The Supreme Court of India will now operate three Vacation Benches every week during the upcoming summer break, as confirmed by Justice BR Gavai. The announcement came during a recent hearing related to the blocking of the '4PM' YouTube news channel.

Justice Gavai, who is set to take over as the Chief Justice of India on May 14, 2025, following the retirement of CJI Sanjiv Khanna, clarified that the concept of a full vacation no longer exists for the top court.

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"Vacations are partial working days now. It is not a vacation now. We are having three benches working every week,"
– Justice BR Gavai

The summer break this year begins on May 26, 2025, and full court functioning will resume on July 14, 2025. During this period, the court will continue to function in a limited but active capacity.

The practice of calling summer breaks “partial Court working days” was introduced last year when the Supreme Court amended its rules. Under this system, Vacation Benches handle certain categories of cases even during the court’s recess period.

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The Supreme Court Registry will also be functioning throughout this break—excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays. However, it will remain open on the last Saturday of the partial court working days, which falls on July 12, 2025.

In 2024, the Vacation Benches of the Supreme Court managed to dispose of approximately 1,170 cases during the break, highlighting the effectiveness of this partial functioning system.

The official notification about the constitution of this year’s Vacation Benches is still awaited. However, the Supreme Court has already issued a notice outlining how matters will be listed during the summer:

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1. Miscellaneous matters, including fresh, after notice, or adjourned cases, will be heard on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays.
2. Regular hearing matters, along with urgent mentioned miscellaneous matters, will be listed on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
3. All bail matters, even if filed before the summer break, will be taken up during the partial working days.
4. Hybrid hearing options will be available. Lawyers and parties can appear via video conferencing if they prefer.

This structured and hybrid-friendly approach reflects the judiciary’s continued effort to maintain access to justice, even during vacation periods.