Where are the soft skills? Supreme Court advises young lawyers to train under seniors on court decorum

The Supreme Court on Friday expressed concern over the declining emphasis on traditional court training and decorum among young lawyers [Puja Entertainment India Ltd v. TIPS Industries Ltd & Ors.].

A Bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and AG Masih emphasized that soft skills and advocacy are best learned under the guidance of senior members of the Bar.

"Today we are told some youngsters are starting their own office without training. That is really not good. Unless you train with a senior you won’t know the real skills of advocacy, the real tricks of the trade, you will just be wondering. We know youngsters are ambitious.  But unless you train with a senior, you won’t know the niceties of the profession. Nowadays, youngsters are so ambitious, but where are the soft skills? Every day from a senior you have to learn. We are concerned about the future of the Bar," it said.

The Court made the observation while hearing a plea against a Bombay High Court order refusing to stay the release of the Hindi movie 'Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai' over a copyright dispute concerning the songs 'Chunnari Chunnari' and 'Ishq Sona Hai'.

The High Court had refused to grant an urgent interim stay on the release of the film produced by TIPS Industries, observing that Puja Entertainment had previously initiated similar proceedings in a civil court in Bihar, raising concerns of forum shopping.

This order was challenged before the Supreme Court by Puja Entertainment.

During the hearing before the top court today, a young counsel representing one of the respondents interjected strongly against submissions made by the senior counsel appearing for Puja Entertainment, calling them "absolutely wrong."

Taking note of the tone, Justice Nagarathna advised the lawyer on maintaining restraint and professional etiquette in court.

"Mr. Counsel, you are very young. You should know when to speak and when not to speak. There’s no order that we have passed against you. You can’t say 'very wrong', etc. to a senior counsel like this," she said.

Justice Nagarathna highlighted how the culture of legal training has evolved over the decades, cautioning against skipping the foundational phase of learning under seniors.

Reflecting on her early days at the Bar, Justice Nagarathna recalled how observing court proceedings, particularly before strict judges, served as an essential training ground for young practitioners.

"When we were young, we would have only one matter here or there, one mentioning that's all. Then we would go and sit in some of the court halls, especially tough judges, to get ourselves immune to the toughness. Next time you have a case there, you're already immune by observing the judge for how to answer," she shared.

On the facts of the case, the Court noted that the interim applications remained pending before the High Court. It proceeded to close the petition before it, while directing the High Court to decide the pending applications as expeditiously as possible.

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