Read Time: 03 minutes

The Bar Council of Kerala has notified The Kerala Advocates' Stipend Rules, 2021 in exercise of its powers conferred by section 27 read with section 9(2)(gi) of the Kerala Advocates' Welfare Fund Act, 1980, which mandates a monthly stipend of Rs. 5000 to junior lawyers.

The notification mandates that such stipend shall be disbursed from the Fund for a maximum period of three years of actual practice from the date of the Advocate passing the All India Bar Examination or up to the Advocate attaining the age of thirty years, whichever is earlier.

Following are the eligibility criteria:

(a) The applicant shall be a member of the Fund and is not in default of annual subscription to the Fund under sub-section (5) of section 15 of the Act;

(b) The applicant has applied for Certificate of Practice as on the date of application for stipend in Form I;

(c) The applicant’s annual income, at the time of application does not exceed rupees one lakh (d) The applicant has not exceeded the age of thirty years and the applicant shall, along with the application, submit a copy of the birth certificate of the applicant;

(e) The applicant is neither substantially or full time pursuing any course of study nor earning substantial income from any source other than from the legal profession or part time teaching in law;

Earlier, the Kerala High Court had questioned the Bar Council of Kerala for the delay in implementing a Government Order(GO) issued in March 2018, which had sanctioned payment of ₹5,000 per month as stipend for junior lawyers.