Can State Bar Councils Collect More Than Rs 600 As Enrollment Fee? Supreme Court Reserves Judgment

The Supreme Court on Monday (April 22) reserved judgment on a batch of petitions challenging the enrollment fees charged by different State Bar Councils as exorbitant.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandracuhd and Justice JB Pardiwala heard the matter. A main point raised by the bench during the hearing was whether the Bar Councils can charge anything more than the amount prescribed as per Section 24(1)(f) of the Advocates Act 1961(Rs 600 for the State Bar Council and Rs 150 for the Bar Council of India).

The bench also noted that there was no uniformity in the fees charged by different State Bar Councils. In some states, like Kerala, Maharashtra, Delhi etc., it i in the range of Rs 15,000, whereas in states like Odisha, it is Rs 41,000.

Senior Advocates Manan Kumar Mishra and S Prabhakaran, appearing for the Bar Council of India, submitted that the State Bar Councils incur several expenses for welfare measures of the advocates. They submitted that contributions towards the welfare funds and expenses are collected upfront from the advocates at the time of enrollment. 

Senior Advocate Raghent Basant, appearing for the petitioners challenging the enrollment fee, submitted that the Bar Councils cannot collect the amounts over the statutorily prescribed fee under the guise of contributions for welfare measures. Basant argued that this would amount to creating entry barriers for young lawyers, who are yet to start earning. If the Bar Councils need to raise money for their funds, they can charge the advocates after their enrollment, but it cannot be charged as a condition to admit lawyers to the bar, he argued. In response, the Bar Council cited practical difficulties in making advocates pay and hence such amounts were collected upfront. The BCI also pointed out that the amount of Rs. 750/-( Rs 600 for State Bar Councils and Rs 150 for the BCI) does not account for the present-day inflation as this was fixed in the year 1993.

The bench observed that the legal question was whether the Bar Councils could charge an amount in excess of the statutorily prescribed amount.

"It is for parliament to increase the enrollment fee. It is a valid point you raised on the various expenses to run the state bar councils..but,the statute is very clear that enrolment you cannot charge more 600 Rs," CJI Chandrachud observed.

"They cannot charge all this as an enrollment fee as an entry barrier," Basant submitted. He submitted that there might be persons who get enrolled but may not practice before Courts, like General Councils. "A person who is a GC who will never come to the court, why should he pay 3000 rs before becoming a lawyer?," he submitted.

During the hearing, Advocate Vrinda Bhandari cited the example of a person belonging to the Denotified Community who had to run a private crowdfunding campaign to raise the enrollment fee of Rs 15,000/- for enrollment at the MP Bar Council.

The petitioners also cited the observations made by the Constitution Bench in Bar Council of India v. Bonnie Foi Law College & Ors. about the need to ensure that the enrollment fee does not become "oppressive".

"Different state bar councils charging different fees for enrolment needed the attention of the Bar Council of India, which, the court categorically stated, was not devoid of the power to ensure that a uniform pattern is observed across the country and that the fee does not become oppressive at the threshold of a young student's profession," the Supreme Court had observed in Bonnie Foi Law College case.

When the bench raised this issue, Mishra and Prabhakaran stated that the Bar Council of India would issue directions to make the enrollment fee charged by different Bar Councils uniform.

The bench was also taken aback to note that the Odisha Bar Council charges Rs 41,000 as enrollment fee. CJI observed that for a young lawyer coming from a backward community, this amount will be way too exorbitant. CJI also recalled during the hearing that when he started practice in Bombay after returning from Harvard, the first remuneration he got for a matter was Rs.60.

While reserving the judgment, CJI also said that the Parliament has also to amend the Advocates Act to ensure funds for the Bar Councils.

In July 2023, the Supreme Court had transferred to itself petitions pending in various High Courts on this issue. Last year, the Kerala High Court directed the Bar Council of Kerala to collect only Rs.750/- as enrolment fee from law graduates wishing to enroll, till the Bar Council of India considers a uniform fee structure.

Case : Gaurav Kumar v. Union of India W.P.(C) No. 352/2023 and connected cases.