Legal practitioner means an advocate, or vakil of any High Court, a pleader, mukhtar or revenue agent;
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.
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 (iii-a), 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 ]
(iii-a) 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 a 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;]
(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 (2 of 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 Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled 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 the 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 a 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 to practise the profession of law (whether by way of pleading or acting or both) by virtue of the provisions of any law, or who would have been so entitled had he not been in public service on the said date; or]
[* * *]
(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).
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.
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.
[(1-A) 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.
Connected laws :
Advocates (Right To Take Up Law Teaching) Rules, 1979
Bar Council of India Advocates Welfare Scheme, 1998
Bar Council of India Rules
Bar Council of India Training Rule,1995
Model Schemes For Welfare of Advocates Framed By Bar Council of India
