Do not let desire for quick success come in the way of what is right: Supreme Court Justice Ujjal Bhuyan to law students

Justice Ujjal Bhuyan of the Supreme Court cautioned graduating students of the National Law University and Judicial Academy (NLUJA), Assam against letting the desire for quick success come in the way of what is right.

Addressing those entering the legal profession, he said,

"Please do not allow the desire for quick success to come in the way of what you think to be right and what you know to be the correct course of action. You must realise and accept that you are not always right. There is always another view. Respect the other view. Be prepared to learn, be prepared to listen and, where necessary, be prepared to accept that you may be wrong."

Justice Bhuyan said that the legal profession rests on ethics and integrity and is a profession, not a trade or business. He also endorsed students pursuing legal scholarship. A strong academia, he said, is an asset to both the legal profession and the judiciary.

The judge asked the graduating students to treat colleagues, opponents and, above all, people seeking justice with dignity and respect, and to develop empathy. He said that Constitutional values are tested not in the experiences of the privileged but in those of the marginalised and unheard.

He also asked them to view constitutionalism from the perspective of "constitutional losers, not winners," a phrase he credited to Prof Upendra Baxi.

He said that the profession is not like a 100 meters dash or T20 cricket and that success will come step by step. He added that in time, they will earn something more valuable than monetary success: the trust and respect of those around them.