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A top court bench of CJI DY Chandrachud with Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala had issued notice to the Union, BCI and state bar councils last month, while noting that the issue was a significant one.
The Supreme Court today questioned as to how much Bar Councils across the country were collecting every year under the enrollment fees paid by lawyers seeking to enroll with them.
"How much are you realizing by charging this fee every year? How much money are your getting every year?", CJI DY Chandrachud questioned Senior Advocate Manan Kumar Mishra.
Mishra, who serves as the Chairman of Bar Council of India, then told court that it was a one-time fee being charged.
"You cannot charge more than what the statue says", the CJI remarked, while referring to the Advocates Act, 1961.
"Under different heads we are charging, its a ONE-TIME fee. We have a lot of functions to discharge, seminars etc..", Mishra replied defending the enrollment fee structure.
Noting that a lot of Bar Councils had not responded yet to the plea challenging the exorbitant enrollment fees, the bench also comprising Justice Narasimha ordered thus, "We direct the state bar councils who have not replied till now to do so within 4 weeks."
Last month, the Supreme Court had issued notice to the Union Government, Bar Council of India and all state bar councils in the instant plea noting that it was a "significant issue".
Court was told that the charging of enrolment fees is a violation of Section 24(1) of the Advocates Act 1961 and that the BCI has the duty to ensure that exorbitant enrolment fees is not charged.
Bench further noted that in Odisha, an enrollment fee of Rs 42,100 was charged; in Gujarat it was Rs.25,000; in Uttarakhand Rs 23,650; and in Jharkhand it was Rs 21,460.
The petition added that this discouraged young aspiring lawyers who do not have the resources to pay such fees.
Case Title: Gaurav Kumar vs. Union of India
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