Court order and judgment translation to English: decrees, roznama and depositions

District and taluka courts usually work in the language of the State, so their judgments, decrees, daily orders and depositions are often in Marathi, Hindi or another regional language. You need them in English when the matter goes to a High Court or the Supreme Court, or when a client or counsel does not read the language. A good translation keeps the structure of the record, the exhibit numbers and the witness's own words, and gets the operative order exactly right.

Why do trial-court papers need English?

The Supreme Court and most High Courts work in English, and each has its own rules on translating documents in other languages. An appeal, revision or special leave petition will usually carry the lower court's judgment and parts of the record as annexures, and those annexures may need an English translation in a form the court accepts. In a civil first appeal, the memorandum of appeal must be accompanied by a copy of the judgment. (Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, Order XLI rule 1)

What form the translation must take depends on the court. See translation requirements in Indian courts, exemption from filing official translation and, for Maharashtra, Bombay High Court and Marathi documents.

Where can you get a copy of the order or judgment?

The eCourts Services website at services.ecourts.gov.in has a "Court Orders" search for district and taluka courts. You can search by party name, case number, court number or order date, choose interim or final orders, and open the order or judgment as a PDF. Not every order is uploaded, and older matters may be missing. (eCourts Services, Court Orders)

A downloaded PDF is not a certified copy. If the higher court wants a certified copy, apply to the trial court's copying section.

How is a trial-court judgment laid out?

A civil judgment of a court other than a Small Causes Court must contain a concise statement of the case, the points for determination, the decision on them and the reasons for the decision. (Allahabad High Court, Dinesh Kumar v Asha Agarwal, S.C.C. Revision No. 60 of 2022, quoting CPC Order XX rule 4) In practice a district-court judgment usually runs in this order:

• Cause title. Court, case type and number, year, and the parties with their descriptions and addresses. Keep every number and name exactly as written.
• The pleadings in brief. What the plaintiff or complainant says and what the other side says.
• Points for determination or issues (मुद्दे), each followed by the court's finding, often in a short table at the start.
• Evidence and reasons. The discussion of witnesses and exhibits, issue by issue.
• Findings (निष्कर्ष) on each point.
• Operative order (आदेश). The final numbered directions: suit decreed or dismissed, the relief, costs, the time to comply.

The decree must agree with the judgment. It contains the suit number, the names, descriptions and registered addresses of the parties, the particulars of the claim and the relief granted. It also states the amount of costs, and by whom or out of what property, and in what proportions, they are to be paid. (Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, Order XX rule 6) A decree sheet often has a costs table at the foot. Translate every row of it.

What to keep exact. The operative order is the part people act on. Read it word by word against the original: "dismissed" and "dismissed with costs" are different results, and so are "within 30 days" and "after 30 days". Keep paragraph numbers, issue numbers and the order in which issues are answered ("in the affirmative", "in the negative", "partly in the affirmative", "does not survive").

Roznama and daily orders

The roznama is the daily order sheet: one short entry for each date the matter was listed. The term is used in court IT systems as well; the High Court of Uttarakhand, for example, refers to a "Roznama (daily order sheet)" module in the eCourts software. (High Court of Uttarakhand, circular dated 13 January 2026)

Roznama entries are terse and full of abbreviations. Keep them in date order and as one entry per date. Translate abbreviations if their meaning is clear, and keep the original in brackets if it is not. Do not merge entries or fill in what the court "must have meant".

Depositions and cross-examination

In appealable civil cases the evidence of each witness is taken down in the language of the court. (Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, Order XVIII rule 5) That is why depositions from Maharashtra courts are often in Marathi even when the pleadings are in English.

• Keep the form of the record. If the cross-examination is recorded as questions and answers, keep "Q." and "Ans." line by line. If it is recorded as statements ("It is true that...", "It is not true that...", "I do not know"), keep that form.
• Keep the stages. Examination-in-chief, cross-examination by each party, and re-examination should stay as separate, labelled parts.
• Do not tidy the witness's words. A vague, hesitant or self-contradictory answer must stay that way. Smoothing it changes the evidence.
• Keep notes by the court. Remarks such as an objection recorded, a question disallowed, the witness's demeanour, or that the deposition was read over to the witness are part of the record.
• Mark exhibits exactly. A document admitted in a civil suit is endorsed with the suit number and title, who produced it, the date, and a statement that it was admitted, signed or initialled by the judge. (Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, Order XIII rule 4) Courts usually number these as "Exh. 1", "Exh. 2" and so on. Keep each number exactly, so a reader can match "Exh. 47" in the judgment to the document in the record.

Certified copies and their endorsements

A certified copy of a public document carries a certificate at its foot that it is a true copy, dated and signed by the officer with his name and official title, and sealed where the officer is authorised to use a seal. (Indian Evidence Act, 1872, section 76) The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 carries this over in section 75, with no change. (Correspondence table, BSA and IEA)

Copying sections usually add their own stamps as well, such as dates of application and delivery. Translate the certificate and stamps, where legible, so the reader can see the copy is certified and when it was issued.

Glossary: Marathi and Hindi court terms

Usage varies by State and by court. Keep the original term in brackets the first time it appears.

For more court, property and police vocabulary, see Marathi to English legal translation and Hindi to English legal translation.

Is a working translation enough?

For reading a judgment, advising a client or drafting grounds of appeal, a careful working translation is usually what you need. For filing, the higher court's rules decide what form the translation must take, or whether you seek an exemption. See translation requirements in Indian courts and exemption from filing official translation.

Where NyayTranslate fits

Upload the judgment, decree, roznama or deposition as a PDF. A multi-page record is easiest as one scanned PDF. NyayTranslate translates it into English and keeps the layout of each page, including tables, stamps and handwriting, subject to legibility. You can see the first two pages translated free before paying; after that it is Rs 10 per page up to 100 pages, Rs 8 per page from 101 to 500 pages, and Rs 6 per page beyond 500. Confirm the price shown before you pay.

The output is a machine translation for review. It is not certified, sworn, official or court-approved. Use the route the receiving court or authority requires.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules change; check the current rules and practice directions of your court.