Central government issues guidelines for empanelling advocates as panel counsel

The Central government has issued guidelines for empanelment of advocates as panel counsel to represent the Union of India before the Supreme Court, High Courts and various district, subordinate courts, tribunals and forums.

In an Office Memorandum (OM) issued on August 20, the government has mandated the applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree in law from a university or college recognised by the Bar Council of India (BCI), be enrolled with the State Bar Council under the Advocates Act, 1961, and must have qualified the All-India Bar Examination (AIBE) with a valid certificate of practice.

As per the guidelines, advocates with experience in special laws (Income Tax, Customs, GST, MLA etc.) may be considered for specialized panels representing the Union before courts, tribunals and quasi-judicial fora.

Advocates having previous experience of legal work of 10 years during the government service may be considered for empanelment based on their area of expertise.

Process for empanelment 

Applications must be submitted in the prescribed format to the Deputy Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs. 

The applications must include self-attested educational certificates, prior empanelment orders (if any), an undertaking to abide by the fee structures and conditions, and a declaration of no criminal conviction or professional disqualification.

Tenure, disqualification and professional fee

The tenure of empanelment shall be for a period of three years or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Their performance will be reviewed every year. 

An advocate will be disqualified from empanelment if barred under Section 24A of the Advocates Act, 1961. 

The advocate can also be disqualified if they have been “subject to any professional disqualification by the Bar Council or/and if they have previously abused their position as an advocate in a manner detrimental to the interests of the Union of India”.

“The professional fees payable to the empanelled advocate shall be governed by the fee schedule approved by the Department of Legal Affairs, as amended or revised from time to time,” the OM states. 

De-empanelment and resignation

The guidelines empower the Central government to de-empanel a counsel at any time for acting against instructions, failing to return briefs, misappropriation of money including court fees or costs, contempt of court, professional misconduct or conviction by a court of law.

An empanelled advocate may resign by giving at least one month's prior notice in writing to the Central government.

“The one month prior notice may be relaxed with the approval of Competent Authority,” the OM states.

Further, empanelled advocates cannot assign, transfer or delegate a case or brief to another advocate without prior written approval, and must maintain strict confidentiality over all ministry/ department records and information. 

“The allocation of cases, briefs, or legal matters to an empanelled advocate shall be entirely at the discretion of the Department of Legal Affairs. Empanelment shall not confer any right or guarantee to receive a minimum number of assignments.” 

[Read Guidelines]