Top Legal Maxims and Latin Phrases for CLAT, Judiciary, and Law Exams

This is a comprehensive list of important legal maxims, legal terms, Latin phrases, and foreign words for law students, advocates, judges, and competitive exam aspirants to improve their legal knowledge, expertise, and understanding of the law.

What are Legal Maxims?

Legal maxims are established principles of law that are universally admitted, and people in the legal field are very well aware of these words. They are mostly Latin words or a combination of a few words.

Just like in Geometry, we have axioms; in law, we have legal maxims and phrases. Maxims are used in legal paperwork and are also asked in law exams like CLAT, Judiciary, and semester exams.

Important Legal Maxims with their easy meaning

1. Ab extra – From outside.

2. Ab Initio – From the beginning. Here’s more about it.

3. Ab inconvenienti – From hardship; an argument based on the inconvenience of a result.

4. Absoluta sententia expositore non indiget – A clear statement needs no interpreter.

5. Accessorium non ducit sed sequitur principale – An accessory does not lead but follows the principal.

6. Actio personalis moritur cum persona – A personal right of action dies with the person. In another sense, if he dies, the right to sue is gone.

7. Actionable per se – The very act is punishable, and no proof of damage is required.

8. Actori incumbit onus probandi – The burden of proof is on the plaintiff. Read under section 101 of the Indian Evidence Act.

9. Actus curiae neminem gravabit – An act of the court shall prejudice no one.

10. Actus me invito factus non est meus actus – An act done by me against my will is not my act. Read with section 94 of IPC.

11. Actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea – An act does not make one guilty unless it is accompanied by a guilty mind.

12. Actus reus – Guilty act.

13. Actus Reus Non Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea – Conviction of a crime requires proof of a criminal act and intent. Or an act does not make a defendant guilty without a guilty mind. Or an act does not constitute guilt unless done with a guilty intention. (This maxim is the same as number 11 above: Actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea.)

14. Ad hoc – For the particular end or case at hand.

15. Ad valorem – According to value.

16. Aequitas sequitur legem – Equity follows the law.

17. Alibi – At another place, elsewhere.

18. Aliunde – From another source; from elsewhere.

19. Aliunde rule – Evidence from outside; the rule that extrinsic evidence may be used to explain a document when there is ambiguity that cannot be resolved from the face of the document.

20. Alimony – A husband’s (or wife’s) provision for a spouse after separation or divorce; maintenance.

21. Amicus Curiae – Friend of the court. An Amicus Curiae is a person (usually a lawyer, expert, or organization) who is not a party to a case but is appointed by the court or allowed by the court to assist it by offering relevant information, expertise, or legal arguments. The purpose is to help the court reach a fair and informed decision.

22. Animus nocendi – Intention to harm.

23. Ante Litem Motam – Before suit brought; before controversy instituted, or spoken before a lawsuit is brought.

24. Argumentum ad hominem – Argument against the person rather than the issue.

25. Assentio mentium – The meeting of minds, i.e., mutual assents.

26. Audi alteram partem – No man shall be condemned unheard. Here’s more about it.

27. Benignae faciendae sunt interpretationes – Interpretation should be liberal (in favour of the person).

28. Benignior sententia in verbis generalibus seu dubiis est praeferenda – The more favourable interpretation is to be preferred in general or doubtful words.

29. Bis dat qui cito dat – He gives twice who gives promptly.

30. Bis idem exigi bona fides non patitur – Good faith does not allow the same thing to be demanded twice.

31. Bona fide – In good faith.

32. Bona vacantia – Goods without an owner.

33. Boni judicis est ampliare jurisdictionem – It is the part of a good judge to enlarge his jurisdiction, i.e., remedial authority.

34. Boni judicis est causas litium dirimere – It is the duty of a good judge to prevent causes of litigation.

35. Boni judicis est judicium sine dilatione mandare executioni – It is the duty of a good judge to see that judgement is executed without delay.

36. Bonum judex secundum aequum et bonum judicat – A good judge decides according to what is just and good.

37. Brutum fulmen – An empty threat; a declaration that has no legal effect whatsoever.

38. Causa proxima non remota spectatur – The immediate, not the remote, cause is looked at; the law considers the direct cause of an event, not a distant or indirect one.

39. Caveat – A caution registered with the public court to indicate to the officials that they are not to act in the matter mentioned in the caveat without first giving notice to the caveator.

40. Caveat actor – Let the doer beware.

41. Caveat emptor – Let the buyer beware.

42. Caveat venditor – Let the seller beware.

43. Certiorari – A writ by which orders passed by an inferior court is quashed.

44. Commodum ex injuria sua nemo habere debet – No one should derive advantage from his own wrong.

45. Communis hostis omnium – They are common enemies of all. The common enemy of everyone. Read with section 4(2) of IPC.

46. Consensus ad idem – Agreement to the same thing; meeting of minds on the same matter.

47. Contemporanea expositio – Contemporary exposition; a document is interpreted as it was understood at the time it was made.

48. Contra bonos mores – Against good morals.

49. Contra proferentem – Against the party who drafted the document; ambiguity in a contract is construed against the drafter.

50. Conventio privatorum non potest publico juri derogare – Private agreements cannot derogate from public law.

51. Coram non judice – Before a person who is not a judge; a proceeding before a court without proper jurisdiction.

52. Corpus – Body.

53. Corpus delicti – Body of the crime. It refers to the essential facts and circumstances proving a crime occurred. Also, it refers to the principle that ‘a crime must be proved to have occurred before a person can be convicted of committing that crime.’ (This definition is mostly used in Western Law.)

54. Crimen trahit personam – The crime carries (or attaches to) the person. Read with section 2 of IPC. In other words, it means wherever a person goes, and if he commits a crime there, then he will be covered by the provisions of the Indian Penal Code, that is, Interterritorial Jurisdiction.

55. Culpa lata – Gross negligence.

56. Culpa levis – Slight negligence.

57. Cursus curiae est lex curiae – The practice of the court is the law of the court.

58. Damnum sine injuria – Damages without injuries.

59. De facto – In fact.

60. De jure – By law.

61. De minimis – About minimal things.

62. De Minimis Non Curat Lex – The law does not govern trifles (unimportant things). Or law is not concerned with small or insignificant things/matters. Read with section 95 of IPC. Or A common law principle whereby judges will not sit in judgment of extremely minor transgressions (offence, wrongdoings) of the law.

63. De novo – To make something anew.

64. Delegata potestas non potest delegari – A delegated power cannot be further delegated.

65. Detinue – Tort of wrongfully holding goods that belong to someone else.

66. Dictum – Statement of law made by the judge in the course of the decision but not necessary to the decision itself.

67. Dies non – A day on which courts do not sit; a non-business day.

68. Doli capax – Capable of forming the necessary intent to commit a crime. Read with section 83 of IPC.

69. Doli incapax – Incapable of crime. Or incapable of forming the intent to commit a crime. Read with section 82 of IPC.

70. Dolus malus – Evil intent; fraudulent intent.

71. Donatio mortis causa – Gift because of death. Or a future gift given in expectation of the donor’s imminent death and only delivered upon the donor’s death.

72. Dura lex sed lex – The law is harsh, but it is the law; even a severe law must be obeyed.

73. Duress – Compulsion by threat; unlawful pressure to do something. (Note: This is a common law term, not a Latin maxim.)

74. Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat – The burden of proof lies upon the one who affirms, not the one who denies.

75. Ejusdem generis – Of the same kind; general words following specific words are limited to the same category.

76. Estoppel – Prevented from denying. Here’s more about it.

77. Ex gratia – As favour.

78. Ex nunc – From now; with effect from the present time only, not retroactively.

79. Ex officio – Because of an office held.

80. Ex parte – Proceedings in the absence of the other party.

81. Ex post facto – Out of the aftermath. Or after the fact. According to Wikipedia, it is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences (or status) of actions that were committed or relationships that existed before the enactment of the law. In criminal law, it may criminalise actions that were legal when committed; it may aggravate a crime by bringing it into a more severe category than it was in when it was committed; it may change the punishment prescribed for a crime, as by adding new penalties or extending sentences; or it may alter the rules of evidence in order to make conviction for a crime likelier than it would have been when the deed was committed.

82. Ex tunc – From then; with retroactive effect from a past date.

83. Expressio unius est exclusio alterius – The express mention of one thing excludes all others.

84. Factum infectum fieri nequit – A thing done cannot be undone.

85. Factum probandum – It means the facts that need to be proved. This maxim is read under section 3 of the Indian Evidence Act.

86. Factum probans – Relevant fact. In other words, it means a fact or statement of facts offered in evidence as proof of another fact. It is read under section 3 of the Indian Evidence Act.

87. Falsus in uno falsus in omnibus – It means false in one thing, false in everything. Read under section 16 of the Indian Evidence Act. But this maxim is not followed in India, as held in the case of Suchita Singh and Anr vs State of Punjab and Ors (2015).

88. Fatum – Beyond human foresight.

89. Fiat justitia ruat caelum – Let justice be done though the heavens fall.

90. Fraus est celare fraudem – It is a fraud to conceal a fraud.

91. Fraus omnia corrumpit – Fraud corrupts everything; a transaction tainted by fraud is wholly void.

92. Functus officio – No longer having power or jurisdiction.

93. Fumus boni juris – The appearance or presumption of a good or valid right in law; a prima facie case.

94. Furiosi nulla voluntas est – A madman has no will. Mentally impaired or mentally incapable persons cannot validly sign a will, contract, or form the frame of mind necessary to commit a crime. Or a person with mental illness has no free will.

95. Furiosus absentis loco est – A madman is like one who is absent. Read with section 84 of IPC.

96. Furiosus furore suo punitur – A madman is best punished by his own madness.

97. Generalia specialibus non derogant – General provisions do not derogate from special provisions.

98. Habeas corpus – A writ to have the body of a person to be brought in before the judge.

99. Ignorantia facti excusat – Ignorance of fact is an excuse; a person who is genuinely unaware of a relevant fact may escape liability.

100. Id certum est quod certum reddi potest – That is certain which can be made certain.

101. Ignorantia facti excusat, ignorantia juris non excusat – Ignorance of fact is an excuse, but ignorance of the law is no excuse. Read with sections 76 and 79 of IPC.

102. Ignorantia juris non excusat – Ignorance of the law is not an excuse. Or ignorance of the law excuses no one. In other words, a person who is unaware of a law may not escape liability for violating that law merely because one was unaware of its content. (This maxim is related to ‘Ignorantia facti excusat’ above.)

103. In absentia – In the absence of a person.

104. In camera – In private; court proceedings held in private, not in open court.

105. In dubio pro reo – In doubt, favour the accused; when in doubt, decide in favour of the defendant.

106. In extenso – At full length.

107. In flagrante delicto – Caught in the act of committing an offence.

108. In lieu of – Instead of.

109. In pari delicto – In equal fault; where both parties are equally at fault, the law will not help either.

110. In personam – A proceeding in which relief is sought against a specific person.

111. In promptu – In readiness.

112. In rem – Against the thing; proceedings directed against property rather than a person.

113. In status quo – In the present state.

114. Injuria sine damnum – Injury without damage.

115. Innuendo – Spoken words that are defamatory because they have a double meaning.

116. Inter alia – Among other things.

117. Inter vivos – Between living people (especially of a gift as opposed to a legacy).

118. Interest Reipublicae Ut Sit Finis Litium – It means it is in the interest of the state that there should be an end to litigation.

119. Ipso facto – By the mere fact.

120. Ipso jure – By the law itself; by operation of law automatically.

121. Jus – Law or right.

122. Jus ad bellum – The right to go to war; the set of criteria that must be satisfied before a state may lawfully resort to war.

123. Jus civile – Civil law; the law of a particular state as distinct from natural law or international law.

124. Jus cogens or ius cogens – Compelling law.

125. Jus in personam – Right against a specific person (or party). Read under section 43 of the Indian Evidence Act.

126. Jus in rem – Right against the world at large. Read under section 43 of the Indian Evidence Act. Related: What Is Right in Rem and Right in Personam?

127. Jus naturale – Natural law. Or in other words, a system of law based on fundamental ideas of right and wrong that is natural law.

128. Jus Necessitatis – It means a person’s right to do what is required, for which no threat of legal punishment is a dissuasion. Dissuasion means the action or process of trying to persuade someone not to take a particular course of action. Here’s more about it.

Question asked by a law student: I have a doubt about the maxim jus necessitatis. Does it come under section 81 or 87 of IPC?
Answer: This is called the doctrine of necessity. It means a person doing a thing under compulsion of a situation. It is not considered a wrongful act. It comes under the ambit of section 81 of IPC.

129. Jus non scriptum – Customary law.

130. Jus sanguinis – Right of blood or descent.

131. Jus scriptum – Written law.

132. Jus soli – Right of soil.

133. Justitia nemini neganda est – Justice is to be denied to nobody.

134. Leges posteriores priores contrarias abrogant – Later laws abrogate earlier contrary laws.

135. Lex Fori – The law of the country. The law of evidence is lex fori. It means the law of evidence is the law of the land where court proceedings are taken.

136. Lex loci – The law of the place; the law of the country where an act is done or a contract is made.

137. Lex loci contractus – The law of the place where a contract is made.

138. Lex non a rege est violanda – The law must not be violated even by the king.

139. Lex posterior derogat priori – A later law repeals an earlier one.

140. Lex specialis derogat legi generali – Special law overrides general law.

141. Lex talionis – The law of retaliation; the principle that punishment should mirror the offence committed.

142. Libertas inaestimabilis res est – Liberty is a thing of inestimable value.

143. Locus standi – Right of a party to an action to appear and be heard by the court.

144. Mala fide – In bad faith.

145. Malum in se or Mala in se (plural) – Wrong or evil in itself. Or Mala in se is ‘a term that signifies crime that is considered wrong in and of itself.’ For example, most human beings believe that murder, rape, and theft are wrong, regardless of whether a law governs such conduct or where the conduct occurs and is thus recognisably malum in se.

146. Malum prohibitum – In a way, the opposite of Malum in se. It means ‘crimes are criminal not because they are inherently bad, but because the act is prohibited by the law of the state.’ For example, jurisdiction in India requires drivers to drive on the left side of the road. This is not because driving on the right side of a road is considered immoral, but because the law says to drive on the left side and not on the right side.

147. Mandamus – ‘We command.’ A writ of command issued by a higher court to government and public authority to compel the performance of public duty. Related: 5 Types of Writs.

148. Mens rea – Guilty mind.

149. Misnomer – A wrong or inaccurate name or term.

150. Modus operandi – Way of working. Or mode of operation.

151. Modus Vivendi – Way of living.

152. Mutatis Mutandis – With the necessary changes having been made. Or with the respective differences having been considered.

153. Nemo bis punitur pro eodem delicto – Nobody can be twice punished for the same offence.

154. Nemo dat quod non habet – No one can give what they do not have; one cannot transfer a better title than one possesses.

155. Nemo debet bis vexari pro una et eadem causa – It means no one should be vexed (harassed or troubled) twice for the same cause.

156. Nemo debet esse judex in propria causa or Nemo judex in causa sua or Nemo judex in sua causa – Nobody can be the judge in his own case.

157. Nemo moriturus praesumitur mentire – A man will not meet his maker (God) with a lie in his mouth. Or, in other words, ‘no man at the point of death is presumed to lie.’ This maxim is related to dying declaration.

158. Nemo Potest esse tenens et dominus – Nobody can be both a landlord and a tenant of the same property.

159. Nihil fit sine causa – Nothing happens without a cause.

160. Nisi prius – Unless before; originally a writ directing a sheriff to summon a jury; now refers to a court of first instance.

161. Nolle prosequi – A formal notice of abandonment by a plaintiff or prosecutor of all or part of a suit.

162. Non est factum – It is not my deed; a plea that a written document is fundamentally different from what was intended to be signed.

163. Non Sequitur – A statement (such as a response) that does not follow logically from or is not clearly related to anything previously said. Source: Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

164. Novation – Transaction in which a new contract is agreed by all parties to replace an existing contract.

165. Novus actus interveniens – A new intervening act; a new act by a third party that breaks the chain of causation between the defendant’s act and the claimant’s loss.

166. Nullum crimen sine lege, nulla poena sine lege – There must be no crime or punishment except in accordance with fixed, predetermined law. In other words, there must be no punishment without law.

167. Nunc pro tunc – Now for then. A ruling nunc pro tunc applies retroactively to correct an earlier ruling.

168. Obiter dictum – Things said by the way. It is generally used in law to refer to an opinion or non-necessary remark made by a judge. It does not act as a precedent. In other words, Obiter dictum means “that which is said in passing,” an incidental statement. Specifically, in law, it refers to a passage in a judicial opinion that is not necessary for the decision of the case before the court. Such statements lack the force of precedent but may nevertheless be significant. Source: Britannica. Related: What Is Ratio Decidendi and Obiter Dicta With Differences, Advantages, Disadvantages, and Case Laws?

169. Obsta principiis – Resist the beginnings; nip in the bud; the principle that one should oppose wrongs at their very start before they grow too large to correct.

170. Omnia praesumuntur rite esse acta – All things are presumed to have been done correctly and with due formality.

171. Omnis definitio in jure civili periculosa – Every definition in civil law is dangerous.

172. Omnis ratihabitio retrotrahitur et mandato priori aequiparatur – Every ratification relates back and is equivalent to a prior authority.

173. Onus probandi – Burden of proof. Read under section 102 of the Indian Evidence Act.

174. Pacta Sunt Servanda – Agreements must be kept. Or Agreements are legally binding. In international agreements, it means ’every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith.’

175. Pacta tertiis nec nocent nec prosunt – Agreements neither bind nor benefit third parties; a contract cannot impose obligations or confer rights on those who are not parties to it.

176. Palimony – Money which (usually) a man pays to a woman with whom he has been living and from whom he is separated. Palimony has slightly different meanings in different jurisdictions.

177. Pari passu – With an equal step. Read more about it on Wikipedia.

178. Parens patriae – Father of the nation; the doctrine whereby the state has a duty to protect those who are unable to protect themselves, such as minors or persons with mental disabilities.

179. Particeps criminis – A participator in the actual crime/partner in crime.

180. Pendente lite – While the litigation is pending; during the course of the lawsuit.

181. Per curiam (decision or opinion) – By the court. In other words, the decision is made by the court (or at least, a majority of the court) acting collectively.

182. Per incuriam – Because of lack of care.

183. Per se – By itself.

184. Persona non grata – A person who is unacceptable or unwelcome. The opposite of persona non grata is persona grata. Also, in diplomacy, a persona non grata is a foreign person whose entering or remaining in a particular country is prohibited by that country’s government.

185. Potior est conditio possidentis – It means in equal fault (better is the condition of the possessor). Read under section 110 of the Indian Evidence Act.

186. Prima facie – At first sight. Or on the face of it.

187. Quantum meruit – What one has earned. Or the amount he deserves. In other words, A reasonable sum of money to be paid for services rendered or work done when the amount due is not stipulated (specified, written down) in a legally enforceable contract. Source: Oxford.

188. Qui facit per alium, facit per se – He who acts through another acts himself. In simple words, it is a fundamental legal maxim of the law of agency. It is a maxim often stated in discussing the liability of the employer for the act of employee in terms of vicarious (indirect, secondhand) liability.

189. Qui peccat ebrius luat sobrius – He who does wrong when drunk must be punished when sober. Read with section 86 of IPC.

190. Qui sentit commodum, sentire debet et onus – It means he who receives advantage must also bear the burden.

191. Quid pro quo – Something for something.

192. Quo warranto – By what authority. A writ calling upon one to show under what authority he holds or claims a public office.

193. Quod necessitas non habet legem or Necessitas non habet legem – Necessity knows no law. Read with section 81 of IPC.

194. Ratio decidendi – Principle or reason underlying a court judgement. Or the rule of law on which a judicial decision is based.

195. Res communes omnium – Things common to all; things that cannot be owned by any one person, such as air or the sea.

196. Res gestae – Things done; facts surrounding and accompanying a transaction that are admissible as evidence.

197. Res ipsa loquitur – The thing speaks for itself. Read under section 106 of the Indian Evidence Act. Related: What Is Res Ipsa Loquitor

198. Res Judicata – A matter already judged. In other words, it means a matter finally decided by a competent court on the basis of merits. Read under section 40 of the Indian Evidence Act.
Related:
– Res Judicate Is Based On 3 Maxims
– Res Judicata vs Res Sub Judice

199. Res Judicata Pro Veritate Accipitur – It means that a judicial decision must be accepted as correct.

200. Res nullius – A thing belonging to nobody; property not yet belonging to any person and which may be acquired by the first taker.

201. Res sub judice – A matter under judicial consideration; a matter which is still pending before a court.

202. Respondeat superior – Let the master answer. For example, there are circumstances when an employer is liable for acts of employees performed within the course of their employment. This rule is also called the master-servant rule.

Or let the principal answer. In other words, it means to hold the employer or the principal legally responsible for the wrongful acts of an employee or agent committed within the scope of the employment or agency. It applies mainly in law of torts and agency.You can also read it with sections 154 and 155 of IPC.

203. Restitutio in integrum – Restoration to the original position; the aim of damages in tort to put the claimant back in the position they would have been in had the wrong not occurred.

204. Rex non potest peccare – The king is not able to sin. Or, the king can do no wrong.

205. Salus populi est suprema lex or Suprema lex salus populi – The welfare of the people is the supreme law. In other words, it means public welfare is the highest law. Read under section 123 of Evidence Act.

206. Sine die – With no day (indefinitely).

207. Sine qua non – “Without which nothing.” An essential condition. A thing that is absolutely necessary. Basically, a component of an argument that, if debunked, causes the entire argument to crumble.

208. Stare decisis – To stand by decisions; the doctrine that courts should follow precedent in deciding cases that have the same facts or issues.

209. Status quo – State of things as they are now.

210. Sua sponte – Of one’s own accord; something done by a court on its own initiative without a request from either party.

211. Sub judice – Under a judge or court; under judicial consideration and therefore prohibited from public discussion.

212. Sub silentio – In silence; a precedent established without the matter being argued or considered.

213. Subrogation – The substitution of one person in the place of another with reference to a lawful claim or right.

214. Suggestio falsi – A false suggestion or representation; a misrepresentation by making a false statement of fact.

215. Sui generis – Of its own kind; unique or in a class of its own.

216. Suo Motu – On its own motion.

217. Suppressio veri suggestio falsi – Suppression of truth is equivalent to suggestion of falsehood.

218. Uberrima fides (sometimes uberrimae fidei) – Utmost good faith.

219. Ubi jus ibi remedium – Where there is a right, there is a remedy.

220. Ultra vires – Beyond the powers; an act done beyond the legal power or authority of the person or body performing it.

221. Unjust enrichment – The principle that a person should not benefit at the expense of another without just cause or legal basis. (Note: This is a legal doctrine, not a classical Latin maxim.)

222. Ut res magis valeat quam pereat – It is better for a thing to have effect than to be made void; a contract should be interpreted so as to give it effect rather than render it void.

223. Verba fortius accipiuntur contra proferentem – Words are to be taken most strongly against the party who uses them.

224. Verba legis – The words of the law; statutes must be interpreted using the plain meaning of their words.

225. Veritas nihil veretur nisi abscondi – Truth fears nothing but concealment.

226. Veto – Ban or order not to allow something to become law, even if it has been passed by a parliament.

227. Vice versa – Reverse position.

228. Vinculum juris – The bond of law; the obligation of a legal bond or tie.

229. Vis compulsiva – Compulsive force; force applied to a person to compel them to do something against their will.

230. Vis major – Act of God.

231. Void ab initio – Void from the beginning; an act or agreement that is null and has no legal effect from the outset.

232. Voidable – That which may be set aside; a contract that is valid but may be cancelled at the option of one party due to a defect such as misrepresentation or undue influence. (Note: This is a legal term, not a Latin maxim.)

233. Volenti non fit injuria – Damage suffered by consent gives no cause of action. Or harm caused with consent cannot be considered an injury. Read with section 87 of IPC. In other words, if someone willingly places himself in a position where he knows that harm might result, then he is not able (allowed) to bring a claim against the other party in tort or delict (a violation of the law). Related: What Is Volenti Non-Fit Injuria Under the Law of Torts?

234. Vox populi – Voice of the people. Or the opinion of the majority of the people.

235. Waiver – Voluntarily giving up or removing the conditions.

Read Next:
1. Important Words of Hindu Law and Muslim Law
2. Must-know Case Nomenclatures Used in Indian Courts

Top 235 Legal Maxims for Law Exams
WritingLaw

After you complete the 3-year or 5-year LL.B degree from a Bar Council of India-approved institute or if you’re in final semester of a 3-year or 5-year LL.B degree course and meet the other requirements, you’re eligible for the All India Bar Examination (AIBE).

Once you pass this certification exam, you get the Certificate of Practice (COP). This permits you to practice as an advocate in Indian Courts. Without passing the All India Bar exam, you cannot practice in any court.

Note: The All India Bar Examination is only for students graduating from the academic year 2009-10 onwards. If your law degree was awarded before the academic year 2009-10, there is no need to appear for the All India Bar Examination or qualify for this exam to practice law in India.

See this page till the end.

11 tips for passing AIBE

(Based on my personal experience)

Here are some important information and tips to keep in mind for the All India Bar Examination. These will ensure that you have an easy time sitting in the exam hall and are confident in solving the questions.

1. Starting with AIBE XVI, you can no longer take notes, printouts, or anything except physical Bare Acts books inside the AIBE exam hall. Therefore, make sure you have bought the Bare Act books that you can take inside.

But the Bar Council of India updated the rules for AIBE-XVII and later. The Bar Council of India recommends you take physical, actual Bare Act books without notes. It also uses the term “downloaded copies,” meaning you may be able to take printouts (that’s what downloaded copies mean). Further, it says that if you can’t find Bare Acts without notes, then Bare Acts with short notes or least notes can be allowed if the candidate requests. Here’s the full official notification by the Bar Council of India.

2. There are 100 multiple-choice questions in AIBE. There is no negative marking. So, make sure you do not leave any questions unanswered.

3. You pass the All India Bar Exam if you get 40% of marks in the general category and 35% marks in the SC/ST category. That is, general category candidates have to get 40 out of 100 questions correct. SC/ST have to get 35 correct answers out of 100.

4. After the exam, you either pass or fail. Bar Council doesn’t show the exact marks you score.

5. Questions in AIBE are not very tough. They are challenging, but you can easily solve them.

6. You do not need any law notes for AIBE. Just focus on Bare Acts. Plus, with the syllabus subjects (given below), make sure you focus well on legal maxims and some of the landmark case laws.

7. If you have been reading Bare Acts and the syllabus subjects mentioned below for a few months, you are good to go. Plus, you will have the Bare Act books during the exam. So, it’s easy.

8. Read the questions carefully. Several of them can be solved just by reading the question and seeing the index page of the Bare Act of that question. Truly. Read the question! By the language and a few facts, you will get to know what the subject is. Now, open that Bare Act book’s index page and it should help you solve the question. If you need to dive more, quickly go to that Article or section using the page number mentioned in the index.

9. Personal Experience: Since this isn’t a competitive/job exam, people are usually friendly inside the hall. While I was taking the exam, candidates sitting near me gladly offered books I didn’t have, etc. So, overall, it was easy to solve the questions.

10. There are 100 questions, but if your language understanding (English or the language in which you are appearing) is good, you can solve them soon and will have ample time in the end to recheck.

11. Once again, in any case, do not leave any questions unanswered. Remember, there is no negative marking in AIBE!

Syllabus for AIBE

This is the syllabus for All India Bar Exam XX (2025) and later:

AIBE has a total of 100 questions from the subjects mentioned above, and the time duration for the exam is 3 hours 30 minutes.

Before appearing for it, make sure you read about the professional misconduct according to Advocates Act, 1961.

AIBE Bare Acts

Out of the subjects mentioned above, WritingLaw has Bare Act PDFs for the following subjects. You cannot carry PDFs inside the exam hall but use them to study and prepare for AIBE now. You can buy these PDFs and many other PDFs for Rs 340. The Bare Act names are listed below.

You can read from these Bare Act PDFs on your mobile, tablet and laptop to prepare for AIBE and all other law exams.

Practice Questions

As mentioned above, AIBE has multiple-choice questions. Out of the above AIBE syllabus, WritingLaw has MCQ Tests on the following subjects. You can buy the Bare Act PDFs, the tests mentioned below, and several other things for Rs 1325.

These MCQ Tests have important questions that are of judiciary exam level. This makes them useful for all lower law exams, too. If you do well in these tests, passing AIBE and similar law exams should be easy for you.

Do not wait for the last moment or the one month before AIBE. For the best preparation, read from the Bare Acts and practice via the MCQ Tests starting today.

How to use WritingLaw’s Bare Acts and MCQ Tests to practice for AIBE

• Step 1: Open WritingLaw’s MCQ Tests on your phone or laptop.
• Step 2: Keep your Bare Act books near. Or, open WritingLaw’s Bare Act PDFs on another phone, laptop, or the same phone for now.
• Step 3: Start the MCQ test.
• Step 4: Solve the test questions by seeing the Bare Act books or PDFs.
• Step 5: Once done, see your test score. Anything above 50% in these tests is excellent for AIBE.
• Step 6: Take another test or refresh the page to retake this same test.

Get PDFs and Tests (Rs. 1325)

11 tips to pass AIBE
WritingLaw

New students who have just completed class 12th and are remotely interested in the legal field often ask – What are the job options in law? Many graduate students also get worried or confused and wonder what career options are available after completing law or what to do after law.

First of all, today’s situation is not like the way it used to be twenty years ago. Earlier, there was a notion that if you chose the science stream, then the only way out was to be a doctor or an engineer. If you opt for law and become a graduate, then the only options are litigation and judicial services.

In the present time, the law fraternity has a vast area to explore and excel. You can practice as an advocate, prepare for competitive judicial services, become a legal advisor, enter government services, become a professor, and more.

So, if you are confused and wonder what I can do after LL.B, B.A.LL.B, B.B.A.LL.B, etc., then here are ten career options to choose from after law.

1. Go into litigation

The permanent and always welcoming job for law graduates is litigation. If you have a law degree, you can practice law at any age in life. It’s jokingly said that if you can’t do anything, you can take up law.

But litigation is a rose that needs water on time. A little delay makes it wither away.

Litigation requires a comprehensive approach. It’s an art that examines your calibre to convince the bench.

Excelling in advocacy is a challenging platform for every practicing lawyer. You need to be updated and well-versed with statutes, and then only you can perform well.

2. Become a legal adviser

Every company, whether big or small, runs on good advice. Many companies that have day-to-day dealings with others need legal advisers who can advise them on the point of law.

Companies get into contracts, deals, and mergers. As I said earlier, there is no field in this world where the law has not got its wing. Even companies, big institutions, or agencies hire legal advisers to prevent themselves from getting into any trouble.

Everyone wants to work within the ambit of the law. The agreements, contracts, and memoranda in a company are made under the guidance of legal advisers. You can become a legal adviser based on your skills and capabilities.

3. Practice as a legal assistant

In the early phase of your law career, becoming a legal assistant to advocates or firms is a good option. You get to learn so many new and exciting things as a legal assistant.

Your commitment is to assist senior lawyers or firms in their work. You learn about drafting and pleading and how it is done. Drafting a case is itself an art, as it is the document that exhibits your potential in court without speaking a word. Your drafting describes your work.

Legal assistants generally help prepare documents for a case like a plaint, applications, motions, and so on. They are called the right hand of a lawyer.

4. Become a law professor or teacher

After completing law, it’s not necessary to go into litigation or any corporate sector. You can opt for teaching and become a professor at a college or institute. It is a noble profession.

Without teachers, we can’t imagine the growth in the field of law. It is because of teachers that so many institutes are running and producing thousands of lawyers every year.

You must have an LL.M (Master of Laws) degree to teach law. If you have completed LL.M, you can teach at a good institute and earn a good salary.

Technically, for teaching in colleges and universities, a UGC-NET qualification is usually required to become an Assistant Professor. LL.M alone may allow teaching in coaching institutes or private institutions, but not always in UGC-regulated universities.

5. Join government services

If you are a law graduate or have done B.A.LL.B or B.B.A.LL.B, then your professional degree is considered your graduation degree. After completing law, you can think of going into government services like the civil service examination or state services. These are conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and State Public Service Commissions, respectively.

During B.A.LL.B, students are made to study history, polity, and sociology. These can guide a person who is preparing for the government services exams. There is an optional paper of law in civil services that a law student can crack in one attempt. Even in government sectors, there are legal departments, and after taking these exams, you can serve in the government sector in the law field itself.

6. Enter judicial services

It is the only field of law that is not restrictive or confined. A law graduate can enter into all three wings of government, which are the legislature, executive, and judiciary.

After completing the law, you can prepare for the judicial services exams. Before the age of 35, your entry into the judiciary is through the Civil Judge Junior Division or Judicial Magistrate Class II. Once you cross the age of 35, you can directly sit for the Assistant District Judge exam with seven years of experience as a practicing advocate.

As a judge, you can serve the nation. A court is considered the temple of justice. And what could be more significant than this if you were a servant in that temple?

7. Become a public prosecutor

Are you an excellent debater or interested in litigation only, but want a secure and stable career? Then, you can become a public prosecutor (PP) after taking the exam. The public prosecutor represents the state in a criminal case.

To become a public prosecutor, you must have seven years of experience as a practicing advocate and a good command over Criminal Law (Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita), including the Law of Evidence (Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam), the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Indian Penal Code), and Procedural Law.

The work domain of a public prosecutor is at the trial court or the High Courts. In the Supreme Court, there are no public prosecutors but the Advocate General of India, who represents the Government of India in all cases.

8. Be an assistant prosecution officer

To become an Assistant Prosecution Officer (APO), you must be a bachelor in law with a good command of criminal laws like the Evidence Act, Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code, and so on.

This exam does not require any practicing experience in court. Once you get the degree of LL.B, you are eligible for the post subject to state criteria and conditions.

The assistant prosecution officer is a gazetted post. The salary is quite good as per the eighth pay commission and ranges from Rs. 90,000 up to Rs. 1.5 lakhs, as per grade.

9. Become a legal journalist

Law and media sound good together. You must have even studied this subject during your LL.B course. Law is so dynamic and explorable that the more you dive into it, the more you realise its beauty.

Do you keep yourself updated with legal news and legal columns? Do you think you are a legal wizard? If yes, you can have a good career in journalism. Be a spectator of the law field for the media!

There are several websites like Live Law, Legal Bites, and Bar & Bench that update you on everyday legal scenarios. To become a legal journalist, you need to be a law graduate and nothing else. You can apply to any company based on your skills. Make sure to be updated with recent legal news across the globe.

10. Be a legal researcher

If you are a man of patience and calmness, this work is for you. Yes, you got it correct. If you like reading research work and do not get bored with paper stuff, then you are ready for this job.

A legal researcher’s task is to search for supportive laws and cases related to a case. It is proper research that makes an argument strong and presentable.

If you prefer a desk job with less physical work, then this is the most appropriate work for you. It is not only about finding case laws. If you do it with a full conscience, you get enlightened with various judgments, supporting laws, etc.

Law is a dynamic field. You realise its depth when you explore it.

Law is more than just a subject. It touches every sector, like aeronautics, information technology, administration, and many more. This is the reason we study administrative law or cyber law.

There is no field in the world where law has not made its presence felt. The fundamental purpose of law is to maintain balance and harmony in society. Therefore, its role is both profound and indispensable.

10 career options after Law college
WritingLaw

Studying law requires constant hard work and attention. People often wonder how to study law. To help, here is a brief guide that shows you how to start studying if you are a new law student or someone who has not focused carefully until today.

This post is primarily targeted towards students who have recently completed class 12th or are freshers in a law college.

The recommendations below are also helpful for those just starting law or looking for guidance on how to start, prepare for law entrance exams, or study law on their own.

I will begin this post in detail and gradually keep things short. It will take 7-10 minutes to read. And I request you to do that. But if you cannot, there is a summary at the end. Read that.

Should I study Law and go into the legal field?

If you recently passed class 12th or if you are a guardian of such a student, this thought definitely comes to you: should I (or my child) go into law?

The short answer is yes. There is no harm in joining the legal field. The initial journey is challenging, especially if you don’t have anyone from your family already established in the legal field. But, after a few years of hard work, things improve.

Plus, you are not limited only to advocacy. There are several career options available in law. Head over to this post where I have talked about ten job and career options after law.

I’m a law student, but I don’t know where to start studying

Answering this question is the primary motive of this article. Let me help.

There are hundreds of Bare Acts. If you are newly inducted into the legal field, you may not know where to start law study.

So, the first thing is to forget worrying. You need to focus on just a handful of subjects as a law student in BALLB or LLB.

The rest of the Bare Acts are selectively important. And the good thing is, as a lawyer, you can always consult books, PDFs, and websites. So, there is no point in memorising everything. Over time, you will automatically have the sections and Articles on your tongue.

Now coming back to the main question, here are the most important subjects that a new, existing, old, or any law student should focus on. These subjects are essential for everything you do in the legal field. Yes, everything!

How to start studying Law

1. Start reading the Constitution of India

As a person in the legal field, you must read the Indian Constitution several times. Often, what you hear in the news and questions you get in law exams are related to the Constitution.

The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. All the laws derive their roots from the Constitution. It contains the fundamentals and principles through which the country is governed.

From where can I read the Constitution of India?

You can find its black & white PDF online for free. IndiaCode is the government website you can trust. If you like something pleasant, colourful and nice, you may buy the updated Constitution PDF and many other important law PDFs from WritingLaw (Rs 340).

Having PDFs is excellent as they enable you to read anywhere, anytime, on a phone or laptop. But, it is also vital that you buy the physical Constitution of India book. It costs around 150 rupees and will go a long way.

What are the important Articles of the Constitution?

Since you are just starting, forget this question! First, read the Constitution at least twice. Read it even if you don’t understand it fully.

Once you finish reading the entire Constitution at least twice, you can turn your focus to just the important Articles. We already have a list where I show you the most important Articles of the Indian Constitution.

Should I make notes of important Articles of the Constitution?

Definitely! Writing always helps. That’s why this website’s name – WritingLaw.

While studying, feel free to jot down important stuff in a notebook. You may also highlight it in a book, etc. In short, it always helps to do such things. But do not cross the limit, and do not highlight every other sentence.

What about the new amendments?

The Constitution of India is often amended to reflect the current needs of the country. You can learn all about the amendment procedure here. Here at WritingLaw, we update it as soon as the Indian Government publishes the official amendment Act.

2. Read the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has received the Indian President’s approval, and it replaces the previous Indian Penal Code (1860).

So, after reading the Constitution or while reading, you must also focus on the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Indian Penal Code).

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is a criminal statute (law). It prescribes what constitutes an offence and the punishment for it. It is a substantive code containing offences related to body, property, etc.

Tip: As a student, you cannot read only one subject for months. So, you should read 2-3 subjects simultaneously. For example, a few hours in the morning, you may read the Constitution. Set afternoon for Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, night for Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and late-night for General Studies, law news, etc.

3. Read the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita has also received the Indian President’s approval, and it replaces the previous Code of Criminal Procedure of 1973.

This is one of the essential subjects of law. It is procedural law. It contains the procedure to be followed by the courts while trying the person for a criminal offence. It includes investigation, inquiry, trial, etc.

As mentioned above, along with reading the Constitution and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, you should also start focusing side-by-side on the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.

4. Focus on the Civil Procedure Code

CPC is a procedural law that contains procedures to be followed by the courts while trying a person for a civil wrong or breach. It includes filing of the suit, trial, etc.

It is a big Act with 158 sections and 51 Orders. But necessary for all legal people. So make sure you read the Civil Procedure Code carefully.

You can get its free black & white PDF from India Code. And as usual, we have the colourful PDF for CPC (Rs 340). To read it online, please see this. Plus, it would help to buy its Bare Act book from a bookstore near you or Amazon.

After you finish reading the Act once, you may check out its important sections and Orders.

5. Carefully understand the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam

This new Act has also received the Indian President’s approval, and it replaces the previous Indian Evidence Act of 1872.

Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam is an adjective law. It is neither procedural nor substantive. It helps the court in the method of recording evidence, how the relevance of facts needs to be seen, what can be presumed and what not, expert opinion and on whom shall burden of a proof lie. Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam supports both Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and CPC.

Compared to all the above-mentioned Acts, this one is smaller as it only has 170 sections. However, it is an integral part of the Indian legal system, and you must study it carefully.

6. Other important Acts

Apart from the above law subjects, there are several other important ones like the Indian Contract Act, Hindu Laws, Muslim Law, Transfer of Property Act, Specific Relief Act, and Sale of Goods Act. It would be best to focus equally on these.

If you are a new law student (first or second year of your 5-year course), you have time to cover all these Acts adequately.

If you are in the last year of the 5-year or 3-year law course, please start focusing from today.

7. Additional important things to focus on

Besides the Bare Acts, it is vital to ensure you read the daily law news and stay updated.

Whenever you come across legal maxims, make sure you read them twice to keep them in your memory. These are used in court paperwork and also asked in law exams.

When you come across old or new interesting cases (case laws), make sure you remember them. And even if you cannot, keep the case summary/facts (which are usually interesting) in mind.

If you get a chance to talk to other advocates or seniors, please do that.

In your college, be active in activities like the Moot Court.

Plus, whenever possible and via whatever medium, make sure you read general studies. It is important not only for law exams but all other job and competitive exams as well.

This is how to study law effectively for your law college, entrance exams, bachelor’s degree in law, and competitive law exams. I hope the above tips gave you some insight.

How can WritingLaw’s study material help me?

Bare Acts are the most important thing in law.

WritingLaw has the above Bare Acts as friendly, beautiful, colourful PDFs. It’s affordable, and you will love reading from them.

If you (a law student, advocate, judge, or someone similar) have already read some Acts and are prepared to test your legal knowledge, you can do that using our excellent MCQ Tests.

But if you are just starting, you may skip the tests and only focus on Bare Act PDFs. After some months or a year, come back and buy the MCQ tests.

How to start studying Law
WritingLaw

Ab Initio is a Latin legal maxim that means “from the beginning.”

When something is said to be void ab initio, it means it was invalid from the very start, as if it never legally existed.

It treats an act, contract, or order as having no legal effect from the moment it was created, not just from the time it was declared invalid.

For example:

• If a contract is signed under fraud, the court may declare the contract void ab initio, meaning the contract is considered never valid at all, not even for a moment.
• A marriage prohibited under law (for example, bigamy under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955) is void ab initio, meaning it was never treated as legally valid.

In short, “Ab Initio” in the legal sense means “invalid from the very beginning.”

What Is the Meaning of “Ab Initio” in law
WritingLaw

An Act to amend and consolidate the law relating to legal practitioners and to provide for the constitution of the Bar Councils and an All-India Bar.

Be it enacted by Parliament in the Twelfth Year of the Republic of India as follows.

Advocates Act Full Bare Act

CHAPTER 1 – PRELIMINARY

1. Short title, extent and commencement.

(1) This Act may be called the Advocates Act, 1961.

(2) It extends to the whole of India.

(3) It shall, in relation to the territories other than those referred to in sub-section (4), come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

(4) This Act shall, in relation to the State (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu, come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint in this behalf, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

2. Definitions.

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—

(a) “advocate” means an advocate entered in any roll under the provisions of this Act;

(b) “appointed day”, in relation to any provision of this Act, means the day on which that provision comes into force;

(c) Omitted

(d) “Bar Council” means a Bar Council constituted under this Act;

(e) “Bar Council of India” means the Bar Council constituted under section 4 for the territories to which this Act extends;

(f) Omitted

(g) “High Court” , except in sub-section (1) and sub-section (1A) of section 34 and in sections 42 and 43, does not include a court of the Judicial Commissioner, and, in relation to a State Bar Council, means,—

(i) in the case of a Bar Council constituted for a State or for a State and one or more Union territories, the High Court for the State;
(ii) in the case of the Bar Council constituted for Delhi, the High Court of Delhi;

(h) “law graduate” means a person who has obtained a bachelor’s degree in law from any University established by law in India;

(i) “Legal practitioner” means an advocate or vakil or any High Court, a pleader, mukhtar or revenue agent;

(j) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;

(k) “roll” means a roll of advocates prepared and maintained under this Act;

(l) “State” does not include a Union territory;

(m) “State Bar Council” means a Bar Council constituted under section 3;

(n) “State roll” means a roll of advocates prepared and maintained by a State Bar Council under section 17.

(2) Any reference in this Act to a law which is not in force in the State (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir or in the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu, shall, in relation to that State or that territory, be construed as a reference to the corresponding law, if any, in force in that State or that territory, as the case may be.

CHAPTER 2 – BAR COUNCILS

3. State Bar Councils.

(1) There shall be a Bar Council—

(a) for each of States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, (UT) Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal, to be known as the Bar Council of that State;

(b) for the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura to be known as the Bar Council of Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh;

(c) for the State of Kerala and the Union territory of Lakshadweep, to be known as the Bar Council of Kerala;

(cc) for the State of Tamil Nadu and the Union territory of Pondicherry to be known as the Bar Council of Madras;

(ccc) for the States of Maharashtra and Goa, and the Union territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, to be known as the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa;

(d) for the States of Punjab and Haryana, and the Union territory of Chandigarh, to be known as the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana;

(dd) for the State of Himachal Pradesh, to be known as the Bar Council of Himachal Pradesh;

(e) for the State of West Bengal and the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, to be known as the Bar Council of West Bengal; and

(f) for the Union territory of Delhi, to be known as the Bar Council of Delhi.

(2) A State Bar Council shall consist of the following members, namely—

(a) in the case of the State Bar Council of Delhi, the Additional Solicitor General of India ex officio in the case of the State Bar Council of Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura, the Advocate General of each of the State of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura, ex officio; in the case of the State Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana, the Advocate-General of each of the State of Punjab and Haryana, ex officio; and in the case of any other State Bar Council, the Advocate-General of the State, ex officio;

(b) in the case of a State Bar Council with an electorate not exceeding five thousand, fifteen members, in the case of a State Bar Council with an electorate exceeding five thousand but not exceeding ten thousand, twenty members, and in the case of the State Bar Council with an electorate exceeding ten thousand, twenty-five members, elected in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote from amongst advocates on the electoral roll of the State Bar Council:

Provided that as nearly as possible one-half of such elected members shall subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf by the Bar Council of India, be persons who have for at least ten years been advocates on a State roll, and in computing the said period of ten years in relation to any such person, there shall be included any period during which the person has been an advocate enrolled under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926.

(3) There shall be a Chairman and a Vice-Chairman of each State Bar Council elected by the Council in such manner as may be prescribed.

(3A) Every person holding office as Chairman or as Vice-Chairman of any State Bar Council immediately before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1977 shall, on such commencement, cease to hold office as Chairman or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be:
Provided that every such person shall continue to carry on the duties of his office until the Chairman or the Vice-Chairman, as the case may be, of each State Bar Council, elected after the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1977, assumes charge of the office.

(4) An Advocate shall be disqualified from voting at an election under sub-section (2) or for being chosen as, and for being, a member of State Bar Council, unless he possesses such qualifications or satisfies such conditions as may be prescribed in this behalf by the Bar Council of India, and subject to any such rules that may be made, an electoral roll shall be prepared and revised from time to time by each State Bar Council.

(5) Nothing in the proviso to sub-section (2) shall affect the term of office of any member elected before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1964, but every election after such commencement shall be held in accordance with the provisions of the rules made by the Bar Council of India to give effect to the said proviso.

(6) Nothing in clause (b) of sub-section (2) shall affect the representation of elected members in any State Bar Council as constituted immediately before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1973, until that State Bar Council is reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

4. Bar Council of India.

(1) There shall be a Bar Council for the territories to which this Act extends to be known as the Bar Council of India which shall consist of the following members, namely—

(a) the Attorney-General of India, ex officio;

(b) the Solicitor-General of India, ex officio;

(bb) Clause (bb) omitted

(c) one member elected by each State Bar Council from amongst its members.

(1A) No person shall be eligible for being elected as a member of the Bar Council of India unless he possesses the qualifications specified in the proviso to sub-section (2) of section 3.

(2) There shall be a Chairman and a Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council of India elected by the Council in such manner as may be prescribed.

(2A) A person holding office as Chairman or as Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council of India immediately before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1977, shall, on such commencement, cease to hold office as Chairman or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be:
Provided that such person shall continue to carry on the duties of his office until the Chairman or the Vice-Chairman, as the case may be, of the Council, elected after the commencement of the Advocates (Amendments) Act, 1977, assumes charge of the office.

(3) The term of office of a member of the Bar Council of India elected by the State Bar Council shall—

(i) in the case of a member of a State Bar Council who holds office ex-officio, be two years from the date of his election or till he ceases to be a member of the State Bar Council, whichever is earlier; and

(ii) in any other case, be for the period for which he holds office as a member of the State Bar Council:

Provided that every such member shall continue to hold office as a member of the Bar Council of India until his successor is elected.

5. Bar Council to be body corporate.

Every Bar Council shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal, with power to acquire and hold property, both movable and immovable, and to contract, and may be the name by which it is known sue and be sued.

6. Functions of State Bar Councils.

(1) The functions of a State Bar Council shall be—

(a) to admit persons as advocates on its roll;

(b) to prepare and maintain such roll;

(c) to entertain and determine cases of misconduct against advocates on its roll;

(d) to safeguard the rights, privileges and interests of advocates on its roll;

(dd) to promote the growth of Bar Associations for the purposes of effective implementation of the welfare schemes referred to in clause (a) of sub-section (2) of this section clause (a) of sub-section (2) of section 7;

(e) to promote and support law reform;

(ee) to conduct seminars and organise talks on legal topics by eminent jurists and publish journals and paper of legal interest;

(eee) to organise legal aid to the poor in the prescribed manner;

(f) to manage and invest the funds of the Bar Council;

(g) to provide for the election of its members;

(gg) to visit and inspect Universities in accordance with the directions given under clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 7;

(h) to perform all other functions conferred on it by or under this Act;

(i) to do all other things necessary for discharging the aforesaid functions.

(2) A State Bar Council may constitute one or more funds in the prescribed manner for the purpose of—

(a) giving financial assistance to organise welfare schemes for the indigent, disabled or other advocates;

(b) giving legal aid or advice in accordance with the rules made in this behalf;

(c) establishing law libraries.

(3) A State Bar Council may receive any grants, donations, gifts or benefactions for all or any of the purposes specified in sub-section (2) which shall be credited to the appropriate fund or funds constituted under that sub-section.

7. Functions of Bar Council of India.

(1) The functions of the Bar Council of India shall be—

(a) Clause (a) omitted.

(b) to lay down standards of professional conduct and etiquette for advocates;

(c) to lay down the procedure to be followed by its disciplinary committee and the disciplinary committee of each State Bar Council;

(d) to safeguard the rights, privileges and interests of advocates;

(e) to promote and support law reform;

(f) to deal with and dispose of any matter arising under this Act, which may be referred to it by a State Bar Council;

(g) to exercise general supervision and control over State Bar Councils;

(h) to promote legal education and to lay down standards of such education in consultation with the Universities in India imparting such education and the State Bar Councils;

(i) to recognise Universities whose degree in law shall be a qualification for enrolment as an advocate and for that purpose to visit and inspect Universities or cause the State Bar Councils to visit and inspect Universities in accordance with such directions as it may give in this behalf;

(ia) to conduct seminars and organize talks on legal topics by eminent jurists and publish journals and papers of legal interest;
(ib) to organise legal aid to the poor in the prescribed manner;
(ic) to recognise on a reciprocal basis foreign qualifications in law obtained outside India for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act;

(j) to manage and invest the funds of the Bar Council;

(k) to provide for the election of its members;

(l) to perform all other functions conferred on it by or under this Act.

(m) to do all other things necessary for discharging the aforesaid functions;

(2) The Bar Council of India may constitute one or more funds in the prescribed manner for the purpose of—

(a) giving financial assistance to organise welfare schemes for indigent, disabled or other advocates;

(b) giving legal aid or advice in accordance with the rules made in this behalf;

(c) establishing law libraries.

(3) The Bar Council of India may receive any grants, donations, gifts or benefactions for all or any of the purposes specified in sub-section (2) which shall be credited to the appropriate fund or funds constituted under that sub-section.

7A. Membership in international bodies.

The Bar Council of India may become a member of international legal bodies such as the International Bar Association or the International Legal Aid Association, contribute such sums as it thinks fit to such bodies by way of subscription or otherwise and authorise expenditure on the participation of its representatives in any international legal conference or seminar.

8. Term of office of Members of State Bar Council.

The term of office of an elected member of a State Bar Council (other than an elected member thereof referred to in section 54) shall be five years from the date of publication of the result of his election:
Provided that where a State Bar Council fails to provide for the election of its member before the expiry of the said term, the Bar Council of India may, by order for reasons to be recorded in writing, extend the said term, the Bar Council of India may, by order, extend the said term for a period not exceeding six months.

8A. Constitution of Special Committee in the absence of election.

(1) Where a State Bar Council fails to provide for the election of its members before the expiry of the term of five years or the extended term, as the case may be, referred to in section 8, the Bar Council of India shall, on and from the date immediately following the day of such expiry, constitute a Special Committee consisting of—

(i) the ex officio member of the State Bar Council referred to in clause (a) of sub-section (2) of section 3 to be the Chairman:
Provided that where there are more than one ex officio members, the senior-most amongst them shall be the Chairman; and

(ii) two members to be nominated by the Bar Council of India from amongst advocates on the electoral roll of the State Bar Council,

to discharge the functions of the State Bar Council until the Bar Council is constituted under this Act.

(2) On the constitution of the Special Committee and until the State Bar Council is constituted—

(a) all properties and assets vesting in the State Bar Council shall vest in the Special Committee;
(b) all rights, liabilities and obligations of the State Bar Council, whether arising out of any contract or otherwise, shall be the rights, liabilities and obligations of the Special Committee;
(c) all proceedings pending before the State Bar Council in respect of any disciplinary matter or otherwise shall stand transferred to the Special Committee.

(3) The Special Committee constituted under sub-section (1) shall, in accordance with such directions as the Bar Council of India may give to it in this behalf, hold election to the State Bar Council within a period of six months from the date of its constitution under sub-section (1), and where, for any reason the Special Committee is not in a position to conduct election within the said period of six months, the Bar Council of India may, for reasons to be recorded by it in writing, extends the said period.

9. Disciplinary Committees.

(1) A Bar Council shall constitute one or more disciplinary committees, each of which shall consist of three persons of whom two shall be persons elected by the Council from amongst its members and the other shall be a person co-opted by the Council from amongst advocates who possess the qualifications specified in the proviso to sub-section (2) of section 3 and who are not members of the Council, and the senior-most advocate amongst the members of a disciplinary committee shall be the Chairman thereof.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), any disciplinary committee constituted prior to the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1964, may dispose of the proceedings pending before it as if this section had not been amended by the said Act.

9A. Constitution of legal aid Committees.

(1) A Bar Council may constitute one or more legal aid committees each of which shall consist of such number of members, not exceeding nine but not less than five, as may be prescribed.

(2) The qualifications, the method of selection and the term of office of the members of a legal aid committee shall be such as may be prescribed.

10. Constitution of committees other than disciplinary committees.

(1) A State Bar Council shall constitute the following standing committees, namely—

(a) an executive committee consisting of five members elected by the Council from amongst its members;

(b) an enrolment committee consisting of three members elected by the Council from amongst its members.

(2) The Bar Council of India shall constitute the following standing committees, namely—

(a) an executive committee consisting of nine members elected by the Council from amongst its members;

(b) a legal education committee consisting of ten members, of whom five shall be persons elected by the Council from amongst its members and five shall be persons co-opted by the Council who are not members thereof.

(3) A State Bar Council and the Bar Council of India may constitute from amongst its members such other committees as it may deem necessary for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act.

10A. Transaction of business by Bar Councils and committees thereof.

(1) The Bar Council of India shall meet at New Delhi or at such other place as it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, determine.

(2) A State Bar Council shall meet at its headquarters or at such other place as it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, determine.

(3) The committees other than disciplinary committees continued by the Bar Councils shall meet at the headquarters of the respective Bar Councils.

(4) Every Bar Council and every committee thereof except the disciplinary committees shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at their meetings as may be prescribed.

(5) The disciplinary committees constituted under section 9 shall meet at such times and places and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at their meetings as may be prescribed.

10B. Disqualification of members of Bar Council.

An elected member of a Bar Council shall be deemed to have vacated his office if he is declared by the Bar Council of which he is a member to have been absent without sufficient excuse from three consecutive meetings of such Council, or if his name is, for any cause, removed from the roll of advocates or if he is otherwise disqualified under any rule made by the Bar Council of India.

11. Staff of Bar Council.

(1) Every Bar Council shall appoint a Secretary and may appoint an accountant and such number of other persons on its staff as it may deem necessary.

(2) The Secretary and the accountant, if any, shall possess such qualification as may be prescribed.

12. Accounts and audit.

(1) Every Bar Council shall cause to be maintained such books of accounts and other books in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed.

(2) The accounts of a Bar Council shall be audited by auditors duly qualified to act as auditors of companies under the Companies Act, 1956, at such times and in such manner as may be prescribed.

(3) As soon as may be practicable at the end of each financial year, but not later than the 31st day of December of the year next following, a State Bar Council shall send a copy of its accounts together with a copy of the report of the auditors thereon to the Bar Council of India and shall cause the same to be published in the Official Gazette.

(4) As soon as may be practicable at the end of each financial year, but not later than the 31st day of December of the year next following, the Bar Council of India shall send a copy of its accounts together with a copy of the report of the auditors thereon to the Central Government and shall cause the same to be published in the Gazette of India.

13. Vacancies in Bar Council and Committees thereof not to invalidate action taken.

No acts done by a Bar Council or any committee thereof shall be called in question on the ground merely of the existence of any vacancy in, or any defect in the constitution of, the Council or committee, as the case may be.

14. Election to Bar Councils not to be questioned on certain grounds.

No election of a member to a Bar Council shall be called in question on the ground merely that due notice thereof has not been given to any person entitled to vote threat, if notice of the date has, not less than thirty days before that date, been published in the Official Gazette.

15. Power to make rules.

(1) A Bar Council may make rules to carry out the purposes of this Chapter.

(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for—

(a) the election of members of the Bar Council by secret ballot including the conditions subject to which persons can exercise the right to vote by postal ballot, the preparation and revision of electoral rolls and the manner in which the result of election shall be published;

(b) Clause (b) omitted in 1974.

(c) the manner of election of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council;

(d) the manner in which and the authority by which doubts and disputes as to the validity of an election to the Bar Council or to the office of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman shall be finally decided;

(e) Omitted

(f) the filling of casual vacancies in the Bar Council;

(g) the powers and duties of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council;

(ga) the constitution of one or more funds by a Bar Council for the purpose of giving financial assistance or giving legal aid or advice referred to in sub-section (2) of section 6 and sub-section (2) of section 7;

(gb) organisation of legal aid and advice to the poor, constitution and functions of committees and sub-committees for that purpose and description of proceedings in connection with which legal aid or advice may be given;

(h) the summoning and holding of meetings of the Bar Council, the conduct of business threat, and the number of members necessary to constitute a quorum;

(i) the constitution and functions of any committee of the Bar Council and the term of office of members of any such committee;

(j) the summoning and holding of meetings, the conduct of business of any such committee, and the number of members necessary to constitute a quorum;

(k) the qualifications and the conditions of service of the secretary, the accountant and the other employees of the Bar Council;

(l) the maintenance of books of accounts and other books by the Bar Council;

(m) the appointment of auditors and the audit of the accounts of the Bar Council;

(n) the management and investment of the funds of the Bar Council.

(3) No rules made under this section by a State Bar Council shall have effect unless they have been approved by the Bar Council of India.

CHAPTER 3 – ADMISSION AND ENROLMENT OF ADVOCATES

16. Senior and other advocates.

(1) There shall be two classes of advocates, namely, senior advocates and other advocates.

(2) An advocate may, with his consent, be designated as senior advocate if the Supreme Court or a High Court is of opinion that by virtue of his ability standing at the Bar or special knowledge or experience in law he is deserving of such distinction.

(3) Senior advocates shall, in the matter of their practice, be subject to such restrictions as the Bar Council of India may, in the interest of the legal profession, prescribe.

(4) An advocate of the Supreme Court who was a senior advocate of that Court immediately before the appointed day shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be a senior advocate:

Provided that where any such senior advocate makes an application before the 31st December, 1965 to the Bar Council maintaining the roll in which his name has been entered that he does not desire to continue as a senior advocate, the Bar Council may grant the application and the roll shall be altered accordingly.

17. State Bar Councils to maintain roll of advocates.

(1) Every State Bar Council shall prepare and maintain a roll of advocates in which shall be entered the names and addresses of—

(a) all persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of any High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, immediately before the appointed day including persons, being citizens of India, who before the 15th day of August, 1947, were enrolled as advocates under the said Act in any area which before the said date was comprised within India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935, and who at any time express an intention in the prescribed manner to practise within the jurisdiction of the Bar Council;

(b) all other persons who are admitted to be advocates on the roll of the State Bar Council under this Act on or after the appointed day.

(2) Each such roll of advocates shall consist of two parts, the first part containing the names of senior advocates and the second part, the names of other advocates.

(3) Entries in each part of the roll of advocates prepared and maintained by a State Bar Council under this section shall be in the order of seniority, and, subject to any rule that may be made by the Bar Council of India in this behalf, such seniority shall be determined as follows—

(a) the seniority of an advocate referred to in clause (a) sub-section (1) shall be determined in accordance with his date of enrolment under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926;

(b) the seniority of any person who was a senior advocate of the Supreme Court immediately before the appointed day shall, for the purposes of the first part of the State roll, be determined in accordance with such principles as the Bar Council of India may specify;

(c) Clause (c) omitted.

(d) the seniority of any other person who, on or after the appointed day, is enrolled as a senior advocate or is admitted as an advocate shall be determined by the date of such enrolment or admission, as the case may be;

(e) notwithstanding anything contained in clause (a), the seniority of an attorney enrolled [whether before or after the commencement of the Advocate (Amendment) Act, 1980 as an advocate shall be determined in accordance with the date of his enrolment as an attorney.

(4) No person shall be enrolled as an advocate on the roll of more than one State Bar Council.

18. Transfer of name from one State roll to another.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 17, any person whose name is entered as an advocate on the roll of any State Bar Council may make an application in the prescribed form to the Bar Council of India for the transfer of his name from the roll of that State Bar Council to the roll of any other State Bar Council and, on receipt of any such application the Bar Council of India shall direct that the name of such person shall without the payment of any fee, be removed from the roll of the first mentioned State Bar Council and entered in the roll of the other State Bar Council and the State Bar Councils concerned shall comply with such direction:
Provided that where any such application for transfer is made by a person against whom any disciplinary proceeding is pending or where for any other reason it appears to the Bar Council of India that the application for transfer has not been made bona fide and that the transfer should not be made, the Bar Council of India may, after giving the person making the application an opportunity of making a representation in this behalf, reject the application.

(2) For the removal of doubts it is hereby declared that where on an application made by an advocate under sub-section (1), his name is transferred from the roll of one State Bar Council to that of another, he shall retain the same seniority in the latter roll to which he was entitled in the former roll.

19. State Bar Councils to send copies of rolls of advocates to the Bar Council of India.

Every State Bar Council shall send to the Bar Council of India an authenticated copy of the roll of advocates prepared by it for the first time under this Act and shall thereafter communicate to the Bar Council of India all alterations in, the additions to, any such roll, as soon as the same have been made.

20. Special provision for enrolment of certain Supreme Court advocates.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Chapter, every advocate who was entitled as of right to practise in the Supreme Court immediately before the appointed day and whose name is not entered in any State roll may, within the prescribed time, express his intention in the prescribed form to the Bar Council of India for the entry of his name in the roll of a State Bar Council and on receipt thereof the Bar Council of India shall direct that the name of such advocate shall, without payment of any fee, be entered in the roll of that State Bar Council, and the State Bar Council concerned shall comply with such direction.

(2) Any entry in the State roll made in compliance with the direction of the Bar Council of India under sub-section (1) shall be made in the order of seniority determined in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (3) of section 17.

(3) Where an advocate referred to in sub-section (1) omits or fails to express his intention within the prescribed time, his name shall be entered in the roll of the State Bar Council of Delhi.

21. Disputes regarding seniority.

(1) Where the date of seniority of two or more persons is the same, the one senior in age shall be reckoned as senior to the other.

(2) Subject as aforesaid, if any dispute arises with respect to the seniority of any person, it shall be referred to the State Bar Council concerned for decision.

22. Certificate of enrolment.

(1) There shall be issued a certificate of enrolment in the prescribed form by the State Bar Council to every person whose name is entered in the roll of advocates maintained by it under this Act.

(2) Every person whose name is so entered in the State roll shall notify any change in the place of his permanent residence to the State Bar Council concerned within ninety days of such change.

23. Right of pre-audience.

(1) The Attorney-General of India shall have pre-audience over all other advocates.

(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (1), the Solicitor-General of India shall have pre-audience over all other advocates.

(3) Subject to the provisions of sub-sections (1) and (2), the Additional Solicitor-General of India shall have pre-audience over all other advocates.

(3A) Subject to the provisions of sub-sections (1), (2) and (3), the second Additional Solicitor-General of India shall have pre-audience over all other advocates.

(4) Subject to the provisions of sub-sections (1), (2), (3) and (3A), the Advocate-General of any State shall have pre-audience over all other advocates, and the right of pre-audience among Advocates-General inter se shall be determined by their respective seniority.

(5) Subject as aforesaid—

(i) senior advocates shall have pre-audience over other advocates; and
(ii) the right of pre-audience of senior advocates inter se shall be determined by their respective seniority.

24. Persons who may be admitted as advocates on a State roll.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, and the rules made thereunder, a person shall be qualified to be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if he fulfils the following conditions, namely—

(a) he is a citizen of India:
Provided that subject to the other provisions contained in this Act, a national of any other country may be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if citizens of India, duly qualified, are permitted to practise law in that other country;

(b) he has completed the age of twenty-one years;

(c) he has obtained a degree in law—

(i) before the 12th day of March, 1967, from any University in the territory of India; or
(ii) before the 15th August, 1947, from any University in any area which was comprised before that date within India as defined by the Government of India Act, 1935; or
(iii) after the 12th day of March, 1967, save as provided in sub-clause (iiia), after undergoing a three year course of study in law from any University in India which is recognised for the purposes of this Act by the Bar Council of India; or
(iiia) after undergoing a course of study in law, the duration of which is not less than two academic years commencing from the academic year 1967-68 or any earlier academic year from any University in India which is recognised for the purposes of this Act by the Bar Council of India; or
(iv) in any other case, from any University outside the territory of India, if the degree is recognised for the purposes of this Act by the Bar Council of India; or

he is barrister and is called to the Bar on or before the 31st day of December, 1976 or has passed the article clerks examination or any other examination specified by the High Court at Bombay or Calcutta for enrolment as an attorney of that High Court; or has obtained such other foreign qualification in law as is recognised by the Bar Council of India for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act;

(d) Clause (d) omitted.

(e) he fulfils such other conditions as may be specified in the rules made by the State Bar Council under this Chapter;

(f) he has paid, in respect of the enrolment, stamp duty, if any, chargeable under the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, and an enrolment fee payable to the State Bar Council of six hundred rupees and to the Bar Council of India, one hundred and fifty rupees by way of a bank draft drawn in favour of that Council:
Provided that where such person is a member of the Schedule Castes or the Schedule Tribes and produces a certificate to that effect from such authority as may be prescribed, the enrolment fee payable by him to the State Bar Council shall be one hundred rupees and to the Bar Council of India, twenty-five rupees.

Explanation: For the purposes of this sub-section, a person shall be deemed to have obtained a degree in law from a University in India on that date on which the results of the examination for that degree are published by the University on its notice board or otherwise declaring him to have passed that examination.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), a vakil or a pleader who is a law graduate may be admitted as an advocate on a State roll if he—

(a) makes an application for such enrolment in accordance with the provisions of this Act, not later than two years from the appointed day, and

(b) fulfils the conditions specified in clauses (a), (b), (e) and (f) of sub-section (1).

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) a person who—

(a) has, for at least three years, been a vakil or pleader or a mukhtar, or, was entitled at any time to be enrolled under any law as an advocate of a High Court (including a High Court of a former Part B State) or of a Court of Judicial Commissioner in any Union territory; or

(aa) before the 1st day of December, 1961, was entitled otherwise than as an advocate practise the profession of law (whether by of pleading or acting or both) by virtue of the provision of any law, or who would have been so entitled had he not been in public service on the said date; or

(b) Clause (b) omitted.

(c) before the 1st day of April, 1937, has been an advocate of any High Court in any area which was comprised within Burma as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935; or

(d) is entitled to be enrolled as an advocate under any rule made by the Bar Council of India in this behalf,

may be admitted as an advocate on a State roll if he—

(i) makes an application for such enrolment in accordance with the provisions of this Act; and
(ii) fulfils the conditions specified in clauses (a), (b), (e) and (f) of sub-section (1).

24A. Disqualification for enrolment.

(1) No person shall be admitted as an advocate on a State roll—

(a) if he is convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude;

(b) if he is convicted of an offence under the provisions of the Untouchability (Offences) Act, 1955;

(c) if he is dismissed or removed from employment or office under the State on any charge involving moral turpitude.
Explanation: In this clause, the expression “State” shall have the meaning assigned to it under Article 12 of the Constitution:

Provided that the disqualification for enrolment as aforesaid shall cease to have effect after a period of two years has elapsed since his release or dismissal or, as the case may be, removal.

(2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to a person who having been found guilty is dealt with under the provisions of the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958.

25. Authority to whom applications for enrolment may be made.

An application for admission as an advocate shall be made in the prescribed form to the State Bar Council within whose jurisdiction the applicant proposes to practise.

26. Disposal of applications for admission as an advocate.

(1) A State Bar Council shall refer every application for admission as an advocate to its enrolment committee, and subject to the provisions of sub-sections (2) and (3) and to any direction that may be given in writing by the State Bar Council in this behalf, such committee shall dispose of the application in the prescribed manner:
Provided that the Bar Council of India may, if satisfied, either on a reference made to it in this behalf or otherwise, that any person has got his name entered on the roll of advocates by misrepresentation as to an essential fact or by fraud or undue influence, remove the name of such person from the roll of advocates after giving him an opportunity of being heard.

(2) Where the enrolment committee of a State Bar Council proposes to refuse any such application, it shall refer the application for opinion to the Bar Council of India and every such reference shall be accompanied by a statement of the grounds in support of the refusal of the application.

(3) The enrolment committee of a State Bar Council shall dispose of any application referred to the Bar Council of India under sub-section (2) in conformity with the opinion of the Bar Council of India.

(4) Where the enrolment committee of a State Bar Council has refused any application for admission as an advocate on its roll, the State Bar Council shall, as soon as may be, send intimation to all other State Bar Councils about such refusal stating the name, address and qualifications of the person whose application was refused and the grounds for the refusal.

26A. Power to remove names from roll.

A State Bar Council may remove from the State roll the name of any advocate who is dead or from whom a request has been received to that effect.

27. Application once refused not to be entertained by another Bar Council except in certain circumstances.

Where a State Bar Council has refused the application of any person for admission as an advocate on its roll, no other State Bar Council shall entertain an application for admission of such person as an advocate on its roll, except with the previous consent in writing of the State Bar Council which refused the application and of the Bar Council of India.

28. Power to make rules.

(1) A State Bar Council may make rules to carry out the purposes of this Chapter.

(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for—

(a) the time within which and form in which an advocate shall express his intention for the entry of his name in the roll of a State Bar Council under section 20;

(b) Clause (B) omitted.

(c) the form in which an application shall be made to the Bar Council for admission as an advocate on its roll and the manner in which such application shall be disposed of by the enrolment committee of the Bar Council;

(d) the conditions subject to which a person may be admitted as an advocate on any such roll;

(e) the instalments in which the enrolment fee may be paid.

(3) No rules made under this Chapter shall have effect unless they have been approved by the Bar Council of India.

CHAPTER 4 – RIGHT TO PRACTICE

29. Advocates to be the only recognised class of persons entitled to practise law.

Subject to the provisions of this Act and any rules made thereunder, there shall, as from the appointed day, be only one class of persons entitled to practise the profession of law, namely, advocates.

30. Right of advocates to practise.

Subject to provisions of this Act, every advocate whose name is entered in the State roll shall be entitled as of right to practise throughout the territories to which this Act extends,—

(i) in all courts, including the Supreme Court;

(ii) before any tribunal or person legally authorised to take evidence; and

(iii) before any other authority or person before whom such advocate is by or under any law for the time being in force entitled to practise.

31. Special provision for attorneys.

[Omitted by the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1976 (107 of 1976) w.e.f. 01.01.1977.]

32. Power of Court to permit appearances in particular cases.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Chapter, any court, authority, or person may permit any person, not enrolled as an advocate under this Act, to appear before it or him in any particular case.

33. Advocates alone entitled to practise.

Except as otherwise provided in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, no person shall, on or after the appointed day, be entitled to practise in any court or before any authority or person unless he is enrolled as an advocate under this Act.

34. Power of High Courts to make rules.

(1) The High Court may make rules laying down the conditions subject to which an advocate shall be permitted to practise in the High Court and the courts subordinate thereto.

(1A) The High Court shall make rules for fixing and regulating by taxation or otherwise the fees payable as costs by any party in respect of the fees of his adversary’s advocate upon all proceedings in the High Court or in any Court subordinate thereto.

(2) Without prejudice to the provisions contained in sub-section (1), the High Court at Calcutta may make rules providing for the holding of the Intermediate and the Final examinations for articled clerks to be passed by the persons referred to in section 58AG for the purpose of being admitted as advocates on the State roll and any other matter connected therewith.

CHAPTER 5 – CONDUCT OF ADVOCATES

35. Punishment of advocates for misconduct.

(1) Where on receipt of a complaint or otherwise a State Bar Council has reason to believe that any advocate on its roll has been guilty of professional or other misconduct, it shall refer the case for disposal to its disciplinary committee.

(1A) The State Bar Council may, either of its own motion or on application made to it by any person interested, withdraw a proceeding pending before its disciplinary committee and direct the inquiry to be made by any other disciplinary committee of that State Bar Council.

(2) The disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council shall fix a date for the hearing of the case and shall cause a notice thereof to be given to the advocate concerned and to the Advocate-General of the State.

(3) The disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council after giving the advocate concerned and the Advocate-General an opportunity of being heard, may make any of the following orders, namely—

(a) dismiss the complaint or, where the proceedings were initiated at the instance of the State Bar Council, direct that the proceedings be filed;

(b) reprimand the advocate;

(c) suspend the advocate from practice for such period as it may deem fit;

(d) remove the name of the advocate from the State roll of advocates.

(4) Where an advocate is suspended from practice under clause (c) of sub-section (3), he shall, during the period of suspension, be debarred from practising in any court or before any authority or person in India.

(5) Where any notice is issued to the Advocate-General under sub-section (2), the Advocate-General may appear before the disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council either in person or through any advocate appearing on his behalf.

Explanation: In this section, section 37 and section 38, the expressions “Advocate-General” and “Advocate-General of the State” shall, in relation to the Union territory of Delhi, mean the Additional Solicitor General of India.

36. Disciplinary powers of Bar Council of India.

(1) Where on receipt of a complaint or otherwise the Bar Council of India has reason to believe that any advocate whose name is not entered on any State roll has been guilty of professional or other misconduct, it shall refer the case for disposal to its disciplinary committee.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Chapter, the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India may, either of its own motion or on a report by a State Bar Council or on an application made to it by any person interested, withdraw for inquiry before itself any proceedings for disciplinary action against any advocate pending before the disciplinary committee of any State Bar Council and dispose of the same.

(3) The disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, in disposing of any case under this section, shall observe, so far as may be, the procedure laid down in section 35, the references to the Advocate-General in that section being construed as references to the Attorney-General of India.

(4) In disposing of any proceedings under this section the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India may make any order which the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council can make under sub-section (3) of section 35, and where any proceedings have been withdrawn for inquiry before the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India the State Bar Council concerned shall give effect to any such order.

36A. Changes in constitution of disciplinary committees.

Whenever in respect of any proceedings under section 35 or section 36, a disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council or a disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India ceases to exercise jurisdiction and is succeeded by another committee which has and exercises jurisdiction, the disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council or the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, as the case may be, so succeeding may continue the proceeding from the stage at which the proceedings were so left by its predecessor committee.

36B. Disposal of disciplinary proceedings.

(1) The disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council shall dispose of the complaint received by it under section 35 expeditiously and in each case the proceedings shall be concluded within a period of one year from the date of the receipt of the complaint or the date of initiation of the proceedings at the instance of the State Bar Council, as the case may be, failing which such proceedings shall stand transferred to the Bar Council of India which may dispose of the same as if it were a proceeding withdrawn for inquiry under sub-section (2) of section 36.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where on the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1973, any proceedings in the respect of any disciplinary matter against an advocate is pending before the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council, that disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council shall dispose of the same within a period of six months from the date of such commencement or within a period of one year from the date of the receipt of the complaint or, as the case may be the date of initiation of the proceedings at the instance of the State Bar Council, whichever is later, failing which such other proceedings shall stand transferred to the Bar Council of India for disposal under sub-section (1).

37. Appeal to the Bar Council of India.

(1) Any person aggrieved by an order of the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council made under section 35 or the Advocate General of the State may, within sixty days of the date of the communication of the order to him, prefer an appeal to the Bar Council of India.

(2) Every such appeal shall be heard by the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India which may pass such order (including an order varying the punishment awarded by the disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council) thereon as it deems fit:
Provided that no order of the disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council shall be varied by the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India so as to prejudicially affect the person aggrieved without giving him reasonable opportunity of being heard.

38. Appeal to the Supreme Court.

Any person aggrieved by an order made by the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India under section 36 or section 37 or the Attorney-General of India or the Advocate-General of the State concerned, as the case may be, may within sixty days of the date on which the order is communicated to him, prefer an appeal to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court may pass such order (including an order varying the punishment awarded by the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India) thereon as it deems fit:
Provided that no order of the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India shall be varied by the Supreme Court so as to prejudicially affect the person aggrieved without giving him a reasonable opportunity of being heard.

39. Application of sections 5 and 12 of Limitation Act, 1963.

The provisions of sections 5 and 12 of the Limitation Act, 1963, shall, so far as may be, apply to appeals under section 37 and section 38.

40. Stay of order.

(1) An appeal, made under section 37 or section 38, shall not operate as a stay of the order appealed against, but the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, or the Supreme Court, as the case may be, may, from sufficient cause, direct the stay of such order on such terms and conditions as it may deem fit.

(2) Where an application is made for the stay of the order before the expiration of the times allowed for appealing therefrom under section 37 or section 38, the disciplinary committee of the State Bar Council, or the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, as the case may be, may, for sufficient cause, direct the stay of such order on such terms and conditions as it may deem fit.

41. Alteration in roll of Advocates.

(1) Where an order is made under this Chapter reprimanding or suspending an advocate, a record of the punishment shall be entered against his name—

(a) in the case of an advocate whose name is entered in a State roll, in that roll;

(b) Clause (b) omitted

and where any order is made removing an advocate from practice, his name shall be struck off the State roll.

(3) Where any advocate is suspended or removed from practice, the certificate granted to him under section 22, in respect of his enrolment shall be recalled.

42. Powers of disciplinary committee.

(1) The disciplinary committee of a Bar Council shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, in respect of the following matters, namely—

(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring discovery and production of any documents;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning any public record or copies thereof from any court or office;
(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witness or documents;
(f) any other matter which may be prescribed:

Provided that no such disciplinary committee shall have the right to require the attendance of—

(a) any presiding officer of a Court except with the previous sanction of the High Court to which such court is subordinate;
(b) any officer of a revenue court except with the previous sanction of the State Government.

(2) All proceedings before a disciplinary committee of a Bar Council shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and every such disciplinary committee shall be deemed to be a civil court for the purposes of sections 480, 482 and 485 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898.

(3) For the purposes of exercising any of the powers conferred by sub-section (1), a disciplinary committee may send to any civil court in the territories to which this Act extends, any summons or other process, for the attendance of a witness or the production of a document required by the committee or any commission which it desires to issue, and the civil court shall cause such process to be served or such commission to be issued, as the case may be, and may enforce any such process as if it were a process for attendance or production before itself.

(4) Notwithstanding the absence of the Chairman or any member of a disciplinary committee on date fixed for the hearing of a case before it, the disciplinary committee may, if it so thinks fit, hold or continue the proceedings on the date so fixed and no such proceedings and no order made by the disciplinary committee in any such proceedings shall be invalid merely by reason of the absence of the Chairman or member thereof on any such date:
Provided that no final orders of the nature referred to in sub-section (3) of section 35 shall be made in any proceeding unless the Chairman and other members of the disciplinary committee are present.

(5) Where no final order of the nature referred to in sub-section (3) of section 35 can be made in any proceedings in accordance with the opinion of the Chairman and the members of a disciplinary committee either for want of majority opinion amongst themselves or otherwise, the case, with their opinion thereon, shall be laid before the Chairman of the Bar Council concerned or if the Chairman of the Bar Council is acting as the Chairman or a member of the disciplinary committee, before the Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council, and the said Chairman or the Vice Chairman of the Bar Council, as the case may be, after such hearing as he thinks fit, shall deliver his opinion and the final order of the disciplinary committee shall follow such opinion.

42A. Powers of Bar Council of India and other committees.

The provisions of section 42 shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to the Bar Council of India, the enrolment committee, the election committee, the legal aid committee, or any other committee of a Bar Council as they apply in relation to the disciplinary committee of a Bar Council.

43. Cost of proceedings before a disciplinary committee.

The disciplinary committee of a Bar Council may make such order as to the cost of any proceedings before it as it may deem fit and any such order shall be executable as if it were an order—

(a) in the case of an order of the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, of the Supreme Court;

(b) in the case of an order of the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council, of the High Court.

44. Review of orders by disciplinary committee.

The disciplinary committee of a Bar Council may of its own motion or otherwise review any order within sixty days of the date of that order passed by it under this Chapter:
Provided that no such order of review of the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council shall have effect unless it has been approved by the Bar Council of India.

CHAPTER 6 – MISCELLANEOUS

45. Penalty for persons illegally practising in courts and before other authorities.

Any person who practises in any court or before any authority or person, in or before whom he is not entitled to practise under the provisions of this Act, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months.

45A. Power to frame and publish lists of touts.

(1) Every High Court, District Judge, Sessions Judge, District Magistrate, and every Revenue-officer, not being below the rank of a Collector of a district (each as regards their or his own Court and the Courts, if any, subordinate thereto) may frame and publish lists of persons proved to their or his satisfaction, or to the satisfaction of any subordinate Court as provided in sub-section (3) by evidence of general repute or otherwise, habitually to act as touts, and may, from time to time, alter and amend such lists.

Explanation: The passing of a resolution, declaring any person to be or not to be a tout, by a majority of the members present at a meeting, specially convened for the purpose, of an association of persons entitled to practice as legal practitioners in any Court or revenue-office, shall be evidence of the general repute of such person for the purposes of this sub-section.

(2) No person’s name shall be included in any such list until he shall have had an opportunity of showing cause against such inclusion.

(3) Any authority empowered under sub-section (1) to frame and publish a list of touts may send to any Court subordinate to such authority the names of any persons alleged or suspected to be touts, and order that Court to hold an inquiry in regard to such persons; and the subordinate Court shall thereupon hold an inquiry into the conduct of such persons and, after giving each such person an opportunity of showing cause as provided in sub-section (2), shall report to the authority which has ordered the inquiry the name of each such person who has been proved to the satisfaction of the subordinate Court to be a tout; and that authority may include the name of any such person in the list of touts framed and published by that authority:
Provided that such authority shall hear any such person who, before his name has been so included, appears before it and desires to be heard.

(4) A copy of every such list shall be kept hung up in every Court to which the same relates.

(5) The Court or Judge may, by general or special order, exclude from the precincts of the Court any person whose name is included in any such list.

(6) Any person who acts as a tout whilst his name is included in any such list shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to three months, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.

(7) For the purposes of this section—

(a) “Judge” means the presiding judicial officer in every Civil and Criminal Court, by whatever title he is designated;

(b) “subordinate Court” means all Courts subordinate to the High Court, including Courts of Small Causes established under any law for the time being in force;

(c) “revenue-office” includes all Courts (other than Civil Courts) trying suits under any law for the time being in force relating to landholders and their tenants or agents;

(d) “tout” means a person—

(i) who procures, in consideration of any remuneration moving from any legal practitioner, the employment of the legal practitioner in any legal business; or who proposes to any legal practitioner or to any person interested in any legal business to procure, in consideration of any remuneration moving from either of them, the employment of the legal practitioner in such business; or
(ii) who for the purposes of such procurement frequents the precincts of Civil or Criminal Courts or of revenue-offices, or railway stations, landing stages, lodging places or other places of public resort.

46. Payment of part of enrolment fees to the Bar Council of India.

[Omitted by Act 70 of 1993 w.e.f. 26.12.1993)]

46A. Financial assistance to State Bar Council.

The Bar Council of India may, if it is satisfied that any State Bar Council is in need of funds for the purpose of performing its functions under this Act, give such financial assistance as it deems fit to that Bar Council by way of grant or otherwise.

47. Reciprocity.

(1) Where any country, specified by the Central Government in this behalf by notification in the Official Gazette, prevents citizens of India from practising the profession of law or subjects them to unfair discrimination in that country, no subject of any such country shall be entitled to practise the profession of law in India.

(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (1), the Bar Council of India may prescribe the conditions, if any, subject to which foreign qualifications in law obtained by persons other than citizens of India shall be recognised for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act.

48. Indemnity against legal proceedings.

No suit or other legal proceeding shall lie against any Bar Council or any committee thereof or a member of a Bar Council or any Committee thereof for any act in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of the provisions of this Act or of any rules made thereunder.

48A. Power of revision.

(1) The Bar Council of India may, at any time, call for the record of any proceeding under this Act which has been disposed of by a State Bar Council or a Committee thereof, and from which no appeal lies, for the purpose of satisfying itself as to the legality or propriety of such disposal and may pass such orders in relation thereto as it may think fit.

(2) No order which prejudicially affects any person shall be passed under this section without giving him a reasonable opportunity of being heard.

48AA. Review.

The Bar Council of India or any of its committees, other than its disciplinary committee, may of its own motion or otherwise review any order, within sixty days of the date of that order, passed by it under this Act.

48B. Power to give directions.

(1) For the proper and efficient discharge of the functions of a State Bar Council or any Committee thereof, the Bar Council of India may, in the exercise of its powers of general supervision and control, give such directions to the State Bar Council or any committee thereof as may appear to it to be necessary, and the State Bar Council or the committee shall comply with such directions.

(2) Where a State Bar Council is unable to perform its functions for any reason whatsoever, the Bar Council of India may, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, give such directions to the ex officio member thereof as may appear to it to be necessary, and such directions shall have effect, notwithstanding anything contained in the rules made by the State Bar Council.

49. General power of the Bar Council of India to make rules.

(1) The Bar Council of India may make rules for discharging its functions under this Act, and, in particular, such rules may prescribe—

(a) the conditions subject to which an advocate may be entitled to vote at an election to the State Bar Council including the qualifications or disqualifications of voters, and the manner in which an electoral roll of voters may be prepared and revised by a State Bar Council;

(ab) qualifications for membership of a Bar Council and the disqualifications for such membership;

(ac) the time within which and the manner in which effect may be given to the proviso to sub-section (2) of section (3);

(ad) the manner in which the name of any advocate may be prevented from being entered in more than one State roll;

(ae) the manner in which the seniority among advocates may be determined;

(af) the minimum qualifications required for admission to a course of degree in law in any recognised University;

(ag) the class or category of persons entitled to be enrolled as advocates;

(ah) the conditions subject to which an advocate shall have the right to practise and the circumstances under which a person shall be deemed to practise as an advocate in a court;

(b) the form in which an application shall be made for the transfer of the name of an advocate from one State roll to another;

(c) the standard of professional conduct and etiquette to be observed by advocates;

(d) the standards of legal education to be observed by universities in India and the inspection of universities for that purpose;

(e) the foreign qualifications in law obtained by persons other than citizens of India which shall be recognised for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act;

(f) the procedure to be followed by the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council and by its own disciplinary committee;

(g) the restrictions in the matter of practice to which senior advocates shall be subject;

(gg) the form of dresses or robes to be worn by advocates, having regard to the climatic conditions, appearing before any court or tribunal;

(h) the fees which may be levied in respect of any matter under this Act;

(i) general principles for guidance of State Bar Councils and the manner in which directions issued or orders made by the Bar Council of India may be enforced;

(j) any other matter which may be prescribed:

Provided that no rules made with reference to clause (c) or clause (gg) shall have effect unless they have been approved by the Chief Justice of India:
Provided further that no rules made with reference to clause (e) shall have effect unless they have been approved by the Central Government.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the first proviso to sub-section (1), any rules made with reference to clause (c) or clause (gg) of the said sub-section and in force immediately before commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1973, shall continue in force until altered or repealed or amended in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

49A. Power of Central Government to make rules.

(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act including rules with respect to any matter for which the Bar Council of India or a State Bar Council has power to make rules.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for—

(a) qualifications for membership of a Bar Council and disqualifications for such membership;

(b) the manner in which the Bar Council of India may exercise supervision and control over State Bar Council and the manner in which the directions issued or orders made by the Bar Council of India may be enforced;

(c) the class or category of persons entitled to be enrolled as advocates under this Act;

(d) the category of persons who may be exempted from undergoing a course of training and passing an examination prescribed under clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 24;

(e) the manner in which seniority among advocates may be determined;

(f) the procedure to be followed by a disciplinary committee of a Bar Council in hearing cases and the procedure to be followed by a disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India in hearing appeals;

(g) any other matter which may be prescribed.

(3) Rules under this section may be made either for the whole of India or for all or any of the Bar Councils.

(4) If any provision of a rule made by a Bar Council is repugnant to any provision of a rule made by the Central Government under this section, then, the rule under this section, whether made before or after the rule made by the Bar Council, shall prevail and the rule made by the Bar Council shall, to the extent of the repugnancy, be void.

(5) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.

50. Repeal of certain enactments.

(1) On the date on which a State Bar Council is constituted under this Act, the provisions of sections 3 to 7 (inclusive), sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) of section 9, section 15 and section 20 of the Indian Bar Council Act, 1926, shall stand repealed in the territory for which the State Bar Council is constituted.

(2) On the Date on which Chapter III comes into force, the following shall stand repealed, namely—

(a) sections 6, 7, 18 and 37 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, and so much of sections 8, 9, 16, 17, 19 and 41 of that Act as relate to the admission and enrolment of legal practitioners;

(b) sections 3, 4, and 6 of the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920 (Bombay Act 17 of 1920);

(c) so much of section 8 of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, as relates to the admission and enrolment of legal practitioners;

(d) the provisions of the Letters Patent of any High Court and of any other law insofar as they relate to the admission and enrolment of legal practitioners.

(3) On the date on which Chapter IV comes into force, the following shall stand repealed, namely—

(a) sections 4, 5, 10 and 20 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, and so much of sections 8, 9, 19 and 41 of that Act as confer on legal practitioners the right to practise in any court or before any authority or person;

(b) sections 5, 7, 8, and 9 of the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920 (Bombay Act 17 of 1920);

(c) section 14 of the Indian Bar Council Act, 1926, and so much of sections 8 and 15 of that Act as confer on legal practitioners the right to practise in any court or before any authority or person;

(d) the Supreme Court Advocates (Practice in High Courts) Act, 1951;

(e) the provisions of the Letters Patent of any High Court and of any other law conferring on legal practitioners the right to practise in any court or before any authority or person.

(4) On the date on which Chapter V comes into force, the following shall stand repealed, namely—

(a) sections 12 to 15 (inclusive), sections 21 to 24 (inclusive) and sections 39 and 40 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, and so much of sections 16, 17 and 41 of that Act as relate to the suspension, removal or dismissal of legal practitioners;

(b) sections 24 to 27 (inclusive) of the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920 (Bombay Act 17 of 1920);

(c) sections 10 to 13 (inclusive) of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926;

(d) the provisions of the Letters Patent of any High Court and of any other law insofar as they relate to the suspension, removal or dismissal of legal practitioners.

(5) When the whole of this Act has come into force—

(a) the remaining provisions of the Acts referred to in this section which do not stand repealed by virtue of any of the foregoing provisions of this section [except sections 1, 3 and 36 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879 shall stand repealed;]

(b) the enactments specified in the Schedule shall stand repealed to the extent mentioned therein.

(6) On the date on which section 45A of the Advocates Act, 1961 (25 of 1961) comes into force, sections 1, 3 and 36 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879 (18 of 1879) shall stand repealed. (Inserted by Act 33 of 2023)

51. Rule of construction.

On and from the appointed day, references in any enactment to an advocate enrolled by a High Court in any form of words shall be construed as references to an advocate enrolled under this Act.

52. Saving.

Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to affect the power of the Supreme Court to make rules under Article 145 of the Constitution—

(a) for laying down the conditions subject to which a senior advocate shall be entitled to practise in that Court;

(b) for determining the persons who shall be entitled to act or plead in that Court.

CHAPTER 7 – TEMPORARY AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

53. Elections to first State Bar Council.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the elected members of a State Bar Council, constituted for the first time under this Act, shall be elected by and from amongst advocates, vakils, pleaders and attorneys who, on the date of the election, are entitled as of right to practise in the High Court and are ordinarily practising within the territory for which the Bar Council is to be constituted.

Explanation: Where the territory for which the Bar Council is to be constituted includes a Union territory, the expression “High Court” shall include the Court of the Judicial Commissioner of that Union territory.

54. Term of office of members of first State Bar Council.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the term of office of the elected members of a State Bar Council constituted for the first time, shall be two years from the date of the first meeting of the Council:
Provided that such members shall continue to hold office until the State Bar Council is reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

55. Rights of certain existing legal practitioners not affected.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act,—

(a) every pleader or vakil practising as such immediately before the date on which Chapter IV comes into force (hereinafter in this section referred to as the said date) by virtue of the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920, or any other law who does not elect to be, or is not qualified to be, enrolled as an advocate under this Act;

(b) Clause (b) omitted.

(c) every mukhtar practising as such immediately before the said date by virtue of the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, or any other law, who does not elect to be, or is not qualified to be, enrolled as an advocate under this Act;

(d) every revenue agent practising as such immediately before the said date by virtue of the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, or any other law,

shall, notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of the relevant provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920 (Bombay Act 17 of 1920), or other law, continue to enjoy the same right as respects practice in any court or revenue office or before any authority or person and be subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the same authority which he enjoyed or, as the case may be, to which he was subject immediately before the said date and accordingly the relevant provisions of the Acts or law aforesaid shall have effect in relation to such persons as if they had not been repealed.

56. Dissolution of existing Bar Council.

(1) On the constitution under this Act of a State Bar Council, other than the Bar Council of Delhi (hereinafter referred to as the new Bar Council)—

(a) all properties and assets vesting in the corresponding Bar Council shall vest in the new Bar Council;

(b) all rights, liabilities, and obligations or the corresponding Bar Council, whether arising out of any contract or otherwise, shall be the rights, liabilities and obligations respectively of the new Bar Council;

(c) all proceedings pending before the corresponding Bar Council in respect of any disciplinary matter or otherwise shall stand transferred to the new Bar Council.

(2) In this section, “corresponding Bar Council” in relation to a State Bar Council, other than the Bar Council of Delhi, means the Bar Council for the High Court in the territory for which the State Bar Council is constituted under this Act.

57. Power to make rules pending the constitution of a Bar Council.

Until a Bar Council is constituted under this Act the power of that Bar Council to make rules under this Act shall be exercised,—

(a) in the case of the Bar Council of India, by the Supreme Court;

(b) in the case of a State Bar Council, by the High Court.

58. Special provisions during the transitional period.

(1) Where a State Bar Council has not been constituted under this Act or where a State Bar Council so constituted is unable to perform its functions by reason of any order of a court or otherwise, the functions of the Bar Council or any Committee thereof, insofar as they relate to the admission and enrolment of advocates, shall be performed by the High Court in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

(2) Until Chapter IV comes into force, a State Bar Council or a High Court performing the functions of a State Bar Council may enrol any person to be an advocate on a State roll, if he is qualified to be so enrolled under this Act, notwithstanding that no rules have been made under Section 28 or that the rules so made have not been approved by the Bar Council of India, and every person so enrolled shall, until that Chapter comes into force, be entitled to all the rights of practice conferred on an advocate under section 14 of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, every person who, immediately before the 1st day of December, 1961, was an advocate on the roll of any High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, or who has been enrolled as an advocate under this Act shall, until Chapter IV comes into force, be entitled as of right to practise in the Supreme Court, subject to the rules made by the Supreme Court in this behalf.

(4) Notwithstanding the repeal by sub-section (2) of section 50 of the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, or of the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920 (Bombay Act 17 of 1920), or of any other law relating to the admission and enrolment of legal practitioners, the provisions of the Acts, and law aforesaid and any rules made thereunder insofar as they relate to the renewal or the issue by way of renewal of a certificate to a legal practitioner authorising him to practise shall have effect until Chapter IV comes into force and, accordingly, every certificate issued or renewed to a legal practitioner (who is not enrolled as an advocate under this Act) which is or purports to be issued or renewed under the provisions of either of the aforesaid Acts or of the other law during the period beginning with the 1st day of December, 1961 and ending with the date on which Chapter IV comes into force, shall be deemed to have been validly issued or renewed.

58A. Special provisions with respect to certain advocates.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all advocates who, immediately before the 26th day of July, 1948, were entitled to practise in the High Court in Allahabad or the Chief Court in Oudh and who under the provisions of the United Provinces High Courts (Amalgamation) Order, 1948 were recognised as advocates entitled to practise in the new High Court of Judicature at Allahabad but whose names were not formally entered on the roll of advocates of that High Court merely by reason of the non-payment of the fee payable to the Bar Council of the said High Court, and all advocates who were enrolled as such between the said date and the 26th day of May, 1952 shall, for the purposes of clause (a) (1) of section 17 be deemed to be persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of the said High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926 and every such person may, on an application being made in this behalf, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll of Uttar Pradesh.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all advocates who, immediately before the 10th day of October, 1952, were entitled to practise in the High Court of Hyderabad but whose names were not formally entered on the roll of advocates of that High Court merely by reason of the non-payment of the fee payable to the Bar Council of the said High Court shall, for the purposes of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 17, be deemed to be person who were entered as advocates on the roll of the said High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, and every such person may, on an application being made in this behalf, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll of Andhra Pradesh or of Maharashtra.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all advocates who, immediately before the 1st day of May, 1960, were entitled to practise in the High Court of Bombay and who applied to get their names entered on the roll of advocates of the High Court of Gujarat under the provisions of section 8 of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, but whose names were not so entered by reason of the repeal of the said provision shall, for the purposes of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 17, be deemed to be persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of the High Court of Gujarat under the said Act and every such person may, on an application being made in this behalf, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll of Gujarat.

(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all persons who immediately before the 1st day of December, 1961, were advocates on the roll of the Court of Judicial Commissioner in any Union territory under any law in force in that territory shall, for the purposes of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 17, be deemed to be persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of a High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926 and every such person may, on an application made in this behalf, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll maintained in respect of that Union territory.

58AA. Special provisions in relation to the Union territory of Pondicherry.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all persons who, immediately before the date on which the provisions of Chapter III are brought into force in the Union territory of Pondicherry, were entitled to practise the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both) under any law in force in the said Union territory or who would have been so entitled had they not been in public service on the said date, shall for the purposes of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 17, be deemed to be persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of a High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, and every such person may, on an application made in this behalf within such time as may be specified by the Bar Council of Madras, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll maintained in respect of the said Union territory.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, every person who, immediately before the date on which the provisions of Chapter IV are brought into force in the Union territory of Pondicherry, was practising the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both or in any other way) by virtue of the provisions of any law in force in the said Union territory, who does not elect to be or is not qualified to be, enrolled as an advocate under sub-section (1), shall, notwithstanding the repeal of the relevant provisions of such law by the Pondicherry (Extension of Laws) Act, 1968, continue to enjoy the same rights as respects practice in any court or revenue office or before any authority or person and be subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the same authority which he enjoyed, or, as the case may be, to which he was subject, immediately before the said date and accordingly the relevant provisions of the law aforesaid shall have effect in relation to such persons as if they had not been repealed.

58AB. Special provisions with respect to certain persons enrolled by Mysore State Bar Council.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any judgment, decree or order of any court or any resolution passed or direction given by the Bar Council of India, every person who was admitted as an advocate on the State roll by the State Bar Council of Mysore during the period beginning with the 28th day of February, 1963, and ending on the 31st day of March, 1964, on the basis of his having obtained a certificate of pleadership from the High Court of Mysore, shall, save as otherwise provided, be deemed to have been validly admitted as an advocate on that State roll and accordingly entitled to practise the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both):
Provided that where any such person elected to be enrolled as an advocate on the roll of any other State Bar Council, his name shall be deemed to have been struck off the roll of the State Bar Council of Mysore from the date he was enrolled by the other State Bar Council:
Provided further that the seniority of such person, whether his name is borne on the State roll of the State Bar Council or Mysore, or on the State roll of any other Bar Council, shall, for the purposes of clause (d) of sub-section (3) of section 17, be determined by reckoning the 16th day of May, 1964, as the date of admission.

58AC. Special provisions with respect to certain persons enrolled by Uttar Pradesh State Bar Council.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any judgment, decree or order of any court, every person who was enrolled as an advocate by the High Court during the period beginning with the 2nd day of January, 1962 and ending on the 25th day of May, 1962 and was subsequently admitted as an advocate on the State roll by the State Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh shall be deemed to have been validly admitted as an advocate on that State roll from the date of his enrolment by the High Court and accordingly entitled to practise the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both).

58AD. Special provisions with respect to certain persons migrating to India.

Notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, or of any other law relating to the admission and enrolment of legal practitioners (hereafter in this section referred to as such Act or law), every person who migrates to the territory of India from any area which, before the 15th day of August, 1947, was comprised within India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935, and who has, before such migration, been a pleader, mukhtar or revenue agent in any such area under any law in force therein, may be admitted and enrolled under the relevant provisions of such Act or law as a pleader, mukhtar or, as the case may be, revenue agent, if he—

(a) makes an application for the purpose to the appropriate authority under such Act or law; and

(b) is a citizen of India and fulfils other conditions, if any, specified in this behalf by the appropriate authority aforesaid,

and notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of the relevant provisions of such Act or law, every pleader, mukhtar or revenue agent so enrolled shall have the same rights as respects practice in any court or revenue office or before any other authority or person and be subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the same authority to which he would be subject under the relevant provisions of such Act or law as if they had been repealed and accordingly, those provisions shall have effect in relation to such persons.

58AE. Special provisions in relation to the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, all persons who, immediately before the date on which the provisions of Chapter III are brought into force in the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu, were entitled to practise the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both) under any law in force in the said Union territory or who would have been so entitled had they not been in public service on the said date, shall for the purpose of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 17, be deemed to be persons who were entered as advocates on the roll of a High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, and every such person may, on an application made in this behalf within such time as may be specified by the Bar Council of Maharashtra, be admitted as an advocate on the State roll maintained in respect of the said Union territory:
Provided that the provisions of this sub-section shall not apply to any person who, on the date of the application aforesaid, was not a citizen of India.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, every person who immediately before the date on which the provisions of Chapter IV are brought into force in the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu, was practising the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both or in any other way) by virtue of the provisions of any law in force in the said Union territory, or who does not elect to be or is not qualified to be enrolled as an advocate under sub-section (1), shall, notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of the relevant provisions of such law, continues to enjoy the same rights as respects practice in any court or revenue office or before any other authority or person and be, subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the same authority which he enjoyed or, as the case may be, to which he was subject, immediately before the said date and accordingly the relevant provisions of the law aforesaid shall have effect in relation to such person as if they had not been repealed.

(3) On the date on which this Act or any part thereof comes into force in the Union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu, the law in force in that Union territory which corresponds to this Act or such part and which does not stand repealed by virtue of the provisions of section 50 of this Act, shall also stand repealed.

58AF. Special provisions in relation to Jammu and Kashmir.

[Omitted by the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of Central Laws) Order, 2020.]

58AG. Special provisions in relation to articled clerks.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, every person who, immediately before the 31st day of December, 1976 has commenced his articleship and passed the Preliminary examination, for the purpose of enrolment as an attorney of the High Court at Calcutta in accordance with the rules made under sub-section (2) of section 34, before the omission of that sub-section by Advocates (Amendment) Act 1976, may be admitted as an advocate on the State roll if he—

(i) passes, on or before the 31st day of December, 1980,—

(a) the Final Examination in a case where such person has, before the 31st day of December, 1976, passed the Intermediate examination,
(b) the Intermediate and the Final examinations in any other case.

Explanation: For the purpose of this clause, the High Court at Calcutta may prescribe such rules as may be necessary under sub-section (2) of section 34, specifying the nature of the examinations and any other matter relating thereto.

(ii) makes an application for such enrolment in accordance with the provisions of this Act; and

(iii) fulfils the conditions specified in clauses (a), (b), (e) and (f) of sub-section (1) of section 24.

58B. Special provision relating to certain disciplinary proceedings.

(1) As from the 1st day of September, 1963 every proceeding in respect of any disciplinary matter in relation to an existing advocate of a High Court shall, save as provided in the first proviso to sub-section (2), be disposed of by the State Bar Council in relation to that High Court, as if the existing advocate had been enrolled as an advocate on its roll.

(2) If immediately before the said date, there is any proceeding in respect of any disciplinary matter in relation to an existing advocate pending before any High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, such proceeding shall stand transferred to the State Bar Council in relation to that High Court, as if it were a proceeding pending before the corresponding Bar Council under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 56:
Provided that where in respect of any such proceeding the High Court has received the finding of a Tribunal constituted under section 11 of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, the High Court shall dispose of the case and it shall be lawful for the High Court to exercise for the purpose of all powers conferred on it under section 12 of the said Act as if that section had not been repealed:
Provided further that where the High Court has referred back any case for further inquiry under sub-section (4) of section 12 of the said Act, the proceeding shall stand transferred to the State Bar Council in relation to the High Court as if it were proceeding before a corresponding Bar Council under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 56.

(3) If immediately before the said date there is any proceeding in respect of any disciplinary matter pending in relation to any pleader, vakil, mukhtar or attorney, who has been enrolled as an advocate on any State roll under the Act, such proceeding shall stand transferred to the State Bar Council on the roll of which he has been enrolled and be dealt with under this Act as if it were a proceeding arising against him thereunder.

(4) In this section “existing advocate” means a person who was enrolled as an advocate on the roll of any High Court under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926 and who, at the time when any proceeding in respect of any disciplinary matter is initiated against him, is not enrolled as an advocate on a State roll under this Act.

(5) The provisions of this section shall have effect, notwithstanding anything contained in this Act.

59. Removal of difficulties.

(1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, particularly in relation to the transition from the enactments repealed by this Act to the provisions of this Act, the Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent with the purposes of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty.

(2) An order under sub-section (1) may be made so as to have retrospective effect from a date not earlier than the 1st day of December, 1961.

60. Powers of Central Government to make rules.

(1) Until rules in respect of any matter under this Act are made by a State Bar Council and approved by the Bar Council of India, the power to make rules in respect of that matter shall be exercisable by the Central Government.

(2) The Central Government after consultation with the Bar Council of India may, by notification in the Official Gazette, may make rules under sub-section (1) either for any State Bar Council or generally for all State Bar Councils and the rules so made shall have effect, notwithstanding anything contained in this Act.

(3) Where in respect of any matter any rules made by the Central Government under this section for any State Bar Council, and in respect of the same matter, rules are made by the State Bar Council and approved by the Bar Council of India, the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that the rules made by it in respect of such matter shall cease to be in force in relation to the Bar Council with effect from such date as may be specified in the notification and on the issue of such notification, the rules made by the Central Government shall, accordingly, cease to be in force except as respects things done or omitted to be done before the said date.

THE SCHEDULE

[See section 50(5)]
REPEAL OF CERTAIN ENACTMENTS

Short title — Extent of repeal

1. The Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, 1923 (23 of 1923) — The whole
2. The Legal Practitioners (Fees) Act, 1926 (21 of 1926) — The whole
3. The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 (37 of 1956) — Section 53
4. The Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960 (11 of 1960) — Section 31

Related:

• Indian Bar Councils Act
• SC Bar Association vs UOI, 1998 – Case Explained

The Advocates Act, 1961 (Updated Bare Act)
WritingLaw

In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a groundbreaking technology with the potential to transform various industries, and the legal sector is no exception.

AI offers a wide range of possibilities in the legal industry, revolutionising the way legal professionals work and enhancing the overall efficiency of legal processes. From streamlining legal research to automating contract review, AI is a valuable tool that can significantly benefit the legal profession.

This article explains the diverse applications of Artificial Intelligence in the legal industry and explores into how AI can be a game-changer for lawyers, law firms, and legal institutions. We will discuss the various AI-powered tools and platforms reshaping traditional legal practices and paving the way for a more innovative, agile, and effective legal landscape.

By understanding the potential of AI in the legal domain, we can gain insights into how this technology can bolster the capabilities of legal professionals and optimise the delivery of legal services in the future.

Various AI-Powered Tools and Platforms

Several AI-powered tools and platforms are reshaping traditional legal practices, transforming how legal professionals work and enhancing their efficiency. Here are ten key AI-powered tools and platforms that are driving innovation in the legal landscape.

1. CaseIQ

A legal research platform that uses AI to provide comprehensive and relevant case law, statutes, and legal opinions for Indian laws and regulations.

2. SpotDraft

An AI-powered contract management tool that automates contract drafting, review, and analysis, ensuring compliance with Indian laws and regulations.

3. Cogito Legal

An AI platform that analyses legal documents, identifies relevant information and provides insights and recommendations for legal professionals in India.

4. LegitQuest

An AI-powered legal research and analytics platform designed for the Indian legal system, offering comprehensive access to case laws, judgments, and legal articles.

5. Legality

An AI-based document verification platform that ensures the authenticity and integrity of legal documents, including contracts, agreements, and court filings.

6. ROSS Intelligence

An AI-powered legal research tool that uses natural language processing to provide relevant case law, statutes, and legal opinions to support legal research.

7. Kira Systems

A contract analysis platform that uses machine learning to extract important clauses, identify risks, and streamline contract review and analysis.

8. Casetext

An AI-driven legal research platform that uses machine learning algorithms to provide comprehensive search results, including relevant case law, statutes, and secondary sources.

9. Relativity

An e-discovery platform that leveraged AI and advanced analytics to automate document review, streamline data management, and reduce manual efforts in litigation.

10. Neota Logic

An AI-powered platform that enables the creation of interactive and intelligent legal applications, including chatbots and virtual assistants, to provide legal guidance and automate routine legal tasks.

These are just a few examples of AI tools and platforms reshaping the legal industry. As technology advances, we can expect further innovations and the emergence of new AI-powered tools to enhance legal practices and improve efficiency.

How AI Can Bring Transformative Changes

AI technology has the potential to revolutionise the legal industry in India by bolstering the capabilities of legal professionals and optimising the delivery of legal services. Here are six ways in which this technology can bring about transformative changes.

1. Enhanced Legal Research

AI-powered tools can significantly enhance legal research capabilities. These tools can quickly and accurately analyse vast volumes of legal data, including case laws, statutes, and legal opinions, providing comprehensive and relevant information to legal professionals. By automating the research process, AI can save time and improve the accuracy of legal analysis, enabling lawyers to make more informed decisions.

2. Contract Analysis and Management

AI tools can streamline contract analysis and management processes. These tools can automatically review contracts, identify key clauses, detect potential risks or anomalies, and ensure compliance with Indian laws and regulations. By automating contract-related tasks, legal professionals can efficiently handle large volumes of contracts, reduce errors, and improve overall contract management processes.

3. Document Review and Analysis

AI technology can accelerate document review and analysis, which is often time-consuming for legal professionals. AI-powered tools can scan and analyse documents, extract relevant information, identify patterns, and categorise documents based on their content. This helps lawyers quickly locate specific information and gain insights, enabling them to make informed decisions and provide more efficient and accurate legal advice.

4. Predictive Analytics and Case Management

AI can enable predictive analytics in the legal industry, helping lawyers assess the potential outcomes of cases based on historical data and patterns. By analysing vast amounts of data, AI can provide insights into the likelihood of success in litigation, assist in strategic decision-making, and optimise case management. This technology can help lawyers prioritise tasks, allocate resources effectively, and improve efficiency.

5. Virtual Assistance and Client Services

AI-powered virtual assistants can support legal professionals by automating routine tasks, answering basic legal queries, and providing legal information to clients. These virtual assistants can improve client service delivery, handle high-volume inquiries, and provide round-the-clock support, enhancing the overall client experience.

6. Legal Analytics and Insights

AI can facilitate data-driven decision-making in the legal industry. By analysing legal data and trends, AI tools can provide valuable insights and predictions, enabling legal professionals to better understand the dynamics of legal cases, make strategic decisions, and devise effective legal strategies.

Overall, AI technology has the potential to augment the capabilities of legal professionals, optimise workflow, and improve the delivery of legal services in India. By leveraging AI tools, legal professionals can save time, increase efficiency, enhance accuracy, and focus on higher-value tasks such as complex legal analysis, strategic planning, and client engagement.

However, it is important to note that while AI can automate certain tasks and provide valuable insights, human judgment, expertise, and ethical considerations will continue to play a vital role in the legal profession.

Conclusion

The use of AI in the legal industry promises to optimise the delivery of legal services. By automating repetitive tasks, legal professionals can focus on higher-value work such as complex legal analysis, strategic planning, and client engagement.

Virtual assistants powered by AI can provide round-the-clock support and enhance client services. Furthermore, AI technology enables data-driven decision-making, empowering legal professionals with valuable insights and predictions for a better understanding of the dynamics of legal cases.

However, while AI can be a valuable tool, it is essential to recognise that human judgment, expertise, and ethical considerations remain paramount. AI should be thereby seen as a complement to the legal profession, enhancing capabilities rather than replacing human lawyers.

Legal professionals must understand the limitations and potential biases of AI tools and exercise critical thinking in interpreting the results.

As AI continues to evolve and become more sophisticated, the legal industry in India can leverage its benefits to adapt to the changing landscape and meet the increasing demands for efficiency, accuracy, and innovation.

Embracing AI technology and integrating it into legal practices can unlock new possibilities, improve access to justice, and ultimately enhance the legal experience for legal professionals and clients.

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How Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) Useful for the Legal Industry
Suhani Dhariwal

Legal aid provides free legal assistance to people who cannot afford the fees of court proceedings and advocates for seeking justice. For those in need who cannot afford legal representation, legal aid stands as a beam of light.

It is free legal assistance provided to those who are not financially upright enough to afford legal assistance (i.e. annual income less than as prescribed by the state, in case of the proceedings within the ambit of the state judicial system, and in case of proceedings before the Supreme Court, the annual income is less than 5 lakh).

Justice P.N. Bhagwati states:

“Legal aid is an arrangement to give the poor and uneducated people easy access to the legal system, ensuring that their lack of knowledge and financial hardship does not prevent them from seeking justice”.

In accordance with Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, everyone is guaranteed equal protection under the law, regardless of their caste, race, sex, religion, or place of birth. Additionally, according to Article 22(1) of the Indian Constitution, no person arrested can be denied the right to consult with and be represented by a lawyer of their choice.

This is in accordance with the fundamental legal principle of Audi Alteram Partem, which states that no party should be denied a hearing. Even though having access to justice is a Fundamental Right, the poor continue to suffer greatly because they cannot pay the high cost of the legal system and frequently have to accept injustice.

The basic goal of legal aid service is equitable justice for the underprivileged and oppressed. It covers the free availability of legal counsel from an advocate in court proceedings and services like Lok Adalats, Legal Awareness, Legal Advice, Public Interest Litigation and many more that might stop injustice.

Development of Legal Aid in India

Following independence, the Indian government began to address the issue of legal assistance for people experiencing poverty in several conferences of law ministers and Law Commissions. Below are chronological events that happened during the development of legal Aid in India.

1958: Providing equitable justice and free legal assistance to the underprivileged was underlined in the 14th Law Commission Report 1958. Several states’ legal assistance boards, associations, and law departments have proposed legal aid programmes. The first State to adopt a free legal aid scheme was Kerala.

1973: A report on “Processuals Justice to Poor” was released in 1973 by the Honorable Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer-led Expert Committee on Legal Aid. The study emphasized the necessity of giving legal assistance a formal foundation, establishing legal aid clinics in law schools, and other measures to make the legal aid system widely accessible to individuals.

1976: In 1976, the 42nd Constitutional Amendment made free legal aid a legal requirement by inserting Article 39A under the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) to guarantee that no one’s access to justice is hindered by their capacity to pay for it, the State and courts must uphold the principle of “Equal Justice and Free Legal Aid” and offer free legal representation to all who qualify.

1980: A national committee was established in 1980 to manage and monitor legal aid programmes nationwide. Justice P.N. Bhagwati, a Supreme Court judge at the time, was the group’s head. This group, which later adopted CILAS (Committee for Implementing Legal Aid Schemes), began monitoring legal aid initiatives nationwide.

1987: To provide legal assistance programmes across the nation with a formal foundation and a standardised structure, the Legal Services Authorities Act was passed in 1987. After specific changes were made by the Amendment Act of 1994, this Act went into effect in 1995.

What Is Article 39A

A constitutional clause known as Article 39A (42nd Amendment) (Free Legal Aid) was added to the Indian Constitution to protect citizens’ right to equal access to the legal system regardless of class, sex, race, or religious beliefs. Article 39A of the Indian Constitution requires the States to offer free legal assistance to the weaker and poorer segments of society. This Article is critical since it establishes a right to seek legal help and states that the State is responsible for protecting that right.

Pursuing a successful legal course of action is impossible without access to legal aid. Any genuine resolution of complaints must start with access to justice. Any affected person whose right to legal assistance is refused will not have their complaint taken seriously, and any efforts to offer it will be ineffective. According to Article 39 A, free legal service shall be provided at a reasonable cost based on the time and place.

Legal Services Authority Act, 1987

The movement in India for legal assistance had a new component with this Act. Following the Act’s final revisions, it was enacted in 1995. Justice R.N. Mishra played a crucial part in executing this Act.

The Act had two aims:

• To offer free legal services to the underprivileged and weaker members of society, to guarantee that no person is denied access to justice because of their financial situation or another form of impairment
• To promote equitable justice delivery by setting up Lok Adalats.

This Act also formed the institutional framework of the National Legal Services Authority, State Legal Services Authority, District Legal Services Authority, and Taluka Legal Services Authority. The functions of each authority are explained below.

National Legal Services Authority (NALSA)

• To ensure that legal services provided under the act are widely accessible, NALSA develops policies, concepts, and efficient economic plans.
• Conduct and encourage research in the area of legal assistance, putting a particular focus on helping the underprivileged.
• Additionally, it arranges legal assistance camps, promotes Lok Adalat as a forum for conflict resolution, conducts regular evaluations of legal aid programmes, and researches legal services.
• NALSA supervises the functioning of the State Legal Services Authority.

State Legal Services Authority

• This organisation is the top authority for regulating the State’s legal services.
• The NALSA-established policies, regulations, and practices are put into action by the State Legal Services Authority.
• Additionally, it runs several legal assistance initiatives, including Lok Adalats.

District Legal Services Authority

• Organize the Taluk Legal Services Committee’s initiatives and those of the District’s other legal services.
• Well-organized Lok Adalats throughout the District.
• Carry out any additional duties that the State Authority may impose through regulations.

Taluk Legal Services Authority

• It coordinates Lok Adalat and additional legal services events in the Taluk.
• State Legal Services Authority regulates it.

The service of providing free Legal Aid is governed according to this Act. Legal Services Authority Act helps needy people get free legal assistance and prevents injustice from falling under their lap just because they can’t afford the legal expenses.

Related Law Note: What Is Indigent Person and Suits By Indigent Person?

The Judiciary’s Role

In India, the judiciary has always been a strong supporter and proponent of free legal assistance. Hon’ble Justices P.N. Bhagwati and Krishna Iyer have played significant roles in the legal aid movement, emphasising the significance of free legal services in India. Here are some of the landmark judgements that helped to promote legal Aid in India.

Suk Das vs Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh, 1986 AIR 991, 1986 SCR (1) 590: Justice P.N. Bhagwati delivered this significant decision. He claimed that India has a huge number of ignorant people who are unaware of their rights. As a result, it is critical to develop legal literacy and knowledge among the public and an essential component of legal assistance.

Hussainara Khatoon vs Home Secretary, State of Bihar, AIR 1979 SC 1360: This case clarified how poorly the State of Bihar’s judicial system functions. Many people were being held without due process in jails, and some were being wrongfully found guilty and given worse punishments than they deserved. The only cause of all these delays was the convict’s inability to afford a lawyer to represent them. Justice P.N. Bhagwati found that Article 39A and Article 21 implicitly guarantee the right to free legal representation as a necessary component of a “reasonable, fair, and just” process for anybody accused of a crime.

Conclusion

Law students (and ideally, anybody who is somehow connected with the legal field, be it as a student or a professional litigant) must participate in all activities to close the gap between the legal realisation of rights and their effective exercise by the disadvantaged and poor.

The government also must take the necessary action by teaching the citizens about their Fundamental Rights to have a successful legal aid movement in India. Legal assistance is not a gift or a charity but rather a duty of the State and a constitutional right of the people. A lack of legal understanding causes the misuse and deprivation of the rights and benefits of the poor.

History and Development of Legal Aid in India
Suhani Dhariwal

In legal practice, maintaining the highest standards of professional conduct and ethics is paramount to upholding the integrity of the legal profession and ensuring the administration of justice.

To regulate and address instances of misconduct or unethical behaviour among advocates, the Advocates Act of 1961 establishes a disciplinary mechanism through disciplinary committees.

The Indian Advocates Act of 1961 primarily outlines the provisions related to the disciplinary committees under section 35. It substantially highlights the establishment, composition, and functions of disciplinary committees, providing the legal framework for their role in regulating advocates’ conduct and adjudicating misconduct complaints.

In this law note, we will tell you about the role, composition, and functions of the disciplinary committee under the Advocates Act, while simultaneously shedding light on its significance in upholding the principles of legal ethics and accountability within the legal fraternity.

Role of the Disciplinary Committee

The disciplinary committee, as mandated by the Advocates Act, serves as a quasi-judicial body tasked with the responsibility of adjudicating complaints of misconduct against advocates. Its primary role is investigating misconduct allegations, conducting disciplinary proceedings, and recommending appropriate disciplinary action against errant advocates in India.

By enforcing ethical standards and professional conduct, the disciplinary committee plays a crucial role in maintaining the integrity and credibility of the legal profession.

Here are five important roles played by the disciplinary committee as mandated by the Advocates Act.

1. Investigation of Complaints

The disciplinary committee plays a key role in investigating reports of misconduct or unethical behaviour against advocates. Complaints can come from clients, other advocates, or concerned individuals. The committee carefully investigates the allegations by collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses, and reviewing relevant documents to determine their truthfulness.

2. Adjudication of Disciplinary Proceedings

Upon completion of the investigation, the disciplinary committee initiates disciplinary proceedings against the advocate in question. The committee allows the advocate to present their defence, cross-examine witnesses, and submit evidence in their favour. The proceedings are conducted in accordance with the principles of natural justice, ensuring that the advocate is given a fair and impartial hearing.

3. Deliberation and Decision-Making

After considering all the evidence and arguments presented during the disciplinary proceedings, the disciplinary committee deliberates on the merits of the case. The committee assesses whether the advocate has contravened any provisions of the Advocates Act or violated ethical standards prescribed for legal practitioners. Based on its findings, the committee renders a decision, which may include recommending disciplinary action against the advocate.

4. Imposition of Disciplinary Measures

Depending on the gravity of the misconduct, the disciplinary committee has the authority to impose various disciplinary measures against the advocate found guilty of misconduct. These measures may range from issuing a warning or reprimand to suspending the advocate from practising law for a specified period. In cases of serious misconduct, the committee may recommend the removal of the advocate from the role of advocates, effectively disqualifying them from practising law.

5. Protection of Public Interest

By adjudicating complaints of misconduct and enforcing disciplinary measures, the disciplinary committee serves to protect the public interest and uphold the credibility of the legal profession. By holding advocates accountable for their actions and ensuring compliance with ethical standards, the committee contributes to fostering public trust and confidence in the legal system.

Composition of the Disciplinary Committee

The disciplinary committee typically includes members appointed by the Bar Council of India (BCI) or the respective State Bar Councils. These members often comprise experienced advocates and legal experts who possess a deep understanding of legal ethics and professional standards. To ensure impartiality and fairness in its proceedings, the committee may also include retired judges or judicial officers.

Functions and Powers of the Disciplinary Committee

The disciplinary committee is vested with various functions and powers to effectively discharge its mandate. These include the following.

1. Investigation of Complaints

The disciplinary committee has the power to look into allegations of misbehaviour made against attorneys. It may require finding facts, holding hearings and questioning individuals who claims the accusations to be true.

2. Conduct of Disciplinary Proceedings

When a complaint is received, the disciplinary committee starts disciplinary procedures against the advocate in question. This includes allowing the advocate to state their defence, question witnesses, and provide evidence to support their case.

3. Adjudication and Decision-Making

Following a comprehensive investigation, the disciplinary board carefully reviews the facts of the matter and makes a decision based on the evidence and the regulations outlined in the Advocates Act. Depending on the severity of the wrongdoing, the committee has the authority to implement disciplinary actions, including a reprimand, suspension, or expulsion from the list of legal practitioners.

4. Recommendation of Disciplinary Action

After discussing the matter, the disciplinary committee suggests taking certain disciplinary measures to the Bar Council, which can then implement these recommendations and enforce sanctions as needed.

Conclusion

Under the Advocates Act, the disciplinary committee plays a pivotal role in upholding professional integrity and ethical standards within the legal profession. By adjudicating complaints of misconduct and ensuring accountability among advocates, the committee contributes towards fostering public trust and confidence in the legal system. As custodians of legal ethics, advocates are duty-bound to adhere to the highest standards of professional conduct, with the disciplinary committee serving as a guardian of these ethical principles.

Disciplinary Committee Under the Advocates Act, 1961
Suhani Dhariwal

The legal profession, dedicated to the cause of justice on the one hand, fairness, the rule of law, and exposure on the other, is governed by laws and regulations that define the breach of ethics and professional practice.

The Advocates Act of 1961 is one of the significant laws that formed the foundation of the legal system in India. The Act not only confers rights on an advocate but also imposes duties and responsibilities to foster a disciplined legal cadre across India.

Rights of Advocates – Upholding the Pillars of Justice

The Advocates Act enshrines several rights that empower advocates in the pursuit of justice and the representation of their clients. Here are six of them.

1. Right to Practice Law

Advocates are granted the inherent right to practice law after enrolment as an advocate under the Act. Such a right includes the ability to engage in legal practice, represent their clients, and make appearances before courts, tribunals, and other judicial bodies in order to advance their clients’ interests or positions.

2. Right to Appear and Plead

Advocates are also eligible to plead and appear before any court in India, including the Supreme Court, with some restrictions, limitations, and qualifications as per the existing law. This ensures advocates’ right to access and engage in legal proceedings at all levels to enable effective representation for their clients.

3. Right to Advise and Draft Legal Documents

Advocates have the right to advise clients regarding any legal issue and draft legal documents such as contracts, agreements, and petitions. They should also contemplate legal opinions referring to the case. This right is directly connected to the notion of facilitating a client’s engagement with the law expert.

4. Right to Represent Clients

An advocate has the right to represent a client in court or outside it during a hearing and/or trial. This includes advocacy of prepared arguments and submissions as well as examining witnesses.

5. Right to Access Legal Information and Resources

Advocates are entitled to access all legal information, resources, and precedents associated with their profession, which will enable them to provide effective representation to their clients. This will help advocates to make use of legal databases, remain constantly informed of legal and regulatory developments, and utilize legal libraries to continue expanding their professional knowledge.

6. Right to Fair Treatment and Due Process

Lastly, the right to fair treatment and due process implies that advocates will be provided with a chance to prove their claims in court, be treated professionally and respectfully by judicial authorities, and be offered redress should their rights be infringed upon.

Overall, the rights conferred upon advocates under the Advocates Act empower them to fulfill their professional responsibilities effectively, uphold the rule of law, and advocate for the interests of their clients with diligence, integrity, and professionalism.

Duties of Advocates – Guardians of Legal Ethics

While advocates enjoy certain rights under the Advocates Act, they are also bound by a set of duties and obligations aimed at maintaining the integrity, dignity, and professionalism of the legal profession. These duties serve as guiding principles that govern the conduct of advocates and underscore their role as guardians of legal ethics.

Seven most important duties of an advocate are as follows.

1. Client Representation

Advocates are legally obligated to defend their clients’ interests with vigour and competence within legal boundaries. This includes providing legal advice, counselling, and advocacy to clients across various legal matters.

2. Confidentiality

Advocates are bound by ethical rules that demand complete confidentiality of client information. This duty extends beyond the end of the attorney-client relationship, ensuring that clients can continue to disclose sensitive information with trust.

3. Conflict of Interest Management

Advocates must always put their clients’ interests first and avoid situations where a conflict of interest could prevent them from representing their clients effectively. Before taking on new clients, they must carefully check for potential conflicts. If a conflict arises during representation, the advocate must withdraw to maintain the integrity of the representation.

4. Honesty and Integrity

Advocates are held to the highest ethical standards in all their dealings. They must always be truthful and accurate when communicating with clients, opposing parties, and the court. Integrity means being fair, impartial, and acting in a manner that upholds the reputation of the legal profession.

5. Negotiation and Settlement

Lawyers often negotiate and settle legal disputes outside of court, requiring strong negotiation abilities and the skill to reach favourable client outcomes through compromise.

6. Professional Conduct

Lawyers must follow professional conduct codes and ethical rules, such as treating all parties respectfully, avoiding discrimination, and upholding justice and fairness.

7. Pro Bono Work and Access to Justice

Many advocates also have a duty to provide pro bono legal services to individuals who cannot afford legal representation. This commitment to pro bono work helps promote access to justice and ensures that disadvantaged individuals have access to legal assistance.

Conclusion: Striking a Balance Between Rights and Duties

The Advocates Act of 1961 balances lawyers’ privileges and responsibilities. It grants them the right to practice law, represent clients, and uphold justice. However, it also outlines their duty to adhere to ethical standards, maintain integrity, and protect client interests.

This Act ensures that advocates in India are ethical and principled, fostering a strong legal profession. Advocates play a vital role as protectors of justice and upholders of the law, ensuring that everyone can access it.

Related:
1. Professional Misconduct According to Advocates Act, 1961
2. 9 Best Novels for Law Students and Advocates

Balance Between Rights and Duties of Advocates Under the Advocates Act
Suhani Dhariwal