Litigation Tracker — User Guide
Matters, stages and instruments, the Deadline Tracker, drafting from the matter, the link with the GST Research page, and the GSTAT paper book.
Litigation Tracker — Detailed Guide (GST)
The Litigation Tracker (/matters) is the matter file behind TaxCorp AI's GST drafting: a dispute recorded stage by stage, with every statutory clock derived from the dates you enter, the department's documents stored against the stage that produced them, AI drafts generated with the whole history in context, and — at the Tribunal stage — a registry-ready GSTAT paper book built from the record.
This guide covers GST matters. Income-tax matters share the same screens; their six tracks and clocks are in the Income Tax Guide.
Contents
- Matters and the matter list
- The timeline: stages, instruments, documents
- Deadline Tracker
- Generating documents from the matter
- Working with
/gst-rag(Any Notice, Appeal, matter context) - GSTAT Paper Book
- Matter-wide AI tools
- Collaboration, quotas, security
- Reference tables
- FAQ
1. Matters and the matter list
Creating a matter
+ New Matter → choose GST → fill:
| Field | Used for |
|---|---|
| Matter title | The list and every heading — e.g. Orchid Foods — ITC on credit notes FY 2022-23 |
| Client name, GSTIN | Cause title of every draft and of the paper book |
| Disputed amount | Pre-deposit arithmetic, appeal-fee, the Tribunal's ₹50,000 threshold |
| Status, opposing counsel, notes | Housekeeping |
| Next deadline | Optional manual entry; the Deadline Tracker replaces it once a stage is dated |
After creation open Edit Matter and complete the party details: client address, constitution (proprietorship / company …), parentage where the client is an individual, and the respondent (the jurisdictional Commissioner's designation and office, taken from the impugned order). These print in APL-05, the vakalatnama, FORM-04, the affidavit and the paper-book index.
The list (/matters)
- Search by title, client, GSTIN, section, notes; filter by status and domain; sort by recently updated.
- Deadlines — next 30 days: every open clock across all your matters, overdue first, with a click-through to the matter. Calendar (.ics) exports all of them.
- Matter cards show the current stage, stage/document counts and days to the next deadline.
2. The timeline: stages, instruments, documents
Adding a stage
+ Add Stage on the matter. The fields that drive everything:
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Stage | Pre-SCN / SCN / SCN Reply / Adjudication (OIO) / First Appeal (AA) / Appellate Order (OIA) / Tribunal / High Court / Supreme Court / Writ / Rectification / Revision / Advance Ruling / Stay / Settlement |
| Date | Order date for orders, date of the notice for notices, filing date for your own filings. Every clock is computed from this date — an undated stage produces no clocks |
| Instrument | The department's form (see §9.1): ASMT-10, DRC-01A, DRC-01, REG-17, MOV-09, ADT-01, RFD-08, DRC-07, APL-04 … It fixes the reply period (calendar vs working days), the consequence and the reply form |
| Authority, order number | Cause title, index descriptions, chronology |
| Demand confirmed / penalty / interest | Pre-deposit and appeal-fee arithmetic; the demand that survives the OIA is what the GSTAT pre-deposit is computed on |
| Pre-deposit paid, challan, date | Recorded on First Appeal / Tribunal stages; the paper-book scrutiny checks the figure against the statutory 10% |
| Key findings, cases relied upon, summary | Injected into every later generation |
| Hearing date | Becomes a deadline row |
Stage outcome (Pending / Favourable / Adverse / Partial relief / Remanded / Withdrawn / Settled) tells the drafting which findings to defend and which to attack.
Documents
Upload PDF / DOCX / TXT on the stage card. The document type you choose (SCN, reply, OIO, OIA, APL-01, pre-deposit challan DRC-03, vakalatnama, affidavit, returns, invoices …) is how the paper book files it later — pick the right one. AI extracts the text, summarises, and pulls dates, amounts, sections and parties into the stage; AI Summarize re-runs it. Enter Summary Manually covers documents you no longer have.
Uploads are stored under the matter. If a document goes missing (server moves, deletions), the paper-book build reports source not found on that row; re-upload and rebuild.
Generated drafts on the timeline
A draft generated from the matter (§4) is saved on a stage with a status: Draft → Finalized (locked; Reopen to edit) → Superseded when regenerated. The stage card offers Edit / Refine, Quick View, Finalize, Reopen.
3. Deadline Tracker
Every matter carries a ledger of clocks (the Deadline Tracker card). Nothing here is estimated — each row states the provision it is computed from, and you can open the basis text on the row.
What is derived, per stage (GST)
| Stage recorded | Clocks |
|---|---|
| Notice (any instrument) | Reply due — from the instrument's period (calendar or working days) |
| Pre-SCN (DRC-01A) / SCN (DRC-01) | Reply 30 days; reduced-penalty windows (s.73(8) / s.74(8) / s.74A 60 days); limitation for the notice and the order per FY (s.73/74/74A, incl. the Notification 9/2023 and 56/2023 extensions flagged sub judice); s.74A applies from FY 2024-25 automatically |
| OIO (DRC-07) | Appeal to AA 3 months (s.107(1)); condonation +1 month (s.107(4)); pre-deposit 10% of disputed tax, cap ₹20 crore each, penalty-only 10%, s.129 25%; recovery may commence s.78 (3 months); department's review window s.107(2) (6 months); rectification s.161 (3 months); s.74(11) 50% settlement window |
| OIA (APL-04) | Appeal to GSTAT 3 months (s.112(1)) + 3 months condonable (s.112(6)) — or the 30-06-2026 backlog outer date for orders communicated before 01-04-2026 (S.O. 4220(E)), which is not condonable; additional pre-deposit 10% of the surviving tax (cumulative 20%, cap ₹20 crore each); department's window s.112(3) (6 months); rectification s.161 |
| GSTAT filing → Registry | Defect notice (Rule 24) — cure in 7 working days, Registrar may allow up to 30; notice of the department's appeal — cross-objections in APL-06 within 45 days (+45) |
| Tribunal order | High Court s.117 (180 days); rectification s.112(10) (3 months) |
| High Court order | SLP 90 days |
| MOV (detention) | s.129 seven-day / fifteen-day clocks |
| RVN-01 | Reply 7 working days |
| Hearing date | A hearing row |
Hard rows (reply-by, appeal windows, pre-deposit, condonation limits) are e-mailed at 7 / 3 / 1 days and on the day after. Watch rows (department's windows, recovery date, rectification) are listed, not mailed.
Working the ledger
- Done / Waived on each row; a waived row records a conscious decision not to act (e.g. not appealing).
- Recompute after editing a stage's date or instrument — computed rows are re-derived idempotently; rows you marked are never overwritten.
- + Add deadline for anything manual.
- Show done reveals closed rows.
- Calendar (.ics) — one all-day event per row, stable IDs (re-import updates rather than duplicates), alarms 7/3/1 days on hard open clocks.
4. Generating documents from the matter
Which draft, where
| Stage card | Drafts offered |
|---|---|
| Pre-SCN / notice | Reply to intimation, scrutiny reply, registration reply … (by instrument) |
| SCN | SCN Reply, Penalty Reply, Writ Petition |
| OIO | Grounds of Appeal (AA, APL-01), Penalty Reply, Writ, Rectification, Cross-objection |
| OIA | Appeal to GSTAT (APL-05), Writ, Rectification, Cross-objection |
| Tribunal | Written Submissions, Rejoinder, Stay (GSTAT FORM-01), Restoration, Misc. application, Rectification |
| Any | Legal Opinion, Client Advisory, Stay Application (right-hand card) |
The Litigation Workspace
Opens with the whole matter loaded — every stage, summary, finding, prior draft and deadline is in the prompt, so the draft never contradicts what was filed earlier and builds on points the authority left unanswered.
- Optional keywords and Search First — see the case pool (court level, relevance, outcome), remove cases, open any case in the Research tool, then Generate with N cases.
- Output mode — Analysis (arguments and counter-arguments) or Ready to Send (formatted to sign).
- Refine — chips (Aggressive, Conservative, HC/SC cases, Distinguish, Limitation, Natural Justice, Prior-stage arguments, Unaddressed points …) or free text; each refinement is a saved version.
- Save to matter — stored on the stage as a Draft; Finalize when filed.
Citations are captured
When a Grounds of Appeal is generated from the matter, the judgments the draft actually cites (verified against the retrieved pool, and having full text on file) are recorded with it. The paper book (§6) turns that list into the compilation of judgments and the index of authorities — no re-typing of citations.
5. Working with /gst-rag
The GST Research page and the tracker are two views of the same matter.
- Matter selector (top of
/gst-rag): link a matter and every generation on the page carries its dispute history and open deadlines. - Any Notice card: paste or upload any departmental instrument. The detector names it (33 kinds — see §9.1), and a deterministic panel shows the reply-by date, the DIN check, limitation for the period, s.74A misapplication, the penalty matrix and pre-deposit rules. Record in matter timeline creates the stage on the linked matter — with the instrument, the reference number, the date and every clock — in one click. Then draft the reply on the page or from the stage card.
- Orders (DRC-07, APL-04) pasted into Any Notice are redirected to the Appeal workflow.
- The Appeal card's Appeal to GSTAT uses the same pre-deposit and limitation panel as the tracker; generate it from the matter (§4) if you want the citations captured for the paper book.
6. GSTAT Paper Book
Matter page → GSTAT Paper Book (AI Document Tools card) → /matters/{id}/paper-book. The page turns the matter's record into the bundle the GSTAT Registry expects under the GSTAT (Procedure) Rules 2025 and the e-filing advisory. It is deterministic: no AI, no tokens.
Cause title & certification
Bench (follows the authority that passed the order — place-of-supply disputes go to the Principal Bench), appeal number (blank until assigned), the authorised representative (name, s.116 capacity, enrolment) who signs the certifications, and the part-size cap (20 MB per portal upload).
Annexures
The list is pre-filled from the matter in the Registry's order — memorandum → statement of facts → grounds → impugned OIA → OIO → SCN → reply → APL-01 record → pre-deposit proofs (s.107, s.112(8)) → vakalatnama / FORM-04 → affidavit → returns → invoices → circulars → case law → written submissions. Privileged material (opinions, advisories, correspondence) is listed but unticked.
Per row: include, slot, description as it prints in the index, date, true copy (on for copies, off for your own signed pleadings), translation required (Rule 23), a Rule 30 condition note (torn / defaced), move up/down, preview, remove. Refresh from matter adds new uploads and finalised drafts; Upload adds a document directly; Ancillary document adds:
| Document | Built from |
|---|---|
| Synopsis, list of dates & index of authorities | Stages (chronology with annexure references), cited judgments with the proposition relied on (editable per case) |
| Vakalatnama / authorisation | Client + representative details |
| GSTAT FORM-04 memorandum of appearance (Rule 72) | Representative details |
| Affidavit in support | Client details, OIA particulars |
| Covering letter to the Registry (defect cure, Rule 24) | Appeal particulars |
| True-copy certificate page | Representative details |
Anything the matter does not hold prints as [fill] — nothing is invented.
Check — the registry-scrutiny report
Run before building. Fail / Warn / Pass lines with the rule: certified OIA present (Rule 21), memorandum with facts and grounds (Rule 19-20), OIO / SCN / reply / APL-01 record, both pre-deposit proofs, pre-deposit arithmetic (additional 10% on the tax surviving after the OIA, cap ₹20 crore each; shortfall = Fail), appeal fee (₹1,000 per ₹1 lakh, min ₹5,000, max ₹25,000, via Bharatkosh), vakalatnama / FORM-04 when a representative is named, affidavit, drafts still open (Rule 31 — grounds are largely frozen at filing), Rule 19(3) — one point per numbered ground, place-of-supply question → Principal Bench, respondent and bench named, per-item dates, translations, true-copy flags, limitation from the Deadline Tracker (backlog outer date lapsed = Fail; ordinary window lapsed = condonation application needed).
Build
One PDF, or parts of ≤20 MB split at annexure boundaries:
- Index first, FORM-02 style, page numbered in roman (
i) and not counted; every annexure with its date and page range; total-pages line; the representative's certification block. - Continuous Arabic pagination from 1 at the bottom centre of every annexure page (the portal requires continuous numbering in the uploaded PDF).
- On each annexure's first page: "Marked as Annexure-N to the Appeal filed by …" (top right) and the true-copy certification block (bottom right).
- A bookmark per annexure whose label equals the index entry.
- Generated documents are rendered A4, Rule 112 margins (5 cm left / 2.5 cm right), double-spaced (Rule 20); uploaded scans are stamped, never reflowed.
The built file appears in the Build card and as a document chip on the matter. Rebuilding replaces the previous build. Upload each part on efiling.gstat.gov.in under the matching document type, e-sign (Aadhaar OTP / DSC), keep the APL-02A acknowledgement; print the same file for the physical set, tag and sign.
What the book does not do
It does not write the memorandum — generate Grounds of Appeal from the matter first. It does not certify anything — the stamps are for the representative to sign. Inputs that are encrypted PDFs are rejected with a message; a single annexure over 20 MB is reported (rescan at lower resolution).
7. Matter-wide AI tools
- Legal Opinion — merits, strengths, weaknesses, recommended strategy across all stages.
- Client Advisory — plain-language status and next steps for the client.
- Stay Application — before GSTAT, correct payment of the s.112(8) pre-deposit itself stays recovery of the balance (s.112(9)); the draft says so and is written only for what the deemed stay does not cover (shortfall, coercive steps already taken, penalty-only exposure, a defect-returned appeal) or for the High Court where no deemed stay exists.
- Analyze Strategy — arguments to reinforce, abandon, or add; risk for the current stage.
- Find Weaknesses — gaps, contradictions between submissions, unaddressed observations, missing precedents.
- Timeline PDF — chronological report for client briefings.
8. Collaboration, quotas, security
- Collaborators: share a matter with colleagues (viewer / editor); the paper book and drafts follow the matter's access.
- Quotas (shown in the matter header): documents per matter, AI summaries and uploads per month, active matters — by tier. The paper-book build and the Deadline Tracker do not consume AI tokens; drafting and summaries do.
- Documents are stored under the matter and served only to its owner and collaborators; drafts and prompt context never leave your account.
9. Reference tables
9.1 Instruments the tracker knows (notice kinds)
| Stage | Instruments |
|---|---|
| Pre-demand / returns | GSTR-3A (non-filer), DRC-01B, DRC-01C, ASMT-10 scrutiny, ASMT-13 best judgment, DRC-01D, ASMT-14 (s.63), ASMT-16 (s.64) |
| Registration | REG-03, REG-17 cancellation SCN, REG-31 suspension, REG-23 revocation query |
| Audit / investigation | ADT-01/02 (s.65), ADT-03/04 special audit (s.66), s.70 summons |
| Demand | DRC-01A, DRC-01 SCN (s.73/74/74A), penalty SCN (s.122/125), DRC-07 order |
| Transit | MOV-06/07/09/10/11 (s.129/130) |
| Refund | RFD-03, RFD-07, RFD-08 |
| Recovery | DRC-22 (s.83), Rule 86A block, DRC-13/16 (s.79) |
| Amnesty | SPL-03 / SPL-07 (s.128A) |
| Revision / orders | RVN-01 (s.108), DRC-07 (→ first appeal), APL-04 (→ GSTAT) |
| Tribunal registry | Registry defect notice (Rule 24 — 7 working days), notice of the department's appeal (APL-06 cross-objections, 45 days) |
9.2 GSTAT filing facts the tracker and the paper book apply
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Limitation | s.112(1) 3 months from communication + 3 months condonable (s.112(6)); backlog orders (communicated before 01-04-2026) — 30-06-2026 outer date, not condonable |
| Pre-deposit | s.112(8): admitted amount in full + additional 10% of the tax remaining in dispute (cumulative 20% with s.107(6)); cap ₹20 crore each CGST/SGST; penalty-only appeals 10% of penalty (from 01-10-2025); Electronic Cash Ledger only; High Court interim-order deposits adjustable; correct payment = deemed stay (s.112(9)) |
| Appeal fee | ₹1,000 per ₹1 lakh of disputed tax, min ₹5,000, max ₹25,000, Bharatkosh; none on a departmental appeal |
| Forms | APL-05 appeal; APL-06 cross-objections; GSTAT FORM-01 for every interlocutory application (stay, condonation, early hearing, rectification, exemption, extension, restoration) with an affidavit; FORM-04 memorandum of appearance (Rule 72) |
| Paper book | Rule 19 grounds numbered, one point each; Rule 20 double-spaced A4, paged, indexed, tagged, signed and verified; Rule 21 all relied-upon documents with the appeal, certified copies; Rule 22 endorsement and verification; Rule 23 translations; Rule 24 scrutiny — defects returned for compliance, ≤30 days; Rule 26 clerical corrections; Rule 30 defaced documents noted in the index; Rule 112 margins; Rule 115 e-filing (PDF ≤20 MB, bookmarks, index first) |
| Bench | Territory of the authority that passed the order; place-of-supply questions → Principal Bench; one appeal per aggrieved person (Rule 18(3)(b)); the jurisdictional Commissioner is the respondent |
9.3 Supported GST drafts
SCN Reply · Penalty Reply · Scrutiny reply (ASMT-11) · Intimation reply (DRC-01B/C, 3A, ASMT-13) · Pre-SCN response (DRC-01A Part B) · Registration reply · Refund reply · Detention reply · Audit objection · Attachment objection · Amnesty reply · Grounds of Appeal (AA / GSTAT / HC) · Written Submissions · Writ Petition · Rejoinder · Cross-objection (APL-06) · Stay (FORM-01) · Rectification · Restoration · Misc. application · Legal Opinion · Client Advisory.
10. FAQ
Can I start at the appeal stage? Yes. Record the OIA with its communication date; the GSTAT clocks appear immediately. Back-fill the SCN/OIO when you have them — the paper book needs them.
Why does a stage show no deadlines? It has no date, or it is a stage that carries no statutory clock (e.g. a settlement). Add the date and press Recompute.
The tracker says my appeal is late — is that final? No. It compares today with the statutory window from the date you recorded. Check the date of communication (not the order date), and whether the order is a backlog order (outer date 30-06-2026, not condonable) or an ordinary one (3 + 3 months on sufficient cause).
Does the paper book use AI? No. Index, pagination, stamps, bookmarks, ancillary documents and the scrutiny report are all computed. The only AI in the chain is the Grounds of Appeal you generate beforehand.
Why is a judgment missing from the compilation? The compilation lists the cases the Grounds actually cited, verified against the retrieved pool, that have full text on file — generate the Grounds from the matter (not from a blank /gst-rag prompt) and press Refresh from matter.
Do uploads count against AI quota? The upload does not; the AI summary does. The paper-book build never does.
Which file formats? PDF, DOCX, TXT (and images in the paper book). Encrypted PDFs must be unlocked first.
Can colleagues see my matters? Only collaborators you add.