Section 38A: Court liquidator

Reviewed by CA Nikhil Gupta · Last reviewed 18 September 2026

Section 38A — Court liquidator. Provides for a court liquidator and staffing arrangement for banking-company winding up to speed administration; the appointment is tied. To the special Part III process.

Official statute linkedProvision-specific anatomyPractical case + evidence file

Official text: DFS consolidated Act

Statutory structure and provision map

This map is a provision-specific explanation, not a substitute for the exact statutory text.

Core statutory rule

Provides for a court liquidator and staffing arrangement for banking-company winding up to speed administration.

Condition / limitation

the appointment is tied to the special Part III process.

Source and effective-date control

Apply the wording of Section 38A that was in force on the event date; use the official Act and any applicable commencement/amending instrument linked on this page.

Professional application

Detail court-liquidator appointment, territorial arrangement, staff and cost provisions.

Working flow

Identify the bank/entity class, event date and the factual trigger for Court liquidator.

Apply the core Section 38A rule: Provides for a court liquidator and staffing arrangement for banking-company winding up to speed administration.

Test the next condition or limitation: the appointment is tied to the special Part III process.

Reconcile any amount, period, approval, filing or return mentioned in Section 38A with the supporting record.

Record the conclusion, official source used, effective date and evidence that proves the statutory condition was met or not met.

Evidence / working-paper checklist

Section 38A evidence: High Court/Central Government/RBI order initiating the process.
Section 38A evidence: liquidator/scheme records and creditor/debtor lists.
Section 38A evidence: service/publication and statutory-timeline evidence.
Section 38A evidence: orders settling claims, calls, transfers, moratorium or amalgamation.

Retain the event date and source version with the file so the conclusion remains reproducible after later amendments.

Common mistakes to avoid

For Section 38A, avoid applying ordinary Companies Act procedure without the banking-specific override.
For Section 38A, avoid missing the special limitation or accelerated filing period.
For Section 38A, avoid treating a private scheme as effective before the statutory sanction/order.

Related sections inside the Act

Use these links to read Section 38A in its statutory sequence, especially where the provision imports definitions, approvals, appeals, penalties or winding-up consequences from neighbouring sections.

Current-law source control

Source control: Section 38A is anchored to the official DFS consolidated text; later changes require separate Gazette verification.

Dated matters: verify any later Gazette, RBI direction or binding judgment affecting Section 38A on the event date.

Professional reading note

Professional reading note — Section 38A should be applied as a sequence, not as an isolated heading. Start with the factual trigger

for court liquidator, then test the operative proposition: Provides for a court liquidator and staffing arrangement for banking-company winding up to speed

administration. Next confirm the limiting or interaction point: the appointment is tied to the special Part III process. The working file should

be capable of showing why the section applies to the relevant bank or person, which statutory version governs the event date, and

which documentary record proves the conclusion. Useful evidence on this page includes Section 38A evidence: High Court/Central Government/RBI order initiating the process

and Section 38A evidence: liquidator/scheme records and creditor/debtor lists. Read the provision in sequence with Section 37 — Suspension of business and

Section 38 — Winding up by High Court. This method keeps the legal answer tied to the provision itself while allowing RBI

directions, rules and later instruments to be layered on only where their own scope actually applies.

Primary official sources

Department of Financial Services — consolidated Banking Regulation Act, 1949

Disclaimer

This Finin2min page is an educational and professional reference. Banking regulation is fact-, entity- and date-sensitive. Verify the current Act, Gazette amendments and commencement notifications, applicable RBI Rules/directions and the transaction record before acting or filing.