Forum shopping is the practice of an individual or organization choosing a court or tribunal where they believe they have the best chance of a favorable judgment. Forum shopping is considered as a bad practice by courts, often termed ‘an abuse of law.’
While the term forum shopping is not defined in any Indian statute, Merriam Webster dictionary defines the concept-
“The practice of choosing the court in which to bring an action from among those courts that could properly exercise jurisdiction based on determination of which court is likely to provide the most favourable outcome.”
In what ways forum shopping takes place?
A usual example of forum shopping is when a litigant approaches one court for relief but does not get the desired relief and then goes to a different court for the same relief.
Forum shopping can also take place in cases where a litigant is approaching different Courts for the same relief by making a minor change in the prayer clause of the petition. In Udyami Evam Khadi Gramodyog Welfare Sanstha v. State of Uttar Pradesh, Supreme Court noticed that a litigant filed four writ applications and while the prayers were different, the main issue in each petition was on recovery of the amount advanced by the bank.
In a 2016 case of Supreme Court Advocates on Record Association v. Union of India (Recusal Matter), Supreme Court noticed that a litigant made allegations of a perceived conflict of interest against a judge requiring the judge to recuse from the proceedings so that the matter could be transferred to another judge.
Forum shopping has been termed as a disreputable practice by various courts and has no validity in law.