S.O. 4384(E) - Partial commencement notification, 9 October 2023
Reviewed by CA Nikhil Gupta and Kajri Singh · Last reviewed 30 August 2026
Brings only sections 1, 3, 26, 31-38, 45-47, 50-54 and 56-57 into force. Every substantive-use page must show its own commencement status.
Dedicated Finin2min Summary - Chapter in 2 Minutes
- Brings only sections 1, 3, 26, 31-38, 45-47, 50-54 and 56-57 into force. Every substantive-use page must show its own commencement status.
- Provision-level commencement is the first legal gate: only 21 sections were commenced by S.O. 4384(E) on 9 October 2023 in the reviewed official record.
- Use the India Code Act and the Department of Legal Affairs Gazette files as controlling sources.
- Separate the Mediation Act from existing Commercial Courts, consumer, company, court-annexed and special-statute mediation rules.
- Document consent, authority, limitation, confidentiality, settlement drafting, tax, stamp and enforcement before closing the file.
Section-by-section provision map
| Provision / gate | Topic | Commencement / status | Finin2min decode | Implementation | Evidence / control |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instrument | S.O. 4384(E) - Partial commencement notification, 9 October 2023 | Instrument-specific | Brings only sections 1, 3, 26, 31-38, 45-47, 50-54 and 56-57 into force. Every substantive-use page must show its own commencement status. | Update the effective-date and source register before operational advice. | Official Gazette/DLA file and hash. |
| Affected pages | Act, Rules, Schedules and target Acts | Page-specific | Propagate the instrument to every dependent page and PDF. | Run dependency and canonical audit. | Publication register and QA output. |
| Professional gate | Event-date verification | Mandatory | A headline or India Code enforcement date is not a substitute for provision-level commencement. | Counsel/legal reviewer sign-off. | Commencement memorandum. |
Finin2min clause-by-clause decode
Status: Instrument-specific
Brings only sections 1, 3, 26, 31-38, 45-47, 50-54 and 56-57 into force. Every substantive-use page must show its own commencement status.
Implementation: Update the effective-date and source register before operational advice.
Evidence: Official Gazette/DLA file and hash.
Status: Page-specific
Propagate the instrument to every dependent page and PDF.
Implementation: Run dependency and canonical audit.
Evidence: Publication register and QA output.
Status: Mandatory
A headline or India Code enforcement date is not a substitute for provision-level commencement.
Implementation: Counsel/legal reviewer sign-off.
Evidence: Commencement memorandum.
What the notification did
S.O. 4384(E), dated 9 October 2023, is a partial commencement notification. It appointed 9 October 2023 as the date on which only some provisions of the Mediation Act, 2023 came into force.
- Brought into force: sections 1, 3, 26, 31 to 38, 45 to 47, 50 to 54 and 56 and 57 (21 of the 65 sections).
- Not brought into force by this notification: the other 44 sections. They need a separate notification, so any use of them has to be checked against the notifications issued after October 2023.
- Practical effect: for a dispute today, work out which provisions apply on the date of the agreement, the dispute and the step being taken, and do not assume that a mediation settlement or a mediation process has the statutory character the Act describes unless the relevant sections are in force.
Practical examples and calculations
- Brings only sections 1, 3, 26, 31-38, 45-47, 50-54 and 56-57 into force. Every substantive-use page must show its own commencement status.
- Create a dispute-specific chronology, authority matrix, settlement term sheet, tax/stamp note and source register before use.
Timeline model: where an operative route adopts the Act model, separately calculate invitation/service, first appearance, 120-day process period, agreed extension up to 60 days, optional registration clock of 180 days, and challenge clock of 90 days plus a possible further 90 days. Do not apply these figures to an uncommenced provision.
Settlement value model: principal + agreed interest + tax adjustments + costs + security value - payments/credits/set-off, with milestone and default sensitivity.
Chapter-specific decision flowchart
Questions and answers
Has the whole Mediation Act, 2023 come into force?
Not on the record reviewed for this page (up to 18 July 2026): S.O. 4384(E) of 9 October 2023 brought into force 21 of the 65 sections. Check the Department of Legal Affairs notifications for anything issued later.
Which sections did the notification bring into force?
Sections 1, 3, 26, 31 to 38, 45 to 47, 50 to 54 and 56 and 57.
Can I rely on a section that has not been notified?
No. An Act has effect only for the sections brought into force; for the rest, the arrangements that applied before the Act continue.
Where is the commencement status recorded?
In the footnote to section 1 of the Act on India Code and in the Gazette notifications published by the Department of Legal Affairs.