Bar Council of England and Wales Chair Barbara Mills meets BCI Chairman to discuss foreign lawyer entry rules

Bar Council of England and Wales Chair Barbara Mills KC is on a visit to India to meet with Indian judges, government functionaries, the Bar Council of India (BCI) and other senior lawyers to further strengthen the relationship between the UK and India.

During this visit, she met BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra along with Vice-Chairman Apurba Kumar Mishra and Secretary Soumitro Sen, to iron out some of the issues regarding the opening of the Indian legal market.

Two major points were raised by Mills during the meeting regarding the recently amended BCI Rules - disclosure of client and case details and the high registration fee for barristers.

Mill raised concerns that disclosing client details is a challenge for the arbitration community and raises confidentiality and ethical considerations.

The BCI Chairman clarified that they are simply asking the names of the clients and their addresses, and nothing more.

"We just want the identity of the client. No details of cases or what the cases are about. The names or details of the client will be kept with the Regulator and absolute confidentiality will be maintained." 

The Chairman also confirmed that a line would be added in the form stating that the confidentiality of the client's name will be maintained. 

Mills also made a request on behalf of 18,000 barristers in the UK to reduce the registration fees to advise in India. She pointed out that if Indian lawyers come to London to arbitrate, they don’t have to pay a fee.

The BCI Chairman said that the issue has already been discussed, and that the Council will consider the request.

Mills further brought up the report submitted by the Committee headed by Cyril Shroff to review the entry of foreign law firms. Mishra said that a meeting would be held in that regard in December this year.

The Committee had submitted its report in the month of September.