“The bar council has no funds” HC questions ₹5,000 stipend for junior lawyers

The division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne was hearing the Public Interest Litigation filed by 12 young lawyers in 2022 stating that junior lawyers were struggling without financial assistance during Covid-19

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday questioned the legal entitlement of young lawyers, who have practised for less than three years, to receive a monthly stipend of ₹5,000. Examining the legal sustainability of the cause, the court said the Bar Council has no funds to provide such financial assistance.

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The division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne on Wednesday was hearing the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by 12 young lawyers in 2022. The petition contended that the new lawyers were affected by COVID-19 and urgently required financial assistance. It stated the Bar Council must financially support young lawyers who have not completed three years of practice and have an annual income of less than ₹1 lakh. Every lawyer in Maharashtra and Goa is registered under the Bar Council of India and the Maharashtra and Goa Bar Council. They have paid ₹15,000 to the council towards the welfare fund for lawyers, so it becomes the responsibility of these councils to look into the welfare of the lawyers, said the petition.

The petition, filed through advocate Asim Sarode, cited a survey conducted by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. According to the study, more than 79% of surveyed lawyers across seven high courts, with less than two years of legal practice at the Bar, earn less than ₹10,000 a month. The petition also referred to news reports showing several lawyers died by suicide because of the prevailing economic crisis. “Being able to earn a livelihood is part of the right to live with dignity,” they said, adding that the high courts in Telangana, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry have already taken the initiative to provide relevant financial assistance to their young lawyers.

The petitioners relied on an order passed by the Kerala High Court which granted young lawyers a monthly stipend of ₹5,000. The Bar Council of Delhi High Court also provided financial assistance to daily earning lawyers during the complete lockdown due to the COVID-19 outbreak, said the petition. The state government and the Bar Council are legally obligated to constitute and contribute to the Advocate’s Welfare Fund, said the petition. “It seems that the state government of Maharashtra has not taken any steps to economically support the new lawyers and to give economic aid to the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa,” it added.

On March 24, 2020, the Bar Council of India (BCI) appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a minimum monthly subsistence of ₹20,000 to lawyers who are not financially well-off so that they can support their families. BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra, in his letter to the PM and the CMs of all states, requested a provision that provides allowance from the Centre and state government funds, either directly or through Advocate Welfare Funds of the state bar councils. However, no economic support has been provided by the Central Government.

The Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa, on the other hand, submitted that implementing this policy would cost them approximately ₹155 crore annually.

The bench observed that the petition lacks elements to entertain the cause. “What is the statutory right? On a personal level, we support you. But principally, who will give this? The Bar Council has no funds. Will you give any funds? How is society in general concerned with the stipend to young lawyers?” it said.

The bench stated that ₹15,000 is inadequate to sustain in Mumbai. “We believe that in cities like Mumbai, ₹45,000 should be paid. But where will the funds come from?” The court directed the parties to clarify the existence of a statutory right mandating stipends for young lawyers and scheduled to hear the case after two weeks.