Bench-Bar Relationship Reciprocity as partners in administration of Justice

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Bench-Bar Relationship Reciprocity as partners in administration of Justice

This article is written by Faria Abdulla of LLB Hons (II Year), an intern under Legal Vidhiya

ABSTRACT

Firstly, in order to understand the Bench-Bar Relationship Reciprocity, we ought to know the meaning of the terms, the relation between these terms & their roles in the administration of Justice.

What does the term Bar mean?

In general, the term Bar represents the synergic group of attorneys who are empowered to practice in court, or courts of any state. Anyone, who has a Law Degree (from any university) and who is a member of Bar-Council of India, can be enlisted to be an advocate, thus, such advocates who practice in the court of law, are considered as BAR.

What does the term Bench mean?

Legally, the term ‘Bench’ has various meanings. Most importantly, it represents the place where the judges or the judge of any court normally sit for the hearing of the trial. Secondly, it also represents the judges of particular court collectively, For Example- Queen’s Bench in England & similarly in Wales.

Bench-Bar Reciprocity here means the practice of exchanging things, especially powers, privileges and duties with each other for mutual benefit. Bench & Bar I.e., Judges & Advocates share with each other their common powers & privileges in order to ensure effective administration & implementation of justice.

KEYWORDS: bench & Bar, Judges & Advocates, Bar Council of India, Administrant, justice, Reciprocity, Relationship, All-India Law Committee, The Law Commission, Advocates Act, Functionary Agent.

INTRODUCTION

Beginning with the brief intro of the topic, I want to make the meanings clear. Courts in India basically consists of two parts,

First, the place where the judges sit is called ‘Bench’ &

Second, the place where the advocates stand is called ‘Bar’.

So, the term bench is used to refer to ‘Judges’ & the term Bar is used to refer to ‘Advocates’. Bar-bench means the cordial relationship among the judges & the advocates. Both Bench & Bar play an important role in the administration of justice. The Advocates are like administrant of the court, their duty is to act like an ‘functionary agent’ to the court. The judges are responsible for delivering justice, but they cannot do so without the help of the lawyers. Similarly, advocates are responsible for presenting their clients, whose rights have been violated and ensuring that they do receive justice. Both Bench & Bar I.e., judges & Advocates are equally responsible for the administration of justice. So, there must be mutual respect, understanding & effort.

An Advocate is the member of the Bar Council of India, which is the statutory body established under Section 4 of Advocates Act, 1961. The function of the Bar Council is to modulate and regulate legal practice & legal education all around the country. The head of the ‘All India Bar Committee’ S.R. Das suggested for the establishment of the Bar-Council for each state and All India Bar-Council as an apex body. The Law Commission along with the All-India Bar committee collectively introduced the Advocates Act, 1961 in order to ensure proper regulation of the legal education as well as legal practices, throughout the country. It also stipulates etiquette, code of conduct, behavior & it also exercises disciplinary jurisdiction over the bar.

RELATIONSHIP OF BAR & BENCH IN ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

(LANDMARK JUDGEMENTS)

The Hon’ble Supreme Court laid down in the case, P.D. Gupta V. Ram Murti & Others AIR 1988 SC 283: “A Lawyer owes a duty to be fair not only to his clients but to the court as well as to the opposite party in the conduct of the case” The Court further stated that “Administration of justice is not something that concerns the Bench only, it concerns the Bar as well.” The SC in this case, also said that “Actually judges & lawyers are complementary to each other. The primary duty of the lawyer is to inform the court as to the law & facts of the case & to do justice by arriving at the correct conclusions.”

Similarly, in case, Mahant Hakumat Rai v. Emperor, AIR 1943 Lahore 14, the Lahore High Court had held that “Without failing in respect to Bench, it is the duty of the members of the Bar to assert their just rights to be heard by the tribunal before which they are practicing. They should be fearless and independent in the discharge of their duties and would be perfectly right in protesting against irregular procedure on the part of any judge; and if the advocate is improperly checked or found fault with, he should vindicate the independence of the Bar. He would be perfectly justified in insisting on getting a proper hearing and he would be perfectly right to object to any interruption in the course of his argument such as to disturb him in doing his duty to his client. Plenary powers vested in the Presiding Officer of the Court, apart from the fact that they have rarely been used against members of the legal profession so far, should only be used to vindicate the honor of the court or to satisfy the necessities of public justice and not as a matter of course.”

The Advocates must hold respect regardless of their status, while they’re in a court. The advocate must not give his private opinion on any matter of prior importance, he must work to ensure proper administration of justice, and give the judiciary prior importance.

A corrupt judiciary would mean complete loss of the chance of individual’s happiness and liberty. Therefore, both Judges & Advocates must perform their respective duties. Because, neither of them can run the administrative justice alone.

DUTIES OF THE BAR & BENCH

(JUDGES)

The Judge is responsible for providing accurate administration of justice in his court. So, to ensure proper administration, he himself must fulfil certain duties towards the law. Judges, especially supreme court’s judge hold power & authority that is immensely greater than any other authority in our country. Therefore, to ensure that there is no misuse of that power. The judge of SC must follow some duties. These duties are as follows:

A judge must not misuse his power.
A judge should respect the privilege of the Bar.
A judge must not show partiality; everything he does must be done for the law & justice and not for the family & friends.
Judges should be free from ill will, influence of others, partiality etc…..
He must ensure that justice (economic, social or political) reaches everyone and that too equally.
A judge is responsible for maintaining the dignity of the court and its members.
A judge must keep his tone professional & he must not use any kind of bad knowledge while dealing with any matter.

(ADVOCATES)

Advocates are the essence of the courts. They are expected to secure administrative justice in the courts. Advocates assist the courts in serving justice to all.

Hence, it is important for them to act in a certain manner that will not hamper the system of justice & equality. Therefore, they must follow aforementioned duties strictly:

An Advocate must not be involved in any corrupt practices, he must be loyal to the law & the court as well.
An Advocate must not use any illegal means in order to change or alter the decisions or proceedings of the court.\An Advocate has a responsibility to be fair and righteous towards his client as well as the court.
His tone must always be professional while dealing with his case & he must not use any kind of bad knowledge while the case is on trial.
An Advocate must show respect to the judges & must not attempt contempt of court. Contempt of court is of various types, for example, threatening the judges, or being disrespectful or disobedient towards the court or its judges.
An Advocate must have perfect knowledge of the law he is dealing with. He must always be prepared.
The duty of Bar to Bench is to maintain its honor & integrity.

In the words of V. Krishna Iyer “……The Lawyer shall be an instrumentality of the republic in securing to the whole people as promised in the preamble, Justice Social Economic and Political and fundamental freedoms and rights incorporated in law….”

BENCH-BAR RECIPROCITY AS PARTNERS IN ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

A lawyer, who is a member of Bar Council and hence the judiciary system of India, represents his clients in the court & has certain responsibilities towards them. He is responsible for providing pure justice to his clients.
A lawyer has to perform various functions: As a client’s representative, he represents his client in the court of law. As an Advocate, he ensures proper delivery of justice. As an evaluator, he ensures that the clients or individuals are aware of their rights & obligations and also takes steps to provide victims of crimes with clear procedure for obtaining their remedy through law.
An Advocate must be hardworking, prestigious, competent & diligent. A lawyer must be able to keep in confidence info about the client & only disclose the information permissible by the law.
A lawyer must solve the conflicts among his professional association with proficiency. His conduct must be adequate in respect of the court, clients as well as with other advocates.
A judge should be law-abiding, faithful in actions, loyal by heart, fearless in bravery & ambitious for justice.
For proper administration of justice there must be mutual understanding & respect among these two branches I.e., Bench & Bar. Without cordial relations between these organs a peaceful atmosphere cannot be created
Lawyers as well as judges have a very important & crucial role in maintaining the well-being of society. These roles are crucial for society & can only be fulfilled with a complete understanding of the relations among them.
Legal profession demands proficiency, fearlessness, non-biasness. Whether one is a member of a Bar or Bench, one must stand by what is right & what is wrong, in a cordial manner & without fear.
There must be tolerance & understanding on the part of both sides. And neither the judge nor advocate, neither of them is bigger than law.

CONCLUSION

The judiciary of India has been separated from the executive powers of state under the provisions (Article 50) of the constitution. Both the Bar & Bench are essential for each other, neither of them is considered to be superior to the other. In India, bar & bench works side by side to secure justice (social, economic & political) to its citizens. Article 129 & 215 of the constitution gives the authority to the supreme court & the high court receptively to punish the (bar or bench) for the contempt of the court.

Similarly, the bench has also been given independence to a certain extent, but he/she must act according to the guidelines & must follow the code of conduct. Article 211 states that no debate of any judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court’s conduct in the exercise of his duties shall be allowed in the State legislature. A similar provision is established in Article 121, which states that no discussion of the conduct of a judge of the Supreme Court or High Court in the fulfillment of his responsibilities shall take place in Parliament until a move for delivering an address to the President requesting for the judge’s removal is submitted.

The independence of the judiciary ensures public trust in it as a last resort institution where justice will be served notwithstanding any opposition or influence. People have a high level of faith and confidence in the court to provide justice in the event of executive misbehavior. If executive influence in judicial procedures is allowed, as well as judicial bias against the executive, the faith and confidence will not be met.

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