – i) Shailesh Bhai Deva Bhai Chauhan

ii) Meena Bhai Bhanu Bhai Chauhan

iii) Bhanu Bhai Deva Bhai Chauhan

Advocate appearing – Twinkle B. Patel

Defendant/Respondent – i) Champalal Narsaji Meena

ii) Kaushik Bhai P. Shah

iii) Bajaj Alliance General Insurance Co. Ltd.

Advocate appearing – R. J. Chauhan

OBSERVATIONS

Issues involved –

1. Whether the accident was caused on 09.05.2018 by driver Champalal Narsaji Meena,
driving Tanker, vehicle no. GJ-6-AT-4164, vehicle in question, in rash and negligent
manner?
2. Whether the driver was driving the said vehicle while being in the employment of the
vehicle owner in the owner’s interest or with his permission/knowledge?
3. Consequent to occurring injuries of the appellant in the alleged accident, how much valid
amount of compensation and in what matter are the applicants entitled to get and from
which opposite parties?
4. Relief?

Details of proceedings –

This suit was filed against the accused for relief from a motor vehicle accident. On 09.07.2018,
the appellant on his owner’s car GJ-5-CU-6697 was traveling from Surat to Amroli. On the way
to Amroli, the appellant was passing by Dumbhal Chaukdi when respondent no. 1, on his
owner’s (respondent no. 2) tanker GJ-06-AT-4164 hit the appellant’s vehicle. Respondent no. 1

18
very carelessly, inadvertently, while violating traffic rules and endangering human life, took a
sudden turn without showing any kind of signal or hand movement. The accident caused serious
injuries to the abdomen, chest, and other parts of the body of the appellant and thus, he was
immediately admitted to the Shreeji Hospital, Vadodara for immediate treatment. Regarding the
accident, First GR No. 37/2018 was registered in the Chaani Police Station.

Order –

The court disposed of the petition as the case was settled in the Lok Adalat.

ORDER BELOW Exh. 1 IN

M. A. C. P. No. 278/2018

In view of the Order passed below Exh. 23, the present Motor Accident Claim Petition is hereby disposed
of.

Pronounced in open Court today on this 10th July 2021, in Lok Adalat.

Date: 10.07.2021 (Vimal Kanaiyalal Vyas)

Place: Surat. Chairman
M. A. C. Tribunal (Main),
Surat.
Code No. GJ00383.

19
 6. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS DURING COURT VISITS:

As I entered the District and Sessions Court of Surat, it was totally different than what I used to
imagine. The picture of the court that I had in my mind was much disciplined, neat, and tidy,
however, the reality was quite the opposite. There was a huge rush of people with lawyers
discussing cases with each other the whole day. Some were rushing to the courtroom while some
were sitting outside the courtrooms waiting for their case to come or the ongoing case to end.
The advocates were always preoccupied with the huge list of cases and had no time to spare.
However, the one thing that I noticed was many lawyers only came to the court to shift the date
of the hearing of their cases, and I think this is the main cause that there are so many pending
cases in India. My first day in court was a little hectic as we waited almost six hours just to give
a letter to the judge.

Later, when sitting in the hearings and proceedings of the cases, the lawyers were pleading
before the Hon’ble Judge of the Court in Gujarati. The judge and the lawyers conversed in
Gujarati and the legal terminology used by the advocates was difficult to comprehend as I was
not used to such legal terms. It was difficult to understand all the lines, however, my colleagues
helped me in every way possible to make me understand the meaning of those terms.

There always used to sit two court staff on the two sides of the judge in all the courtrooms. One
was the typist and the other was the staff who used to be the link between the judge and the
advocates who came to submit any document or letter to the judge.

My mentor, Advocate Twinkle B. Patel was always very kind to us as well as very friendly with
other advocates and her colleagues. She guided me in every possible way during the one month
of my internship and provided me with every task that I asked for.

An incident took place which left the whole office in flames of anger. There was one client who
hired Advocate Twinkle B. Patel to fight his case and was supposed to get a compensation of Rs.
2,00,000 as the first installment. However, after getting the cheque of the same amount from the
court, he asked the advocate what was next? The advocate, very decently, stated that her fees
will be deducted from the amount given in the cheque which will include the expenses borne by
her and 10% to 15% of the amount awarded by the court. After listening to this, the client
refused to pay any amount because he did not know about the expenses borne by the advocate
which were particularly used for the documents submitted before the Hon’ble judges. He asked
to be given the cheque and said that he will not run away with the cheque and will come
whenever called. On being refused to be given the cheque, he called his relative who referred the
advocate to him and started shouting for no reason at all. He said he won’t give a single penny
from the amount he has received, threatened the advocate, and left after taking the cheque.
Moreover, the funny point in this story is that this incident took place on the day the Advocates
Protection Bill was passed, and the advocate became determined to take him to the police station
and court.

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 7. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:

During the internship, I learned various professional ethics that will help in building and
enhancing my career in the legal fraternity in the future. Not only did I gain knowledge on the
topics I researched, but it also boosted and improved my legal research skills. The one-month
long internship helps me to experience and understand the working of the society as well and the
mentality of the common people towards law and justice

It was indeed a great experience to work as an intern under an Advocate in a District Court. I am
highly obliged to have done my first offline internship under a great mentor Advocate Twinkle
B. Patel. During my internship, I got acquainted with various aspects of the Indian Penal Code,
1860, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and the
working of the courts and the legal procedure followed by them which will surely help me in my
academics. I also learned how to interact with clients to understand their legal problems and how
to solve them in a way most beneficial to them.

However, the one thing that did not go as per my expectation during the internship was that I was
not given a chance not taught how to draft various legal documents which I think are the basic
block of the journey of a budding lawyer. I wanted to know and learn more about preparing and
drafting writ petitions, RTI, affidavits, client-attorney agreements, and the likes.

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