COMMITTEES

• Section 10 : Constitution of committees

other than disciplinary committees
• Constitution of special Committee in the
absence of election- Section 8A in Advocate
Act 1961
1. The Council may appoint from amongst its members, one or
more Committees as it may deem necessary, in addition to
those specified in the Act and delegate such powers, duties,
and functions to such Committees as it deems fit.
2. Any casual vacancy in the above Committees shall be filled
up by the Council.
3. Save where the Chairman or the Vice-Chairman is a
member of the Committee or the Sub-Committee, the
Committee or the Sub-Committee shall choose its Chairman
for the meeting unless at the time of the constitution thereof
the name of the Chairman has been specified.
8A. Constitution of Special Committee in the absence of election.―
(1) Where a State Bar Council fails to provide for the election of its members
before the expiry of the term of five years or the extended term, as the case
may be, referred to in section 8, the Bar Council of India shall, on and from the
date immediately following the day of such expiry, constitute a Special
Committee consisting of―
(i) the ex officio member of the State Bar Council referred to in clause (a) of
sub-section (2) of section 3 to be the Chairman: Provided that where there are
more than one ex officio members, the senior most amongst them shall be the
Chairman; and
(ii) two members to be nominated by the Bar Council of India from amongst
advocates on the electoral roll of the State Bar Council, to discharge the
functions of the State Bar Council until the Bar Council is constituted under
this Act
(2) On the constitution of the Special Committee and until the State Bar Council
is constituted—
(a) all properties and assets vesting in the State Bar Council shall vest in the
Special Committee;
(b) all rights, liabilities and obligations of the State Bar Council, whether arising
out of any contract or otherwise, shall be the rights, liabilities and obligations of
the Special Committee;
(c) all proceedings pending before the State Bar Council in respect of any
disciplinary matter or otherwise shall stand transferred to the Special Committee
 Committees
• The Bar Council consists of various committees viz.,
Legal Education Committee,
• Executive Committee – 2 years
• Disciplinary Committee – 3 years
• Legal Aid Executive Committee – 2 years
• Legal Education Committee – 4 years
• Advocates Welfare Fund Committee – 2 years
• other committees - 2 years
 Executive committee
• Sec 10- SBC (5 members) and BCI (9 members)
• The executive committee is the executive authority of the
council and handles giving effect to the resolutions of the
council.
• Members of the executive committee are elected from
amongst the members of the BCI.
• The committee elects its chairman and vice-chairman.
The executive committee has the power
• To manage the funds of the council
• To invest the funds of the Council in the manner directed by the Council from time
to time
• To grant leave to the members of the staff, other than casual leave
• To prescribe books of account, registers and files for the proper management of
the affairs of the Council
• To appoint and supervise the work of the members of the staff and prescribe their
conditions of service
• To appoint auditors and fix their remuneration
• To consider the annual audit report and place it before the Council with its
comments for its consideration
• To maintain a library and under the directions of the Council, publish any journal,
treatise or pamphlets on legal subjects
• To prepare and place before the Council, the annual
administration report and the statement of account
• To provide for proper annual inspection of the office and its
registers
• To authorize the Secretary to incur expenditure within prescribed
limits
• To fix travelling and other allowances to members of the
committees of the Council, and to members of the staff
• To delegate to the Chairman and/or the Vice-Chairman any of its
afore mentioned powers
• To do all other things necessary for discharging the
aforesaid functions
 Disciplinary committee –Sec 9

• The disciplinary committee of the BCI hears the

applications for revision by persons against summary
dismissal of their complaints against advocates for
professional misconduct, by the State Bar Councils.
 Legal Aid Committee

• Sec 9A- SBC (5 members) and BCI (9 members)

• One or more legal aid committees may be constituted by the
Council. It shall have minimum five members; however it
cannot exceed nine.
• The Legal Aid activities of the Council are monitored,
conducted by the committee. The Council prescribes the
qualifications required for the members from time to time.
 The legal education
committee:Section 10(2)(b)
• A legal education committee consisting of ten members,
• of whom five shall be persons elected by the Council from amongst
its members and
• five shall be persons co- opted by the Council who are not
members thereof.
 The legal education committee has
the power
• To make recommendations to the council for laying down the
standards of legal education for universities
• To visit and inspect universities and report the results to the council.
• To recommend to the Council the conditions subject to which foreign
qualification in law obtained by persons other than citizens of India
may be recognized.
• To recommend to the Council for recognition of any degree in law of
any University in the territory of India.
• To recommend the discontinuance of recognition of any University
already made by the Council.
 Advocate Welfare Committee:
• This committee investigates applications made by advocates for
welfare funds.
• It verifies the application and provides funds.
• The Advocates Welfare committee is certified by the Advocates
Welfare Fund Act, 2001.
 Others - Enrolment Committee
• There must be three members (SBC) in the enrolment
committee who shall be elected from the members of
the Council.
• A State Bar Council shall refer every application for
admission as an advocate to its enrolment committee
and it shall decide on the same.
 Others - Building Committee:

• The Building Committee is responsible for

setting up offices for the Council.
 Others - Rules Committee:
• The Rules Committee reviews the rules and
regulations of the Council.
• Other than these, there are Finance
Committee, Special or Oversee Committee
and All India Bar Examination Committee.
Section 10A. Transaction of business by Bar
Councils and committees thereof
a. Meeting Place:
Section 10(1) The Bar Council of India shall meet at New Delhi or at such
other place as it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing,determine.
Section 10 (2) A State Bar Council shall meet at its headquarters or at such
other place as it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, determine.
(3) The committees other than disciplinary committees constituted by the Bar
Councils shall meet at the headquarters of the respective Bar Councils.
 cont…
Rules of Procedure:
Section 10(4) Every Bar Council and every committee thereof except the
disciplinary committees shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to
the transaction of business at their meetings as may be prescribed.
(5) The disciplinary committees constituted under section 9 shall meet at such
times and places and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the
transaction of business at their meetings as may be prescribed.
Section 10B: Disqualification of members of Bar Council.

An elected member of a Bar Council shall be deemed to have vacated his office
if he is declared by the Bar Council of which he is a member
a. have been absent without sufficient excuse from three consecutive
meetings of such Council,
b. or if his name is, for any cause, removed from the roll of advocates or
c. if he is otherwise disqualified under any rule made by the Bar Council of
India.
 Others: Staff and Accounts and Audit

Section 11. Staff of Bar Council.―

(1) Every Bar Council shall appoint a secretary and may appoint an accountant
and such number of other persons on its staff as it may deem necessary.
(2) The secretary and the accountant, if any, shall possess such qualifications as
may be prescribed.
 Section 12. Accounts and Audit.
(1) Every Bar Council shall cause to be maintained such books of accounts and other
books in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The accounts of a Bar Council shall be audited by auditors duly qualified to act
as auditors of companies under the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956), at such times
and in such manner as may be prescribed.
[(3) As soon as may be practicable at the end of each financial year, but not later than the
31st day of December of the year next following, a State Bar Council shall send a copy
of its accounts together with a copy of the report of the auditors thereon to the Bar
Council of India and shall cause the same to be published in the official Gazette.
(4) As soon as may be practicable at the end of each financial year, but not later than the
31st day of December of the year next following, the Bar Council of India shall send a
copy of its accounts together with a copy of the report of the auditors thereon to
the Central Government and shall cause the same to be published in the Gazette of
India
 VACANCIES AND QUESTIONS ON
ELECTION
Section 13. Vacancies in Bar Council and committees thereof not to
invalidate action taken.―No act done by
a Bar Council or any committee thereof shall be called in question on the ground
merely of the existence of any vacancy in, or any defect in the constitution of, the
Council or committee, as the case may be.
Section 14. Election to Bar Councils not to be questioned on certain
grounds.― No election of a member to a Bar Council shall be called in question
on the ground merely that due notice thereof has not been given to any person
entitled to vote thereat, if notice of the date has, not less than thirty days before
that date, been published in the Official Gazette
Section 15. Power to make rules.―(1) A Bar Council may make rules to carry out the purposes
of this Chapter.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may
provide for:

[(a) the election of members of the Bar Council by secret ballot including the conditions subject
to which persons can exercise the right to vote by postal ballot, the preparation and revision
of electoral rolls and the manner in which the results of election shall be published;]
[(c) the manner of election of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council;]
(d) the manner in which and the authority by which doubts and disputes as to the validity of an
election to the Bar Council [or to the office of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman] shall be finally
decided;
(f) the filling of casual vacancies in the Bar Council;
(g) the powers and duties of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council;
[(ga) the constitution of one or more funds by a Bar Council for the
purpose of giving financial assistance or giving legal aid or advice referred
to in sub-section (2) of section 6 and sub-section (2) of section 7;
(gb) organisation of legal aid and advice to the poor, constitution and
functions of committees and subcommittees for that purpose and
description of proceedings in connection with which legal aid or advice may
be given;]
(h) the summoning and holding of meetings of the Bar Council, the
conduct of business thereat, and the number of members necessary to
constitute a quorum;
(i) the constitution and functions of any committee of the Bar Council
and the term of office of members of any such committee;
(j) the summoning and holding of meetings, the conduct of business of any
such committee, and the number of members necessary to constitute a
quorum;
(k) the qualifications and the conditions of service of the secretary, the
accountant and other employees of the Bar Council;
(l) the maintenance of books of accounts and other books by the Bar
Council;
(m) the appointment of auditors and the audit of the accounts of the
Bar Council;
(n) the management and investment of the funds of the Bar Council.
(3) No rules made under this section by a State Bar Council shall have effect
unless they have been approved by the Bar Council of India.
 Summoning and Holding of Meetings
1. Section 15(j) of the Advocates Act 1961,the summoning and holding of
meetings, the conduct of business of any such committee, and the number
of members necessary to constitute a quorum;
2. The quorum for the meeting of the Council shall be seven and for all other
Committees except the Executive Committee and the Legal Education
Committee, the quorum shall be two.
3. The quorum for the Executive Committee and the Legal Education
Committee shall be four.