Bar Council of Delhi opposes entry of foreign law firms, wants permission stayed

Foreign law firms

The Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) and other bar associations in the national capital have asked the Bar Council of India (BCI) to stay the rules permitting the entry of foreign law firms and lawyers in India.

The rules framed by BCI were detrimental to the “interest of each and every Indian advocate”, BCD said in an interim report released on June 6. The notification permitting the entry of foreign law firms would not only undermine the legal profession but would completely destroy the existing framework, it said.

While the advocates act would govern the practice of Indian lawyers, it would be applicable to foreign lawyers, as a result, they would be free to solicit and advertise in the Indian market, which was not permissible as per the BCI rules. The legal profession which was considered “noble” would become a “commercial activity” as a result of advertisements, it said.

It was also not a level playing field as the provisions of reciprocity, which formed the core of entry of foreign law firms to India, were unclear, BCD said in the report. Giving an example, it said Indian lawyers needed to register with solicitor firms and also pass Solicitor Qualification Examination (SQE) in the UK.

The rules would make Indian advocates vulnerable to consumer complaints by clients and would have to face cases lodged by their clients before the consumer redressal forums, the report claimed.

The interim report said a special committee was set up in March to look at BCI’s rules for the registration and regulation of foreign lawyers and law firms in India and the report was based on its findings.

In March, BCI agreed to open up the law practice to foreign lawyers and law firms. The statutory body of lawyers released rules for the registration of these lawyers and firms.

"Opening up of law practice in India to foreign lawyers in the field of practice of foreign law; diverse international legal issues in non-litigious matters and in international arbitration cases would go a long way in helping legal profession/domain grow in India to the benefit of lawyers in India too,” it said.

These rules were based on the “principle of reciprocity in a well-defined, regulated and controlled manner”, the BCI said in the notification.

The move would not impact law practice in India if done in a restricted and well-controlled and regulated manner, it said.