Advocates Act, 1961

This report highlights key issues litigants face in India due to regulatory gaps in the legal services sector. This paper puts forward an agenda for reform in the regulatory framework, for consideration of the Law Commission.

Legal services in India are regulated by the Advocates Act, 1961 (hereafter, Advocates Act), which constitutes the Bar Council of India (BCI) and respective State Bar Councils. The paper identifies two key areas that put litigants availing legal services at a disadvantage:

  1.     Information asymmetry
  2.     Remedies against misconduct

This report was presented before the 21st Law Commission of India on 14th December 2016.

Download PDF