Drafting a memorandum of understanding, petitions and PIL

1. Memorandum of understanding: meaning

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) is a written document recording the common intention of two or more parties to co-operate on a project or relationship, and the broad terms on which they will do so. It is used between companies (joint ventures, technology tie-ups), between governments and investors (State investment summits), between universities, and between countries.

Legal effect. Whether an MoU is binding depends on its terms, not its title. If it contains definite promises, consideration and an intention to create legal relations, it is a contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872. Most MoUs state expressly that they are not binding except for clauses such as confidentiality, exclusivity and governing law.

2. Significance of an MoU

• records the understanding reached in negotiation and avoids later misunderstanding;
• serves as the basis for a detailed agreement;
• quicker and less formal than a full contract;
• allows parties to begin preparatory work (due diligence, feasibility study);
• builds trust and signals commitment to third parties and the public;
• binding clauses (confidentiality, non-solicitation) protect each side meanwhile.

3. Contents of an MoU

1. title and date and place of execution;
2. names, addresses and descriptions of the parties;
3. recitals (background: “Whereas…”);
4. purpose and scope of co-operation;
5. roles and responsibilities of each party;
6. financial arrangements and sharing of costs;
7. duration, review and termination;
8. confidentiality and intellectual property;
9. a statement whether the MoU is binding;
10. dispute resolution (negotiation, then arbitration) and governing law;
11. signatures of authorised persons and witnesses.

Model MoU (outline, imaginary details)

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
This MoU is made at Bengaluru on 5 October 2026 BETWEEN XYZ College of Law, Belagavi (“the College”), represented by its Principal, AND Nyaya Legal Aid Foundation, Bengaluru (“the Foundation”), represented by its Secretary.
WHEREAS the College wishes to give its students practical training, and the Foundation runs legal aid clinics in rural Karnataka;
NOW the parties record as follows:
1. Purpose: to run a joint legal aid clinic in Belagavi district.
2. College: will depute 20 final-year students each semester and a faculty supervisor.
3. Foundation: will provide two advocates, transport and case materials.
4. Costs: each party bears its own costs.
5. Duration: three years, renewable; either party may end it by 60 days’ written notice.
6. Confidentiality: client information shall be kept confidential.
7. Nature: this MoU records an understanding and creates no legal obligations except clause 6.
8. Disputes: to be settled by discussion between the heads of the two institutions.
Signed by the Principal and the Secretary, with two witnesses.

4. Drafting petitions

A petition is a formal written request to an authority or a court for some relief. In government, petitions are addressed to ministers, legislatures (the Committee on Petitions) or officers; in court, a writ petition under Article 32 or 226 of the Constitution.

Points to keep in mind:

1. address the correct authority or court, with its proper title;
2. give the petitioner’s full particulars and capacity (for himself or for a group);
3. state the facts in chronological order, in numbered paragraphs, briefly and accurately;
4. state the grievance and the law or right violated;
5. state the relief prayed for precisely;
6. attach supporting documents (annexures) and refer to them by number;
7. use respectful and restrained language, free of abuse or exaggeration;
8. verify the contents (in court, by an affidavit); sign and date;
9. disclose any earlier petition on the same matter.

5. Public interest litigation

PIL is litigation for the protection of the public interest, brought by a person or body who is not personally aggrieved, on behalf of those who cannot approach the court because of poverty, ignorance or disability. It relaxes the traditional rule of locus standi.

• Hussainara Khatoon v. Home Secretary, State of Bihar, 1979 INSC 34: on a petition based on newspaper reports of undertrial prisoners held in Bihar jails for periods longer than the maximum sentence, the Court ordered their release; in this series of orders it recognised the right to a speedy trial as part of Article 21.
• Sunil Batra v. Delhi Administration, 1979 INSC 271: a letter from a prisoner about torture of a fellow prisoner was treated as a writ petition; the “epistolary jurisdiction”.
• S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, 1981 INSC 209 (the Judges’ Transfer case): Bhagwati J. held that any member of the public acting bona fide may approach the court for redress of a legal wrong to persons who cannot themselves do so.
• Bandhua Mukti Morcha v. Union of India, 1983 INSC 203: a letter about bonded labourers in stone quarries near Faridabad was entertained; the Court appointed commissioners to gather facts and explained that PIL is not adversarial but co-operative.
• State of Uttaranchal v. Balwant Singh Chaufal, 2010 INSC 47: to curb misuse, the Court directed that courts should encourage genuine PILs and discourage those filed for extraneous motives; verify the petitioner’s credentials and the prima facie correctness of the facts; ensure that substantial public interest is involved and no personal gain or oblique motive lies behind the petition; and impose costs on frivolous petitions.

6. Procedure for filing a PIL

1. Identify the public wrong and the fundamental or legal right affected; collect facts and documents (reports, photographs, RTI replies).
2. Choose the forum: the Supreme Court under Article 32 (fundamental rights only) or the High Court under Article 226 (fundamental and other legal rights).
3. Draft the writ petition: cause title (“In the matter of a Public Interest Litigation”), parties, facts, grounds, the petitioner’s bona fides and absence of personal interest, prayer, verification and affidavit.
4. Serve advance copies on the respondents (often the State and the authority concerned) where the rules require it; file with the court fee in the registry.
5. Alternatively, write a letter petition to the Chief Justice; the Supreme Court’s PIL guidelines list categories (bonded labour, neglected children, atrocities, environmental matters and others) in which letters are entertained.
6. At admission the court examines bona fides and public interest; it may appoint commissioners or amicus curiae and issue continuing directions.

How this is examined

MoU meaning and contents or significance (January 2026, January 2025, August 2024; 6 or 10 marks): define, state the legal effect, list the contents, and sketch a short model. PIL: meaning, the four founding cases and the procedure (January 2026, 10); short note (January 2025, August 2024). “Points to keep in mind while drafting petitions” (August 2024, 10).