Shed Paternalistic Approach Towards Junior Lawyers; Pay Them Adequately: CJI DY Chandrachud

Chief Justice of India Dr DY Chandrachud inaugurated on July 20 the Vigentennial Celebrations organized at Madurai Convention Centre, Madras to mark the completion of 20 years since the establishment of the Madurai Bench as a permanent bench of the Madras High Court.

Besides the CJI, the event was graced by various dignitaries, including (i) Supreme Court judges - Justice BR Gavai, Justice Surya Kant, Justice MM Sundresh, Justice KV Viswanathan and Justice R Mahadevan, (ii) Madras High Court Acting Chief Justice D Krishnakumar and Justices R Suresh Kumar, S.S. Sundar, and R. Subramanian, (iii) Mr PS Raman, Advocate General of Tamil Nadu, and (iv) Mr AR L Sunderesan, Addl Solicitor General of India.

During the celebrations, the CJI unveiled through video-conferencing the Vigentennial Stupa erected at the Madurai Bench. Justice Sundresh, on the other hand, unveiled a new name board for the Madurai Bench which read: "Madras Uyar Needhimandram Madurai Amarvu".

While addressing the distinguished gathering, the CJI hailed the Madurai Bench for its transition from a "district Bar" into a "Bar which represents the voice of the Bar across India".

"Setting up of bench of the high court is not just about setting up buildings, or setting up infrastructure, or creating courtrooms, or furnishing those courtrooms...they are essential appendages to judicial work. The crucial part is about setting up conventions, about setting up traditions which will enure for the future...In the last 20 years, the Madurai bench has made that transition...into truly being a representative of the great traditions of the Madras High Court...".

The CJI highlighted that lawyers and judges from the Madurai Bench are increasingly expressing and demonstrating the ability to don office in the high echelons of judiciary. Speaking of this, he referred to Supreme Court judges - Justice MM Sundresh (a former judge of the Madras High Court), Justice KV Viswanathan (a member of Bar Council of Tamil Nadu) and Justice R Mahadevan (a former judge of the Madras High Court).

Tracing the history of Madurai Bench's establishment, the CJI expressed that the Madras High Court's location in the far north of Tamil Nadu made it inaccessible for a large part of the state. This gave birth to the idea of forming a permanent bench in the southern region of the state, which in its short history of 20 years, has amassed a great reputation and is not restricted in the applicability of its judgments to the State of Tamil Nadu.

"A Presidential order was issued by President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in July, 2004 and the bench was ultimately inaugurated on 24 July, 2004...It is a day to celebrate the unwavering commitment to the cause of justice...a testament to the visionaries who conceived the institution and a recognition of the countless individuals who have contributed to its growth and success."

The CJI also took the occasion to underline that overcoming language barriers is one of the facets of enhancing accessibility to courts. He briefly adverted to the citizen-centric changes introduced by himself, including translation of judgments in regional languages, developing infrastructure of e-courts and virtual hearing, etc. Mentioning that nearly 2000 judgments have been translated into Tamil, the CJI appreciated the Madurai Bench for its endeavor to introduce 100 new e-seva kendras, which would reduce distance barriers between the court and citizens.

Further, the CJI expressed appreciation for the Madurai Bench for being a catalyst for positive social change in the State through its judgments on transgender rights, women-centric laws, prevention of women from sexual harassment at workplace, etc.

"Madurai bench has made great strides by recognizing the rights of transgender people to marry. It has also covered a gray area in the law by extending women-centric laws and the POSH Act, 2013 to afford protection to transgender and inter-sex women".

Continuing to shower accolades, the CJI mentioned that Madurai Bench was the first High Court campus in the south to install a "Justice Clock", which is a reminder that every minute that a judge sits away from the bench, or when a counsel seeks adjournment, is a minute when a case is added to the backlog.

The CJI further apprised the gathering of Madurai Bench's latest "remarkable feat", recounting that the Delhi High Court set up a Disaster Recovery Centre at Madurai bench this year to ensure regular backup of its data and softwares.

Notably, the CJI also addressed the issue of advocates paying meagre sums to entry-level juniors, being of the view that the juniors come to them to "learn" and get exposure and experience.

"Please shed away this paternalistic approach," he said, commenting that there is much to learn from junior lawyers, who are particularly more cognizant of the contemporary realities. The CJI also lamented that paying of lower amounts to entry-level levels leads to "gatekeeping" of the profession.

On this plea to senior lawyers to pay juniors a dignified sum commensurate with their hard work, the CJI said,

"This over-romanticization of hard work, especially work without sufficient pay, is not merely rhetorical. It leads to people being expected to work for long hours, with less sleep and for lesser monetary value. As the famous saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child. Similarly, it takes the entire Bar to raise competent lawyers unfettered by their social or economic background."

In this context, it may be noted that recently, the Madras High Court ordered that advocates must pay a minimum of Rs 15,000 (in rural areas) or 20,000 (in urban centres) to juniors as monthly stipend.

With regard to the Madurai Bench, the CJI expressed admiration, saying that the bench's true merit lies in its democratization of the legal profession, which allowed even lawyers from marginalized sections to share in the success story of the state.