TRW Insight / Bangladesh
Review is the last remedy in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, and the Rules make it hard to use: thirty days, a Senior Advocate's reasoned certificate, a forfeitable security and one attempt only. Around it sit the Chamber Judge, who decides urgent stays, and the vokalatnama rules that decide who may act.
Review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh: the 2026 position
A review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh practice allows is the last door a litigant can knock on, and it opens rarely. Article 105 of the Constitution lets the Appellate Division review its own judgments and orders, Order XXVI of the Appellate Division Rules 1988 fixes thirty days, a Senior Advocate's reasoned certificate and a Tk 10,000 security, and the High Court Division reviews its civil decisions under section 114 and Order XLVII of the Code of Civil Procedure. Only one review is allowed, and it is not a rehearing.
This guide is about the machinery around the final stages of a Supreme Court case: review in each Division, the Judge in Chamber of the Appellate Division who decides urgent stays before a bench sits, and the vokalatnama and Advocate-on-Record rules that decide who may act at all. Leave petitions, stays in the courts below, case tracking and court fees are covered in companion TRW guides, which we link rather than repeat.
Summary: In the Appellate Division, a review application must be filed within thirty days of the judgment or order, signed by a Senior Advocate who certifies in a reasoned opinion that review is justified, accompanied by a certified copy and backed by a Tk 10,000 cash security that is forfeited if review is dismissed. Civil review proceeds on Order XLVII grounds; criminal review only for an error apparent on the face of the record. In the High Court Division, civil review lies under section 114 and Order XLVII within twenty or ninety days depending on the jurisdiction. The Chamber Judge hears urgent stays subject to reconsideration by a bench of at least three, and no advocate can act in the Appellate Division without an Advocate-on-Record holding a filed power of attorney.
Key point: Review exists to correct a patent error, not to win an argument twice. In 2023 the Appellate Division held that review "lies only against patent error of law" and that the court cannot reassess the evidence and rehear the case. Yet in 2025 review petitions were the route by which the Appellate Division reopened its 2011 caretaker government judgment and restored the system prospectively. The difference lies in what the petition can show on the face of the record.
At a glance
Thirty days
Order XXVI rule 2 requires an Appellate Division review application within thirty days of pronouncement, with notice to the other side.
Senior Advocate
The application must be signed by a Senior Advocate who adds a reasoned certificate that review is justifiable.
One review only
After the first review is disposed of, the Registry will not accept another; Order XLVII rule 9 says the same for civil review.
Chamber Judge
A single Judge in Chamber decides stays, bail and listed procedural applications, subject to reconsideration by a bench of three.
Advocate-on-Record
Only an Advocate-on-Record who has filed a power of attorney in the prescribed form may act for a party in the Appellate Division.
Table of Contents
How review fits into Supreme Court practice
Review is a power the court exercises over its own decisions. Article 105 gives the Appellate Division power, subject to any Act of Parliament and its own rules, "to review any judgment pronounced or order made by it".[1] The High Court Division's civil review power is statutory: section 114 of the Code of Civil Procedure allows a person aggrieved by a decree or order to apply for review to the court that made it.[4] Neither power is an appeal.
An Appellate Division judgment binds every court below under Article 111.[1] Order X rule 2 of the Appellate Division Rules then fixes the text: once pronounced in open court, a judgment cannot be altered or added to except to correct a clerical or arithmetical mistake, an accidental slip or omission, or under Order XXVI.[2] A review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh litigants file in the Appellate Division is therefore the only way to change an outcome there.
Where review sits against other remedies
Against a High Court Division judgment the normal remedy is leave to appeal, covered in our guides to the civil petition for leave to appeal and the criminal petition for leave to appeal. Review there is a narrow alternative for obvious errors. In the Appellate Division, review comes after leave is refused or an appeal decided.
Review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh rules in the Appellate Division
Order XXVI of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh (Appellate Division) Rules 1988 contains nine rules, and each one is a condition the Registry or the bench will check.[2] The power can be exercised on the court's own motion or on the application of a party to the proceeding, and it applies to judgments and orders alike, including orders refusing leave to appeal.
Grounds: civil and criminal are different
Rule 1 sets two standards. In a civil proceeding the court reviews "on grounds similar to those mentioned in Order XLVII, rule 1" of the Code of Civil Procedure. In a criminal proceeding the only ground is "an error apparent on the face of the record".[2] The Order XLVII grounds are the discovery of new and important matter or evidence that could not be produced despite due diligence, a mistake or error apparent on the face of the record, and "any other sufficient reason".[5] Civil applicants therefore have a slightly wider gate, but "sufficient reason" is not a general invitation to reargue the case.
Thirty days from pronouncement
Rule 2 requires the application to be filed in the Registry within thirty days after pronouncement of the judgment or the making of the order. The applicant must then "forthwith" give notice to the other party and endorse a copy of that notice to the Registry.[2] Count the thirty days from the date the decision was pronounced, not from the date the full judgment was released or the copy received, unless you have confirmed that a particular exclusion applies.
Certified copy and fresh evidence
Under rule 3, every application must be accompanied by a certified copy of the judgment or order complained of. Where review is sought on the discovery of fresh evidence, certified copies of the documents relied on must be annexed together with an affidavit explaining the circumstances in which they were discovered.[2] The affidavit should explain why due diligence could not have produced the evidence earlier.[5]
The Senior Advocate's certificate and the same-advocate rule
Rule 4 provides that no application for review shall be entertained unless it is signed by a Senior Advocate. Rule 5 then requires that Senior Advocate to specify in brief the points on which review is sought and to certify that, "consistently with the law and practice of the Court", a review would be justifiable. The certificate "shall be in the form of a reasoned opinion".[2] A one-line assertion that review is justified does not meet the rule.
The certificate is a filter. The Senior Advocate puts professional standing behind the claim that the error is real, so should be briefed early with the judgment, the paper book and a note of the error, not handed a finished petition on day twenty-nine.[2]
The advocate who argued the case
Rule 6 adds a requirement that surprises clients who want fresh counsel. Except with the special leave of the court, no review application may be drawn by any advocate other than the one who appeared at the hearing of the case, and that advocate must attend the review hearing unless excused.[2] A party changing lawyers should apply for special leave at the outset.
The same bench, as far as practicable
Rule 7 provides that the application shall, "as far as practicable", be posted before the same bench that delivered the judgment or order.[2] In 2026 that qualifier carries weight. The Appellate Division's strength rose to five judges only on 30 August 2026, when Justice Md Habibul Gani was sworn in, so retirements and reconstitutions mean a review may be heard by a bench that includes judges who did not sit on the original decision.[14]
Security, one review only and the risk of dismissal
Rule 9 provides that no application for review shall be entertained unless the party seeking review furnishes a cash security of Tk 10,000, "liable to be forfeited if the review petition is dismissed".[2] The preface to the amended Rules explains the change: an applicant was formerly able to withdraw the security whatever the result, and the rule was amended so that the money is forfeited on dismissal.[2]
Rule 8 closes the door after one attempt. Once the first review application is finally disposed of, no further application for review lies, and the Registry will not entertain one.[2] A party who files a weak review to buy time loses the only review it had. Court fees on review are set by the court-fee rules covered in our court fee guide.
What counts as an error apparent on the face of the record
The leading modern statement is Md Zahangir Alam v State, 18 SCOB [2023] AD 45, decided by an eight-judge bench on 2 March 2023. Convicts in a murder case sought review of the Appellate Division's judgment in their criminal appeals. The court dismissed all three petitions.[7]
The court held that "a review is by no means an appeal in disguise whereby an erroneous decision is reheard and corrected", that it "lies only against patent error of law", and that where an error can be seen without "any elaborate argument", and there is no room for two opinions, a clear case of error apparent is made out.[7] An error has to be so obvious that keeping it on the record would be legally wrong, and a party cannot seek review "merely for the purpose of rehearing or a fresh decision of the case".[7]
What does not qualify
The same judgment lists what fails. A review cannot be granted to urge fresh grounds when the judgment does not reveal an error apparent on the face of the record. Findings of fact reached on the evidence are beyond the ambit of review. That counsel at the original hearing failed to argue a point is not an adequate ground.[7] Where two views are possible, the court's choice of one is not an error at all.
What can succeed
Two kinds of case reach the threshold most often. The first is an order made without the party being heard, especially where notice was never served. In Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria v Chand Miah, decided on 4 November 2021, the Appellate Division reviewed and set aside its own 2016 orders in two leave petitions, set aside the High Court Division's revisional judgments, and restored a title suit to the trial court, holding that "a decree obtained by practising fraud is non-existent".[8] The second is a judgment in which, in the words of Zahangir Alam, "something obvious has been overlooked" or an important aspect of the matter was not considered.[7]
Review as a route to rehearing: the caretaker government cases
Review is usually described in negatives, but it can reopen a constitutional question. In 2011 the Appellate Division declared the Thirteenth Amendment, which had introduced the non-party caretaker government, unconstitutional. BNP and Jamaat leaders and a group of citizens later filed four review petitions against that judgment, which were heard together.[9]
On 27 August 2025, after hearing the review petitions, the Appellate Division granted leave to appeal and heard the appeal over ten consecutive days.[9] On 20 November 2025 the court allowed the appeals and disposed of the review petitions, overturning the 2011 judgment and reviving the caretaker provisions with prospective effect only.[10]
The lesson is the sequence: a successful review may lead to leave and a full rehearing rather than an immediate new decision. A review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh counsel draft in a public law case should therefore pray, in the alternative, for leave to appeal and a rehearing, not only for the judgment to be recalled.
| Remedy | Source | Time limit | Grounds | Key conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appellate Division review, civil | Art 105; AD Rules Order XXVI | 30 days from pronouncement | Grounds similar to Order XLVII rule 1 CPC | Senior Advocate certificate, Tk 10,000 security, one review |
| Appellate Division review, criminal | Art 105; AD Rules Order XXVI | 30 days from pronouncement | Error apparent on the face of the record | Same conditions as civil review |
| High Court Division review, original civil side | CPC s 114, Order XLVII | 20 days from decree or order | New evidence, error apparent, other sufficient reason | Heard by same judges where available; rejection not appealable |
| High Court Division review, other civil | CPC s 114, Order XLVII | 90 days from decree or order | As above | No review of an order made on review |
| Reconsideration of a chamber order | AD Rules Order V rule 2 | Not fixed by the rule | Any ground for revisiting the chamber order | Bench of at least three Judges |
Review in the High Court Division under section 114 and Order XLVII
The High Court Division has no Order XXVI, and a review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh practitioners file there is in substance an Order XLVII application. Its civil review jurisdiction comes from section 114 of the Code of Civil Procedure and Order XLVII of the First Schedule.[4] [5] A review lies against a decree or order from which an appeal is allowed but has not been preferred, or from which no appeal is allowed, and the application goes to the court that passed the decree or made the order.[5]
This covers civil judgments of the High Court Division in its appellate, revisional and original jurisdiction. Order XLVII rule 1(2) allows a non-appealing party to seek review despite an appeal by another party, unless the ground of that appeal is common to the applicant or, as respondent, the applicant can present the same case to the appellate court.[5] Criminal judgments of the High Court Division are outside Order XLVII, and the usual route against them is a criminal petition for leave to appeal.
Time limits: twenty days or ninety
The Limitation Act 1908 fixes two periods. Article 162 allows twenty days from the date of the decree or order for review of a judgment of the High Court Division in its original civil jurisdiction. Article 173 allows ninety days for review in other cases not separately provided for.[6]
Who hears the application
Order XLVII rule 5 requires the judge or judges who made the decision to hear the review if they remain attached to the court and are not precluded for six months after the application.[5] Where a Division Bench is equally divided, the application is rejected; otherwise the majority prevails.[5] Applications for review are presented directly to the court concerned, whether through an advocate or in person.[3]
Rejection, grant and rehearing
If the court finds no sufficient ground, it rejects the application. No review can be granted without notice to the opposite party, and fresh evidence requires "strict proof" that it was not within the applicant's knowledge or could not be produced.[5] An order rejecting review is not appealable, but an order granting it may be objected to for breach of rules 2 or 4, or for being out of time without sufficient cause.[5] On grant, the court may rehear the case at once or give directions, and rule 9 bars any review of an order made on review.[5]
Review or leave to appeal?
Choose review where the error is arithmetical, a document on file was overlooked or an order was passed without notice; choose leave where the complaint is about legal reasoning. Do not assume a pending review stops time running for leave. For wider background on the Division's jurisdiction, see our guide to the High Court Division.
Filing a review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh practice requires
The steps below follow the Appellate Division route, which has the most conditions. A High Court Division review follows the same discipline without the certificate and security.
Fix the date
Record the date the judgment or order was pronounced and calendar thirty days for an Appellate Division review, or twenty or ninety days in the High Court Division.
Test the ground
Identify an error visible on the face of the record, a failure of notice, or genuinely new evidence; drop points that only reargue facts.
Brief the Senior Advocate
Give the Senior Advocate the judgment, paper book and a note of the error early, so the reasoned certificate can be written properly.
Check who drafts
Confirm the advocate who argued the case will draw the petition, or apply for special leave to change.
Assemble the filing
Annex the certified copy, any fresh documents with an affidavit of discovery, and the Advocate-on-Record's power of attorney.
Deposit and notify
Furnish the Tk 10,000 cash security, file in the Registry and serve notice on the other side at once, endorsing a copy to the Registry.
Seek interim relief separately
If the decision is being enforced, apply expressly for stay, because review does not suspend it.
Prepare for the bench
Expect the matter before the same bench where practicable, and pray in the alternative for leave and rehearing.
State the error in one paragraph, with the page and paragraph of the judgment where it appears. Nothing in Order XXVI suspends the decision under review, so any interim protection must be sought expressly and separately.
The Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division
Before any review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh benches hear, most contested matters have already passed through the chamber court. The Chamber Judge is a single judge of the Appellate Division appointed by the Chief Justice to hear the applications the Rules allow to be heard in Chamber. Order XI rule 3 gives the Chief Justice that power, while Order XI rule 1 requires every other cause, appeal or matter to be heard by a bench of at least three, or two for leave petitions and some appeals.[2] During vacation, Order II rule 5 requires the Chief Justice to nominate a judge for matters needing prompt attention.[2]
There may be more than one Chamber Judge at a time: the April 2026 virtual-hearing arrangement covered two chamber courts.[13]
Chamber jurisdiction under Order V rule 2
Order V rule 2 lists twenty-eight matters a single Judge in Chamber may decide, "subject to reconsideration, at the instance of any aggrieved party by a Bench of not less than three Judges, which may include the Judge who dealt with the matter".[2] The list includes applications for stay of execution of a decree or order in civil proceedings, for stay of execution of sentence or order in criminal proceedings, for bail, for enlargement or abridgment of time, for adding parties, for withdrawal, consent petitions and change of Advocate-on-Record.[2]
The exclusions matter as much. Item 11 excludes applications for condonation of delay in filing petitions for leave to appeal, which must go to the court.[2] The Chamber Judge also does not decide leave. A party that wants leave granted, or a petition dismissed on the merits, needs a bench.
The Registrar below, the bench above
Order V rule 1 lets the Registrar deal with seventeen routine matters, and rule 3 allows an appeal from the Registrar to the Judge in Chamber within fifteen days.[2] Rule 4 creates the escalation that explains much of chamber practice: the Registrar may, and if directed shall, lay a matter before the Judge in Chamber, and the Judge in Chamber may at any time adjourn a matter and lay it before the court.[2]
Routine matters
Deals with seventeen listed matters under Order V rule 1, appealable to the Judge in Chamber within fifteen days.
Single judge
Decides stays, bail and the other Order V rule 2 matters, and may lay any matter before the court.
Reconsideration
Reconsiders a chamber order at the instance of an aggrieved party, and may include the Chamber Judge.
Leave, appeals, review
Decides leave petitions, appeals and review applications, as far as practicable the same bench for review.
Review certificate
Must sign every Appellate Division review application with a reasoned certificate.
Acts for the party
Files the power of attorney, instructs counsel and is personally liable to the court for fees.
Stay of High Court Division orders before the Chamber Judge
Most chamber work is about stays. The losing side in the High Court Division files a leave petition, or a civil miscellaneous petition where the full judgment is not yet out, with a stay application the Chamber Judge hears first. The mechanics of stays in every forum are in our stay order guide; here we focus on chamber outcomes.
What the chamber list actually records
The Judge-in-Chamber cause list published on the Supreme Court website records a result against each item. A mid-October 2026 list before Justice Md Rezaul Haque included results such as "Stay and fixed on 13.12.2026", "Status quo till filing of the C.P.", "Stay till filing of the C.P.", "No order and disposed of", "Stay, surrender and disposed of" and "Adjourned till after vacation".[11]
Each result has a practical meaning. "Stay and fixed" suspends the High Court Division's order until a named date, by which the leave petition should be ready for the bench. "Status quo till filing of the C.P." protects the position only until the regular civil petition is filed, so the applicant must file promptly. "Stay, surrender and disposed of", in a criminal matter, records a stay together with a direction about surrender. "Not today" means the matter was not reached.[11]
The "no order" practice
"No order" is the Chamber Judge declining to interfere. It is not a refusal on the merits of the leave petition, and it does not dismiss it, but its effect is that the High Court Division's order remains in force and can be acted on. Where the list reads "No order and disposed of", the chamber application is finished and the applicant's remaining remedy is the leave petition before a bench, or reconsideration under Order V rule 2.[11] [2]
Stays, vacating and reconsideration
On 8 January 2026, on applications by Premier Bank and IDLC Finance, the Chamber Judge, Justice Md Rezaul Haque, stayed a High Court Division order withholding a parliamentary candidate's name from Bangladesh Bank's loan defaulters list. On 14 January the candidate sought to vacate the stay, and the Chamber Judge, Justice Farah Mahbub, disposed of the matter, upholding the earlier stay; the candidate's lawyer reported a direction for the High Court Division's Rule to be disposed of within two weeks.[12] A party unhappy with a chamber order can also ask for reconsideration by a bench of three under Order V rule 2.[2]
Cause lists and mentioning before the Chamber Judge
The chamber court works from its own published list. The Appellate Division cause list on the Supreme Court website has a separate Judge-in-Chamber list, showing the judge, the sitting time, each case number, the parties, the advocates and, once updated, the result.[11] Our Supreme Court case search guide explains how to read these lists and the case history entries that follow.
How a matter gets into the chamber list
The matter is filed by the Advocate-on-Record in the Registry, with the stay application and a supporting affidavit. Where the urgency means notice to the other side cannot wait, Order VI rule 1 allows an application for an ad interim order ex parte, supported by an affidavit showing that the delay caused by notice would entail prejudice or hardship.[2] Form No 6 in the Sixth Schedule is the summons for an order in Chamber, which the Advocate-on-Record takes out and serves on the other side's Advocate-on-Record.[2]
Mentioning is the request by the Advocate-on-Record or counsel for a matter to be taken up out of turn because the High Court Division's order is about to be executed. It works when the papers are complete, the urgency is specific and the other side has been told. Applications for permission to swear an affidavit also appear on the chamber list, and are routinely recorded as "Permitted".[11]
Around the long vacation many chamber items are marked "Adjourned till after vacation", so file early and ask for a specific date.[11]
Vokalatnama in the Supreme Court: the Appellate Division
A vokalatnama is the written authority by which a party appoints an advocate to act. In the Appellate Division the instrument is a power of attorney to an Advocate-on-Record in the form prescribed by the Rules, and it is the gateway to everything else. Order IV rule 14 provides that no advocate other than an Advocate-on-Record is entitled to act for a party in any proceeding, and rule 15 that no other advocate may appear or plead unless instructed by an Advocate-on-Record.[2]
Who can be an Advocate-on-Record
Order IV rule 17 requires at least seven years' enrolment as an advocate in the courts below the Appellate Division, including three years as an advocate of the High Court Division, an office at the seat of the Registry, a telephone there, subject to a discretion to enrol others of sufficient knowledge, ability and experience.[2] Every Advocate-on-Record must sign an undertaking to observe the Rules and pay all fees due, and an indemnity bond in Form 4, which secures the court up to Tk 5,000.[2]
The power of attorney in Form No 5
Order IV rule 25 requires every Advocate-on-Record, before acting for a party, to file in the Registry a power of attorney in the prescribed form.[2] Form No 5 in the Sixth Schedule is that form. It appoints the named Advocate-on-Record to commence and prosecute, or appear and defend, the appeal, petition or reference and "all proceedings that may be taken in respect of any application connected with the same including proceedings in taxation and applications for review", and to "appoint and instruct counsel" and do all things incidental.[2]
The form's reference to review matters. A properly drawn Appellate Division vokalatnama already authorises the Advocate-on-Record to act in a review, so a review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh counsel file needs no fresh authority. Rule 28 makes the Advocate-on-Record personally liable to the court for all fees and charges, and rule 29 bars a party who has an Advocate-on-Record from being heard in person without special leave.[2]
The reported cause title of Zahangir Alam shows the usual chain: Senior Advocates "instructed by" a named Advocate-on-Record.[7] Clients should know who their Advocate-on-Record is, because that person files, receives notices and answers to the court.
Wokalatnama in the High Court Division
The High Court Division has no Advocate-on-Record system, but its Rules regulate the wokalatnama closely. Since a 2012 notification, the High Court Division Rules use the spelling "Wokalatnama" in place of "Vakalatnama".[3] The Code of Civil Procedure supplies the base rule: Order III rule 4 provides that no pleader shall act unless appointed by a signed document in writing, which, once filed, remains in force until determined with the leave of the court.[5] For that purpose, an application for review of judgment is treated as a proceeding in the suit.[5]
Accepting and filing the wokalatnama
Chapter V rule 71 of the High Court Division Rules limits who an advocate may take instructions from: the party, an advocate of the court, a holder of the party's power of attorney, an employee or relative of the party, or an advocate of the subordinate court authorised in writing.[3] Where several parties appear by one wokalatnama, it may be received from any of them. The filing advocate must endorse on the back the name of the person from whom it was received and, if not the client, the nature of that person's authority, and add the date, full name, address, telephone and email.[3]
Under rule 75 the concerned Deputy Registrar endorses the date of receipt on every wokalatnama, and an advocate named in a wokalatnama who has not yet accepted it may accept it later, with the Deputy Registrar signing and dating the acceptance.[3]
Stamps and forms
Wokalatnama forms are printed documents completed and signed by the client, and they carry the court-fee stamp the law requires, explained in our court fee guide. Bar associations may also require their own stamps on the printed form. These requirements change from time to time and are set outside the Rules, so confirm the current position with the filing advocate before execution, especially when the client signs abroad.
Changing lawyers: consent, no objection and cancellation
In the Appellate Division
Order IV rule 26 provides that a party who has an Advocate-on-Record cannot file a power of attorney authorising another Advocate-on-Record in the same case except with the consent of the former Advocate-on-Record or by leave of the court, unless the former is dead or unable through infirmity to continue.[2] The former Advocate-on-Record's written consent, commonly called a no objection, is therefore the quickest route. Without it, the party applies for change of Advocate-on-Record, a matter the Judge in Chamber can decide under Order V rule 2.[2] Under Order IV rule 31, the new Advocate-on-Record must give notice of the change to all parties.[2]
The outgoing Advocate-on-Record also has obligations. Rule 27 prevents withdrawal without leave merely because fees are unpaid, and Order V rule 2 lets the Judge in Chamber decide applications for delivery of documents by an Advocate-on-Record and for leave to withdraw.[2]
In the High Court Division
Chapter V rule 74 requires a party wishing to cancel a wokalatnama to file a duly stamped application supported by an affidavit for the court's orders, unless the advocate who accepted it signifies willingness to retire from the case, in which case no affidavit is needed.[3] The retiring advocate's signed willingness is the High Court Division's equivalent of a no objection. Rule 73 allows an advocate to withdraw for non-payment after notice, or for other sufficient cause by leave of the court, and rule 75A requires an advocate who stops practising to tell the client by registered post, after which a fresh wokalatnama must be filed.[3]
2025 to 2026 developments that affect review and chamber practice
Three developments shape practice in October 2026. First, the Judge-in-Chamber list is published online with results, so a party can see the same day whether a stay was granted or "no order" passed.[11]
Second, virtual hearings returned briefly. From 22 April 2026 the Supreme Court held virtual proceedings on Wednesdays and Thursdays in most High Court Division benches, the Appellate Division and two chamber courts, to save power and fuel. After protests by lawyers, Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury suspended them on 3 May 2026 "until further notice", including in the chamber judges' courts.[13]
Third, the Appellate Division's capacity has been thin. Its strength rose to five judges only when Justice Md Habibul Gani took oath on 30 August 2026.[14] A small court makes the same-bench preference in Order XXVI rule 7 harder to honour.[2]
Mistakes to avoid
- Counting from the wrong date. Appellate Division review runs thirty days from pronouncement; High Court Division original-side review runs twenty days from the decree.[2] [6]
- A thin certificate. The Senior Advocate's certificate must be a reasoned opinion, not a formula.[2]
- Rearguing the appeal. Points of fact and evidence, and arguments counsel failed to make, are not grounds for review.[7]
- Changing counsel without leave. A review drawn by a new advocate needs special leave under rule 6.[2]
- Wasting the only review. No second review lies after the first is disposed of.[2] [5]
- Misreading "no order". It leaves the High Court Division's order in force.[11]
- Letting "status quo till filing" lapse. File the regular petition promptly, or the protection ends.[11]
- Filing a new power without consent. In the Appellate Division, a second Advocate-on-Record needs the first one's consent or the court's leave.[2]
Strategy for a review petition Supreme Court Bangladesh courts will entertain
Decide early whether the case is a review case at all. If the complaint is that the court weighed the evidence wrongly, a review will fail and forfeit the security. If the judgment overlooks a statute, a binding precedent or a document on the record, or was made without hearing the party, brief senior counsel within the first week and file well inside thirty days.
For chamber work, have the stay application and affidavit ready before the High Court Division order is executed, and track the list daily. For changes of lawyer, obtain the outgoing advocate's written consent or willingness to retire before filing the new authority.
TRW's constitutional and writ litigation practice acts in review petitions, chamber stay applications and leave petitions in both Divisions, and our banking and finance litigation team handles chamber matters arising from loan recovery and defaulter-list cases. You can also contact TRW to have a judgment assessed for review within the thirty-day window.
Frequently asked questions
What is the time limit for a review petition in the Appellate Division?
Thirty days after pronouncement of the judgment or the making of the order, under Order XXVI rule 2 of the Appellate Division Rules 1988, with notice to the other side forthwith.[2]
Who must sign an Appellate Division review application?
A Senior Advocate, who must specify the points relied on and certify, in a reasoned opinion, that review would be justifiable.[2]
How much security is required for review?
A cash security of Tk 10,000, which is forfeited if the review petition is dismissed.[2]
What are the grounds for review in a criminal case?
Can I file a second review petition?
How long do I have to seek review in the High Court Division?
Twenty days from the decree or order for a judgment in its original civil jurisdiction, and ninety days in other civil cases, under articles 162 and 173 of the Limitation Act.[6]
What can the Chamber Judge decide?
The matters in Order V rule 2, including stays in civil and criminal proceedings, bail, time, parties, consent petitions and change of Advocate-on-Record, subject to reconsideration by a bench of at least three. Condonation of delay in leave petitions is excluded.[2]
What does "no order" from the Chamber Judge mean?
The Chamber Judge declined to interfere, so the High Court Division's order stays in force. The leave petition can still be pursued before a bench.[11]
Do I need an Advocate-on-Record in the Appellate Division?
Yes. Only an Advocate-on-Record who has filed a power of attorney in the prescribed form may act for a party, and other advocates appear only on an Advocate-on-Record's instructions.[2]
How do I change my lawyer in the High Court Division?
File a stamped application with an affidavit to cancel the wokalatnama, or, if the advocate agrees to retire from the case, an application without an affidavit, and then file a fresh wokalatnama.[3]
Source register
Primary legal and regulatory sources
Materials checked on 20 October 2026. Confirm the current official text before relying on any provision.
- Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (articles 103 to 105 and 111) — Laws of Bangladesh
- Supreme Court of Bangladesh (Appellate Division) Rules 1988, as amended (Orders II, IV, V, VI, X, XI and XXVI; First and Sixth Schedules)
- Supreme Court (High Court Division) Rules, Chapter V (General Rules of Procedure, including rules 71 to 76 on wokalatnama)
- Code of Civil Procedure 1908 (Act No V of 1908), section 114 — Laws of Bangladesh
- Code of Civil Procedure 1908, First Schedule (Order III and Order XLVII), as amended to 2026 — Laws of Bangladesh
- Limitation Act 1908 (Act No IX of 1908) and Schedule (articles 162 and 173) — Laws of Bangladesh
- Appellate Division, Md Zahangir Alam v State, 18 SCOB [2023] AD 45 (Criminal Review Petitions Nos 66, 67 and 69 of 2022, 2 March 2023)
- Appellate Division, Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria v Chand Miah, Civil Review Petitions Nos 183-184 of 2018 (4 November 2021)
- Dhaka Tribune, November 2025 — SC sets date for judgment on caretaker government appeal
- Prothom Alo English, 20 November 2025 — Appellate Division verdict restoring the caretaker government system
- Supreme Court of Bangladesh — Appellate Division cause list, including the Judge-in-Chamber list (October 2026)
- The Business Standard, 14 January 2026 — Chamber court order staying HC directive on Manjurul's name in BB defaulters list upheld
- Daily Observer, 4 May 2026 — Supreme Court suspends Wednesday and Thursday virtual hearings
- Daily Observer, 30 August 2026 — Justice Md Habibul Gani sworn in as Appellate Division judge
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