From Language to Integrity: Justice Roy’s Guidance for Young Lawyers

Former Supreme Court judge, Justice Hrishikesh Roy, addressing the Friday Group in a session conducted by Advocate Seshagiri Rao, spoke at length about the qualities that define effective courtroom advocacy. His address, rich with practical wisdom, combined lessons on language, temperament, credibility, and even physical fitness, with a striking comparison between theatre and lawyering.

At the outset, Justice Roy identified language as the defining tool of a lawyer's trade; “One of the very key elements of being a successful lawyer, is to have mastery over the tool of your trade - it is the language. It is through your language that you describe the cause in the petition or your application - it is through your language that you convey to the court why the court should accept the plea you are canvassing before the court. So having a grip over the language is a very important skill that a lawyer must cultivate and possess.”

Explaining how this mastery may be developed, he said it was not enough to stockpile words, but necessary to understand their usage across contexts.

He recommended young lawyers read widely, beyond legal texts, to polish expression. “I would suggest to the law student who is going to be a lawyer and to the young lawyer, and also to the not so young lawyer, to have a hobby of reading – now you don’t have to read law; it’s not necessary at all, you can read any book. For women lawyers, I would particularly suggest Justice Leila Seth’s On Balance; it is her life story… Similarly, Sir Lord Denning’s book – some of the things that I am telling you, about mastery over language, it is from Sir Lord Denning’s Discipline of Law.”

Justice Roy also advised juniors to learn by watching seniors in court. “Follow successful lawyers - how do they argue a matter. Same matter if Fali Nariman is presenting in a particular way, another veteran will put it in another way. So just by looking at, listening to these lawyers in court, you’ll be able to understand what is good – what works, what doesn’t work.”

Justice Roy acknowledged that nervousness in the courtroom is an experience every lawyer must face in the early years of practice.

He observed that even the most accomplished names in the profession began with difficult first days. What often unsettles young advocates, he noted, is the strong manner in which a judge might respond in court. In such moments, while it is natural to feel offended, the one thing a lawyer must never do is display anger before the Bench.

Integrity, Justice Roy said, is non-negotiable. “You must have integrity in the things that you do. It’s very important. A Court must understand that if submission is made by a lawyer A, he or she is definitely not going to say knowingly something false or will not misguide the court. Unknowingly things might happen but knowingly he will not do that. This is very important – to set up your reputation up front and, of course your preparation has to be top-notch.”

Turning to present practices, he remarked on the excessive reliance on citations. A lawyer, he said, must avoid what he called “judgment diarrhoea.”

Rather than piling precedents into submissions, he advised focusing on a single, authoritative judgment; either from the largest bench available or the most recent ruling that settles the law.

On the art of delivery, Justice Roy linked advocacy to theatre, noting how actors prepare scripts, move with gestures, and use variations in pitch and pauses to communicate emotion and intent. A courtroom submission, he suggested, cannot be bland; it requires a similar play of tone and emphasis to hold the court's attention. Just as an actor enlivens words through performance, so too must a lawyer build presence in court.

The judge also reflected on professionalism in the face of outcomes. “It is important for you to be gracious in losing a case,” he said, adding, “Outcome of the case should not determine whether you’ll be thumping your chest or whether you’ll be crying – that the client can do but not a professional lawyer. You must have a professional bearing in seeing the verdict in a given case.”

Collegiality within the Bar, too, he underlined, cannot be overlooked. “Don’t be harsh to your colleagues,” he cautioned, while also highlighting that physical fitness plays a subtle but vital role in sustaining the energy required for lawyering. Daily activity, he said, helps keep the spirit of the lawyer intact in a profession that demands long hours and mental resilience.

Before concluding, Justice Roy offered a simple strategic piece of advice: “Always under pitch the case in the court – don’t start off your submission by saying I have an outstanding foolproof case”

His address left the audience with a composite message; that courtroom skills are not merely about legal knowledge but about language, preparation, credibility, presence, and temperament.

For Justice Roy, a successful lawyer is one who reads widely, speaks with clarity, argues with integrity, carries himself with grace in both victory and defeat, and never forgets that the courtroom is as much a stage as it is a forum of law.

Link to Full Speech