"This Elitism Must Be Condemned" Justice Chandrachud On Discrimination By Few Law Firms Against Graduates From Ordinary Law Colleges [Read The Full Text Of Speech]

"This elitism and discriminatory practice must be condemned because it is antithetical to the principles of fairness and equality upon which the practice of law is founded. Not only do these practices deprive meritorious students of opportunities, they also deprive the corporate legal sector of the talented legal minds that are found in the majority of Indian law schools and colleges".It is unfortunate that some law firms are known to discriminate between graduates at the same position or level by offering lower salaries to graduates of what are considered tier-two or tier-three law schools, Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud has said at an event organised by Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession in New Delhi.The Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession hosted the book launch of The Indian Legal Profession in the Age of Globalization at Taj Mahal Hotel in New Delhi on Friday. The event was hosted by David B Wilkins, Professor of Law and director of the Center on the Legal Profession, and was graced by the distinguished presence of Supreme Court’s senior advocate Fali S Nariman. The keynote address was delivered Justice Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud."A top firm also discriminates in salaries on the basis of your grades in in law school- If you were in the top 10 ranks of your batch - your salary is roughly 1 lakh more per month- while this may be some way to reward academic excellence- it is time we moved away from recognising merit only through grades and university ranking given that the Indian legal education system is far from perfect. The fact that legal education is now being viewed only as means to secure a job in a high-paying law firms is evident in the manner in which law schools are ranked- recruitment by the corporate sector is the most important factor in determining law school rankings. This approach of viewing legal education as only a means to an end and not an end in itself is highly problematic and is leading to our young lawyers missing out on the true value of education in our lives, he said.At the outset, he begun by acknowledging the pecking order that exists in the legal profession and its corresponding job market. He spoke at length about the emergence of the new corporate legal structure and its impact on other parts of Indian legal profession including legal education, development of pro bono, corporate social responsibility, gender and professional hierarchy.Notable Extracts From the Speech Growth of Legal Profession The growth of this corporate legal sector has affected the legal profession at large. The most significant impact has been on legal education in India, due to the increasing number of law graduates (particularly from the elite law schools) who choose to work in law firms.The high pay packages that are offered at law firms even at the entry level have now made law as a whole a more lucrative and alluring profession, leading to a dramatic increase in the number of students pursuing law as a career option.The corporate legal sector is known to recruit only from the topmost law schools (single-digit number). Unfortunately, few law firms are also known to discriminate between graduates at the same position or level by offering lower salaries to graduates of what are considered tier-two or tier-three law schools. This elitism and discriminatory practice must be condemned because it antithetical to the principles of fairness and equality upon which the practice of law is founded. Not only do these practices deprive meritorious students of opportunities, but they also deprive the corporate legal sector of the talented legal minds that are found in the majority of Indian law schools and colleges. The fact that legal education is now being viewed only as means to secure a job in a high-paying law firms is evident in the manner in which law schools are ranked- recruitment by the corporate sector is the most important factor in determining law school rankings. This approach of viewing legal education as only a means to an end and not an end in itself is highly problematic and is leading to our young lawyers missing out on the true value of education in our lives.Young juniors entering litigation today are paid little or nothing as compared to their corporate peers. The unfortunate effect of this is that it makes litigation an exclusive domain, and the privilege of only a chosen few who have families with the means to support them through difficult initial years.The need of the hour is for the entire legal community to collectively work towards reforms that not only make jobs in the litigation sector attractive but also viable and rewarding.Women in India’s law firmsThe Indian legal profession has been predominantly male dominated.As of 2012, only 5 out of 294 lawyers who have been promoted to the position of Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India have been women-an abysmal 2 per cent. Similarly, in the 63 year- old history of the Supreme Court,...

"This Elitism Must Be Condemned" Justice Chandrachud On Discrimination By Few Law Firms Against Graduates From Ordinary Law Colleges [Read The Full Text Of Speech]

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