Dear Eminent
Scholars on the dais, Hon’ble Judges, Senior Advocates, Advocates, and my dear colleagues
from the Bar Council.
Today, I am
glad to address you all on a topic, which we often discuss and least implement.
A topic which is discussed in the corridors of the court rooms... A topic which
is vehemently demanded in the bar meetings… And a topic which is always talked
about wherever we meet... Friends! The topic for today’s deliberation is- The welfare
of Advocates.
To start with, I am neither an idealist nor a cynic. Being a pragmatic,
today I have bestowed upon myself the obligation to highlight, within limited
time, the issue of Welfare of Advocates with a Solution-Oriented-Approach. Something
which is practical; something which can be implemented; and something that can
be acted upon… In a Welfare State like India, something that is ‘not fare’ is
ignoring the ‘welfare’ of the Advocates. The black-coated tribe which is
responsible for upholding the Constitutional guarantees is today the neglected lot.
I believe no one in this hall will disagree with me that- Bar is the mother of
Judiciary and it is the Advocates, who uphold the values; which our tradition
teaches, which our philosophy preaches, and which our Constitution practices. Now
it’s the time to recognize their welfare. Now it’s the time to give them back
for their contributions.
Well! What is Welfare? When we talk about welfare, what do we
want to accomplish? We here are not interested in going into what John
Bronsteen had in mind when he wrote “Welfare as Happiness”, nor are we inclined
towards Amartya Sen’s Welfare Economics. For us, Welfare simply means something
that aids and promotes well being. It can be financial welfare, professional
welfare, or any other. Friends! To put it straight, as a beginner, I want my
pocket money at least. As an indigent/ disabled, I want ex-gratia at least. As
an Advocate, in advanced age, I need my sustenance at least. As a less
informed, I should have something to look upon at least. As a contributor to
the jurisprudence, I should be recognized at least. And after my death, my
heirs may expect a claim at least.
As a beginner:
Friends! Gone
are those days when students come to Law Faculty because they didn’t get
through a Medical or an Engineering college. Now studying law is not a
compulsion, it’s a Choice. And it’s
an informed choice. In recent times we see the infusion of best minds into the
law colleges and to the bar. The enrollment register of BCD speaks all for
itself. However in comparison to the corporate entrants, this figure is
negligible and the left-outs rate cannot be brushed off. The objectives of
National Law School concept missed somewhere; and from the young minds, the cachet
of this profession dried down somewhere. And the reason is- “Initial Hardships”.
It becomes really tough for a junior advocate, not having a forefather, to
sustain himself. No co-operative work culture, No contacts, No money…And Ahh! A
beginner coerces himself and says Enough!
We at the bar loose a member, and we as a country loose a litigating lawyer.
When an illiterate labourer has the right to minimum wage; denying the same to
a young Advocate discourages him.
In countries like Scotland, Advocates are regulated by the Faculty of Advocates in Edinburgh. The Faculty has a service
company, namely, Faculty Services Ltd.;
which is responsible for fee collection. This gives a guarantee to all new advocate
a place and money. In India, I agree this system is not feasible. But widening
our concept of Welfare Fund and granting remunerations through different
schemes may be tried out. Secondly, we may conceptualize a Placement Cell,
which will be responsible for placing the students under seniors as per their
merits and choice; and will guarantee them their payments from the senior’s
office. Until 2007, a number of young European lawyers were given a placement
with advocates under the European Young Lawyers Scheme, organized by the British Council.
Friends! This is a challenge before us and it has to be done
very professionally and diligently. The beauty of this profession is it welcomes
all with a wide open arms but unfortunately it doesn’t embrace them with such tightness!
As a Member of the Bar:
To be frank,
if we have Advocates who are among the top tax payers of the country; we also
have Advocates who require financial assistance. We can’t afford to close our
eyes to them; if at all Bar Council wants to remain as an effective body.
Assistance to Advocates ahead of festivals, assistance for daughter’s marriage
etc. are small steps, but it is a step ahead. Am glad to know from the
Telegraph newspaper (dt: May 31, 2012) that the Chhapra Bar Association at
Bihar has proposed to provide financial assistance between Rs 800 and Rs 1,000
to advocates ahead of festivals such as Dussehra, Id, Chhath and Diwali and has
also proposed to help the advocates with Rs 25,000 before their daughters’
marriage. We at the Bar Council of Delhi may think and work upon something in
this line. Inspiration lies within!
The Advocates’ Welfare Fund Act, 2001 has duly recognized
that the member of the Fund may receive ex-gratia grant from the Fund in case
of hospitalization or involving major surgical operation; or if he is suffering
from tuberculosis, leprosy, paralysis, cancer, unsoundness of mind or from such
other serious disease or disability. This has to be enforced in all its
seriousness. And members should be made aware of such schemes.
As a less informed:
Ignorance of
law is not an excuse. And repeating this is neither one. Friends! Our society,
our laws and our relationships are changing so fast these days that we need to
be updated. We need to be updated, as a practitioner, about the developments in
Anti-trust laws, marine laws, regulatory laws etc. In United States, the
lawyers have something called “Learning hours”, in order to keep them updated.
In India, the Chartered Accountants have similar learning hours. But we don’t
see any such practice among Indian lawyers. And there suffers our profession
and our practices. Secondly and most importantly, we face the problem of
language. The language of the court is neither the language of the litigants
nor the language of majority of lawyers. Therefore there is a need for
continuing legal education and professional development programmes to impart
expertise, skills and other things to the interested Advocates at a subsidized rate.
The Bar Council need to come up with an Advocates’
Academy in the line of American
Lawyer Academy, or International
Academy of Trial Lawyers; and the government should encourage this. When we
have a Judicial Academy for judges, why not to have an Advocates’ Academy for
Advocates? It’s welfare as well!
As an Advocate in advanced age:
Friends! An
Advocate gets neither tired nor retired. It is said, his professional fees
increase with his age. However, at one point of time ageing comes in the way.
The bodily and cognitive limitations started affecting his work. I agree, there
are Advocates who are earning more at the advanced stage but these are
exceptions. Friends! Am glad to say that the Advocates’ Welfare Fund Act, 2001
has provisions for payment of pension to every advocate, who has been a member
of the Welfare Fund for a period of not less than five years. However, where a
member of the Fund ceases to practice within a period of five years from the
date of his admission because of any permanent disability, the Trustee
Committee may pay him such amount subject to its satisfaction.
As a late Advocate
Friends! There
is an increasing demand for effective implementation of Death claims for
Advocates. However, under Section 24 of the Advocates’ Welfare Fund Act,
2001 there is a provision that the trustee committee may obtain from the Life
insurance Corporation of India or any other insurer, policies of Group insurance on the life of the
members. Secondly, there is also a provision for payment for the medical and
educational facilities for the dependants of the members. And thirdly, where a
member of the Fund dies before receiving the ex-gratia amount, there is the
provision for his nominee or legal heir to be paid such amount.
Apart from this we have schemes for granting financial
assistance to indigent practicing Advocates, we have a scheme for Library
Development and many other things. Therefore, we might lack many things. But we
have something also. We need to implement what we have. The reasons for non
implementation may be genuine; but we can’t blame anyone for that, except
ourselves. Friends, I have one grievance to register. It is understandable when
we debar a person in receipt of pension from the Central Government to get
pension but barring a Senior Advocate under Section 28 does not appear to be a
reasonable classification.
I am told by one of my juniors that the Attorney General Mr.
Vahanwati during the BCI Golden Jubilee celebrations has proposed to grant “Senior
Advocate” status to Advocates practicing in trial courts. Friends! I completely
agree and support this move. There are Advocates working tirelessly and
contributing a lot. But often they go unnoticed. We should recognize their
contribution and the bar should welcome this change. Our Constitution might
tell us that Part III is sacred, but history tells us that they aren’t worth a
dime unless Advocates push them and protect them for the country. I take the
opportunity to request, from this platform, the government in power to take
welfare measures with all seriousness it deserves. Friends! Aggression is not
my tactic and exaggeration is not my intent. All that I want is the message
gets across. To give a pessimistic expression will compound the dilemma more.
So, here is an occasion for all of us to stand. Let’s stand to rise, let’s
stand to demand and let’s stand to do.
With these
words, I thank everyone for your patient hearing and also thank the members of
Bar Council for inviting me to keep my words before you all.
Thank you!
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