Odisha was annexed by the East India Company in 1803. By Regulations IV & V of 1793 the Criminal and Civil Laws applicable to the province of Bengal were extended to Odisha (then known as province of Cuttack) in 1806 then comprised of the present districts of Puri, Cuttack and Balasore. The laws framed under the aegis of the East India Company for Bengal were similarly extended to Odisha from time to time. With the establishment of the High Court of Judicature at Fort William in Calcutta, Odisha came under its jurisdiction. A new province, Bihar and Odisha was created in 1912 but the jurisdiction of the Calcutta High Court continued over the new province. The situation continued till 1916 when Patna High Court was established with Odisha coming under its jurisdiction. As ordained in its letter patent, a Circuit Court of Patna High Court for Odisha started functioning at Cuttack from 18 May 1916 exercising jurisdiction over four districts namely, Puri, Cuttack, Balasore and Angul. The separate province of Odisha was created on 1 April 1936 with addition of districts of Ganjam, Koraput and Sambalpur. Two District Judges functioned, one exercising jurisdiction over Puri, Ganjam and Koraput and the other, over Cuttack, Balasore and Sambalpur. The demand for a separate High Court grew over time. A Committee was constituted by the Government to look into the feasibility of the proposal that gave its report in 1943 suggesting setting up of a separate High Court. However, it took another five years for the suggestion to bear fruition as the High Court of Orissa was established on 26 July 1948.

The High Court started with a four Judges including the Chief Justice. Today it has Bench strength of 33 with actual strength of 20 judges. From a total pendency (civil and criminal) of 7057 cases at the time of its establishment, the High Court presently has a total pendency of 255979 cases (civil and criminal).

Beginning with only two District Judges in respect of six districts, presently, Odisha has thirty District Judges for all thirty districts. The district judiciary has also expanded over the years starting from 10 District Judge cadre officers,11Subordinate Judges and 36 Munsifs in 1948, the number has grown steadily over the years to 243 District Judge cadre officers, 284 Civil Judge (Sr. Divn.) Cadre officers (erstwhile Subordinate Judge) and 466 Civil Judge (Jr. Divn.) cadre officers (erstwhile Munsif) at present.

The High Court started functioning from the existing Civil Court premises from 26th July 1948, where the Circuit Court also used to function. Gradually with the increase in number of Judges and advocates as also the support staff, need was felt for a bigger building. Accordingly, a bigger building was constructed adjacent to the old one being inaugurate on 11th November 2012. The new building, made functional from 2nd January 2014 is an eight-storied structure with a carpet area of 1.68 lakh square meters and houses 23 Court rooms besides chambers of the Chief Justice and puisne Judges, Judges’ Lounge, Senior Advocates’ lounge, Advocate General’s chamber, Video Conferencing Hall etc. To meet the ever-growing need for office space a new Administrative Block and an Annexe Building have been constructed. The old building, declared as a heritage structure, continues to function as before.

The High Court completed 75 years of its existence on 26th July 2023. A year-long program was organized in commemoration.

The High Court as well the district judiciary has seen exponential growth in terms of pendency and disposal of cases and judicial infrastructure. As such, it remains committed to its goal of delivering justice to the citizens.

Baliyatra pattachitra displayed at Judges’ Lounge