Bombay HC Invites Views On 57 Applications For Designation As Senior Advocates [Read List]

The Bombay High Court has has made public the names of advocates who have applied to it for being designated as Senior Advocates. The list has names of 57 lawyers in total.

The notice invites suggestions and views from stakeholders on the proposal, directing these to be sent to the Permanent Secretariat of the High Court on or before February 28, 2019.

The notification states, "The suggestions/views shall be in writing, shall bear the name and full address of the sender and shall be addressed to the Permanent Secretariat of the High Court. Anonymous petition/representations/views will not be entertained. The Suggestions/views shall be submitted only in physical form in writing and submission of such views/suggestions by any other mode shall not be entertained.

The suggestions/views shall be submitted only in the office of the Registrar General 4th Floor, Annex Building, High Court, Bombay on all working days between 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. Suggestions/views submitted beyond the said stipulated date and time shall not be entertained."

This has been done in compliance with the Bombay High Court (Designation of Senior Advocates) Rules, 2018, framed in view of the Supreme Court ruling in October last year on Senior Advocate Indira Jaising's petition.

The guidelines empower a permanent committee called "Committee for Designation of Senior Advocates" to deal with all the matters relating to such conferment. The Secretariat has been tasked with inviting applications from advocates who have actively and actually practiced for not less than 10 years in the high court, seeking conferment of the distinction every year in the months of June and December.

It is then required to publish the proposal on the Bombay High Court website, inviting suggestions and views of other stakeholders. This is the stage at which the process is currently.

After the data-base on the Advocates is compiled, the Advocates' case would be put before the Committee for further scrutiny. The Committee would then assess them on predetermined criteria such as number of years of practice, judgments, pro-bono work, publications, etc.

Post such overall assessment, the Advocates' candidature would be submitted to the Full Court, which would then vote on the same. The Rules clarify that voting by secret ballot will not normally be resorted to in the Full Court except when "unavoidable".

Cases which are rejected by the Full Court can be considered afresh after two years, and cases which are deferred can be considered after one year from such deferment.

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