Bar Council softens stand on foreign law firms
Regulatory body says 'no problem' with foreign law firms entering India if reciprocal arrangements are made with their home countries
New Delhi: The Bar Council of India (BCI), the apex regulatory authority for legal practice and education in the country, told the Supreme Court on Monday that it had “no problem” about foreign law firms entering India if reciprocal arrangements were made with their home countries.
The statement comes at a time when the government is considering allowing foreign lawyers to practise in the country. On Monday, Mint reported that the government was considering such a move in a limited and reciprocal manner.
The BCI’s response was drawn after the court asked if there was any “mutual understanding” between India and the countries from where lawyers would come to advise or practise.
The BCI, in its most recent affidavit, had said that it was opposed to the entry of foreign lawyers in India, even to attend seminars, according to The Indian Express. Mint has not reviewed a copy of the affidavit.
A bench of justices Anil R. Dave and Kurian Joseph agreed to hear the substance of the arguments from both the regulatory body and foreign law firms on 20 July.
It also issued notices on an appeal filed by a group called Global Indian Lawyers (GIL) against a 2009 Bombay high court verdict that required foreign law firms to adhere to qualifications stipulated by the Advocates Act of 1961.
Lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing two US-based law firms, told the court on Monday that the issue was “not of reciprocity” at all. He said the only question to be decided was whether a foreign lawyer could advise his clients on foreign law in India, without practising Indian law. “None of the foreign firms want to practise in India,” he said.
The issue of whether foreign law firms should be allowed to enter the country has been argued before the court for some time now.
The apex court was considering an appeal on a Madras high court verdict of 21 February 2012, which had said that there was no restriction on foreign lawyers to come to India temporarily to advise clients on foreign law and “diverse international legal issues”.
The ruling had also clarified that foreign lawyers would be allowed to take part in international commercial arbitrations being conducted in India. Shortly afterwards, the BCI moved the apex court for its intervention.
The GIL petition seeks the Supreme Court’s ruling on the rights of dual-qualified lawyers—those trained in both Indian and foreign law—and foreign-qualified lawyers, who are trained only in foreign law, to practise in India.
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First Published:7 Apr 2015, 12:20 AM IST
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