Important Case Laws in Indian Family Law

After more than a decade of acrimonious matrimonial litigation marked by criminal complaints, arrests, and failed mediation, the Telangana High Court upheld a decree of divorce on grounds of cruelty. While denying maintenance and permanent alimony to an employed wife, the Court significantly enhanced the minor daughter’s settlement from ₹10 lakhs to INR 80 lakhs - sending a clear message on prolonged litigation, cruelty, and parental responsibility.

A 45-day marriage followed by 12 years of separation led the Telangana High Court to grant divorce, examining concealment of mental illness, non-consummation, and irretrievable breakdown of marriage.

The Telangana High Court upheld a divorce after two decades of separation, denied maintenance and permanent alimony to a working wife, and awarded ₹25 lakh to the daughter as full and final settlement.

The Telangana High Court addressed a serious violation of a visitation order after an advocate-mother relocated three minor children to Bhopal without permission. Holding the act to be wilful disobedience, the Court directed the immediate return of the children so the mother could first purge the contempt before defending her actions.

A new 2025 High Court ruling clarifies whether secretly recorded phone calls and WhatsApp chats can be used as evidence in divorce cases. Here’s what the judgment means for your privacy, your marriage, and your legal strategy.

After a mother spent INR 26 lakh raising her child alone for 16 years, the Telangana High Court took a firm view of the husband’s minimal contribution and directed him to pay INR 30 lakh before visitation could begin. This case highlights financial manipulation patterns often seen in family disputes.

The Telangana High Court held that when a husband’s conduct amounts to cruelty approaching depravity, the law cannot compel the wife to remain in the marriage. Once dignity and safety are compromised, the Court’s duty shifts from preserving the marital bond to protecting the aggrieved spouse.

In a significant ruling on cross-border child custody, the Andhra Pradesh High Court held the mother in contempt for wilfully failing to produce the child in an ongoing US–India dispute. The judgment clarifies the enforceability of domestic court orders despite foreign jurisdiction claims, applies the principles of wilful disobedience, and sets an important precedent for international custody enforcement in India.

A wife claimed that her NRI status and U.S. citizenship stripped Indian courts of jurisdiction over the couple’s divorce and custody dispute. The Telangana High Court rejected this argument, reaffirming that foreign citizenship cannot be used to block Indian matrimonial proceedings when the couple last resided together in India.