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Synopsis

While speaking at the foundation stone laying ceremony for additional court structures on the premises of the District Court in Madurai and to inaugurate the District and Sessions Court and Chief Judicial Magistrate Court in Mayiladuthurai, Dr DY Chandrachud, Chief Justice of India, recently discussed the low number of women in the legal profession.

The CJI stated that negative preconceptions of women made it harder for them to be recruited. He noted that for every 50,000 male enrolments in Tamil Nadu, there were only 5,000 female enrolments. These numbers were comparable across the nation, he said.

According to CJI Chandrachud, the pre-existing preconceptions that inhibited law chambers from recruiting young women lawyers were one of the reasons for such low representation. Chambers believed that women would be unable to work long hours owing to their familial obligations, he asserted. 

“We should understand that childbearing and child care is a choice and women should not be punished for taking up that responsibility. A young male lawyer might also choose to be involved in child & family care. But as a society, we force the responsibility on women and use it to deny them opportunities. If women want to balance family and career, it is our duty to provide institutional support,” he said.

The establishment of creche facilities within courthouses across the country was one method of providing such institutional support, CJI mentioned. Citing the Delhi High Court as an example, the CJI asked all high courts in India to provide assistance to women attempting to manage their jobs and families.

The second stereotype commonly associated with the employment of women, according to Justice Chandrachud, is complaints of sexual harassment. He pointed out that people believed that it was safer for male employers to not employ women. Such stereotyping denies opportunity and ridicules the stories of sexual harassment in the workplace and we must strive to constantly and consciously unlearn these biases, he said. 

While mentioning recent recruitments to the district-level judiciary, the CJI noted that the face of the institution was changing, as over half of the new recruits were women. He also emphasised the importance of providing women with equal chances so that they do not fall by the wayside due to their various duties.

The CJI also pointed out the salary of junior attorneys as a significant problem. The CJI observed that women and members of marginalised groups such as Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe are disproportionately affected by low starting salaries.

Justice Chandrachud said that by providing inadequate compensation, a barrier is formed, and the young graduates were obliged to seek employment outside of their field of study in order to survive. In addition, he asked the older members of the bar to abandon their paternalistic attitude and compensate the junior associates appropriately. He noted that the current generation is intelligent, diligent, and job-hungry, with the capacity to offer a novel perspective to the table.

“The usual defence for such low pay is that the first few years of a young associate's career is a learning stage where the senior mentors them. I would request the senior members of the bar to shed this paternalistic approach. Today's youngsters are sharp, hardworking and hungry for work. Interact with them about their approach towards law. You will be spellbound by the fresh approach that young lawyers bring to the table,” CJI said.

He further stated that “English is not our first language. We think in our mother tongue. However, I implore all young lawyers who are facing difficulty communicating in English to not be demotivated. I would also request judges to encourage young lawyers and not let language be an impediment to representation".

In addition, Justice Chandrachud discussed the measures taken to translate decisions into official languages acknowledged by the Constitution. He emphasised that every effort was made to localise the justice delivery system and bring it closer to the general populace.

“These translated judgments will be freely accessible to everyone, which would assist even those attorneys who were otherwise unable to afford the hefty subscription costs of law publishers,” CJI added.

To ensure translation accuracy, Justice Chandrachud stated that he has directed that all high courts assemble a committee of former district court judges to assess translation accuracy. He stated that the Tamil Nadu government might make it its purpose to interpret not just the decisions of the Supreme Court but also those of the high court in the local tongue.