/ˈloʊkəs ˈstændaɪ/
Locus standi (Latin: 'place of standing') refers to the capacity of a party to bring legal proceedings before a court or tribunal. A party must have sufficient interest in the subject matter of the action to be recognised as a proper claimant or petitioner. In constitutional and administrative law, standing rules determine who may challenge government action.
Indian courts have liberalised standing rules through Public Interest Litigation (PIL). Under Article 226 and 32, any person acting bonafide on behalf of a group or public cause may file a PIL (SP Gupta v Union of India [1982], Bandhua Mukti Morcha v Union of India [1984]). The court may act suo motu.
Senior Courts Act 1981 Section 31(3) requires an applicant for judicial review to have 'sufficient interest'. R v IRC ex parte National Federation of Self-Employed [1982] established a flexible test for standing in public law.
Article III requires: injury in fact, causation, and redressability (Lujan v Defenders of Wildlife [1992]). US standing rules are stricter than UK/India — generalised grievances do not suffice.
Traditional locus standi requires the petitioner to be personally aggrieved. PIL relaxes this — a third party may represent disadvantaged groups who cannot access courts themselves. Indian courts have used PIL to address prison conditions, bonded labour, and environmental protection.
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