{"id":237146,"date":"2020-10-10T13:00:31","date_gmt":"2020-10-10T07:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/?p=237146"},"modified":"2020-10-10T12:19:51","modified_gmt":"2020-10-10T06:49:51","slug":"guj-hc-employed-woman-permitted-to-appear-for-all-india-bar-examination-directions-issued-to-the-bar-council-of-gujarat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2020\/10\/10\/guj-hc-employed-woman-permitted-to-appear-for-all-india-bar-examination-directions-issued-to-the-bar-council-of-gujarat\/","title":{"rendered":"Guj HC | Employed woman permitted to appear for All India Bar Examination; Directions issued to the Bar Council of Gujarat \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gujarat High Court:<\/strong> A Division Bench of Vikram Nath, CJ and J.B. Padiwala, J., allowed a petition which was filed praying to issue an appropriate writ, order or direction in order to quash and set aside Rule 1 and Rule 2 of the Bar Council of Gujarat (Enrollment) Rules to the extent that they prohibited the admission of a person who was otherwise qualified to be admitted as an advocate, but was either in full or part-time service or employment or was engaged in any trade, business or profession, as an advocate.<\/p>\n

It is mandatory for an advocate to be enrolled as such before taking the All India Bar Examination.<\/p>\n

As per the Bar Council of India Rules, no advocate enrolled under Section 24 of the Advocates Act, 1961 shall be entitled to practice under Chapter IV of the Advocates Act unless such Advocate successfully passes the All India Bar Examination conducted by the Bar Council of India. The Bar Council of Gujarat has framed the Bar Council of Gujarat (Enrollment Rules) under Section 28(2) (d) read with Section 24(1) (e) of the Advocates Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as \u201cthe Enrollment Rules\u201d). As is mentioned in Rule 1 of the Enrollment Rules, a person who is otherwise qualified to be admitted as an advocate but is either in full or part-time service or employment or is engaged in any trade, business or profession is not to be admitted as an advocate. Rule 2 of the Enrollment Rules requires every person applying to be admitted as an advocate, to make a declaration in his application that he is not in full or part time service or employment and that he is not engaged in any trade, business or profession contrary to the rules of State Bar Council and of the Bar Council of India made under the Act. The writ applicant duly filled in the application form and also paid fees of Rs 16,600 as required. The writ applicant also duly declared that she is in employment. * The Bar Council of Gujarat, however, did not accept the form of the writ applicant. The writ applicant was told that the application was not accepted as the writ applicant had declared that she was in employment and that a form of only that person who makes a declaration that she is not employed either in full or part time service or employment and is not engaged in any trade, business or profession can be accepted, the writ applicant further submitted that the aforesaid rule was manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, violative of Articles 14, 19(1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution of India.<\/p>\n

The Court keeping in view the interest of all passed the following interim order:<\/p>\n