CJI Sanjiv Khanna Expresses Concerns Over Youngsters Leaving Litigation, Says Legal Profession Must Address Entry Barriers

Chief Justice of India, Justice Sanjiv Khanna recently highlighted the growing trend of young lawyers opting out of litigation and the need to ensure financial and social security for f the entry-level professionals in the field.

The CJI was speaking at the 'Felicitation Function' organised by the Bar Council of India, where he expressed:

"Today we are witnessing a concerning trend where bright young legal minds are increasingly gravitating towards corporate law firms or leaving law altogether to pursue managerial roles. While corporate practice or house roles certainly come with their own merit, we must ask ourselves- Are we, the torch-bearers of the legal community, somehow failing to guide young lawyers towards public interest work? Who will represent the common citizens in future? "

He further highlighted the need to see the above issue from the lens of structural reforms required to sustain first-generation lawyers.

"The exodus of young talent from litigation practice is not merely about personal choice rather it is symptomatic of the structural issues such as meagre financial and social security in the profession especially for the first-generation lawyers."

"To attract the community of young lawyers dedicated to serving the public, we must work towards making the profession a more conducive space, address entry level barriers and promote support." the CJI added.

In order to address the structural challenges that young professionals face, the CJI pushed for the need to provide financial stability with set minimum remuneration standards in the legal industry. Doing so would enable them to sustain the perils of litigation without being compelled to abandon practice for the corporate world.

"One step towards addressing these challenges is creating a minimum remuneration standard for young advocates in first few years of their practice. I applaud the recent recommendation of the BCI for payment of minimum stipend or remuneration to young lawyers in urban or rural areas."

"This would hopefully give early exposures to the young lawyers in the courtroom practice so that they can make informed career choices rather than defaulting towards corporate path."

BCI Should Ensure Conducive And Sustainable Work Conditions

The CJI underlined the need for the BCI to proactively address the issue of young professionals when it comes to concerns of accessibility and sustainability. He emphasized that BCI, being the main body representing the advocates of the country, needs to ensure a welcoming and supportive atmosphere for legal professionals.

"The Bar Council of India must work towards bringing accessibility and sustainability gap premating in our profession. The council must take up the baton of ensuring a conducive and sustainable work conditions"

The CJI also highlighted the key role that the bar plays at grassroots levels in making justice delivery efficient with constant dialogue with the district judiciary. He added that the legal branches have now expanded to new areas such as Arbitration, IPR , Insolvency Law and how niche sub-fields were created within the criminal and civil law such as narcotics, forensic sciences and privacy rights.

"This intricate landscape calls for young lawyers to embrace domain specialization and cultivate expertise in these domains." CJI remarked

The 6 Remarkable Contributions By Lawyers In The Legal Profession: CJI Khanna Observes

(1) Upholding the Rule of Law - the CJI stressed that lawyers become the bridging gap between the citizens and the judiciary by representing society's grievances before the constitutional courts.

"In ensuring the rule of law, you are the first face for anyone wanting or in need of justice. You connect the citizens to the judges....in other words, you are somewhat like the leg members of the legislature - the face, mouthpiece and spokesperson representing any and everyone in the need of justice"

(2) Shaping the Law of the Land - it is with the assistance of the lawyers, that a holistic interpretation of laws and statutory provisions is achieved by the Judiciary . In explaining so, the CJI quoted Justice HR Khanna :

" Judges are more often shined in reflected glory, there are good number of judgements which reveal not so much about the ediction of the judge as of the counsel who argued the case."

(3) The Bar Makes The Bench - the CJI underpinned the importance of having a qualitative bar as it was from the bar that many are elevated to become judges, thus the quality of judges was correlated to the ecosystem of the bar.

"The better the bar, the better the judges"

(4) Diverse Perspectives Of Lawyers Contributes To Democracy : the constant deliberation on the social and political aspects of a legal challenge helps in a larger understanding of the democratic rights of the citizens. The CJI stressed that the diverse composition of lawyers at the Supreme Court plays to the Court's advantage in broadening the spectrum of democratic representation of issues.

(5) Going Beyond Academic Stimulation - the CJI also recognized the symbiotic relation between the bar and bench in stimulating practical ends for justice.

"Complete justice demands that adjudication should not be restricted or an isolated academic exercise, rather it is through the lawyers that the bench grasps the nuances of the lived experiences of the parties"

(6) The Role of Checks and Balances Played By The Bar - The CJI explained :

"Advocate checks our actions and we adjudicate ensuring each fulfills their designated role. The accountability check must not be mistaken as confrontation. We are both accountable to the public as a judiciary"

He exemplified this by saying that the issue of adjournments for instance should not be seen as a critique of the judges or advocates, rather, " it speaks to the judiciary's commitment to improve as a whole."

The CJI ended his address with a quote from Sir Martin Luther King Jr , " Everyone can be great because everyone can serve" , thus reminding the significance of service in a progressive society.