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russell sarkar ( Lawyer )     26 September 2010

Liabilty of a Junoir Advocate

I am a junior lawyer of 30 years but I look like a 45 years old guy. Previously i was practising under a senoir advocate of 50 years old at Chief Judicial Magistrate court.  Me and my senior look like friends .My senior got a Debt recovery Tribunal case from a client and told me to sign in the vakalatnama. I had signed the vakalatnama as per his instructions but when i asked him to sign on that vakalatnama he didnot signed it.

 

On First date I had appeared first time before the Recovery Tribunal with an adjournment petition as per instruction of my senior . Again on second date, after 2 months , i appeared before the Recovery tribunal with an adjournment petiotion as per instruction of my senior. But this time the Reovery Tribunal told me that he would extend the third date on my standing and told me to appear before him with an affidavit disclosing the property of the client .

After the second date the client never contacted us.The client even didnot came to court to know from us when is the next date( as my senior doesnot have well furnished chamber, he tells maximum of his client to visit him in court ). On third date of appearence my senior told me to go to the shop of the client and inform him that today is the date and if the client is not present and anyone else is present tell him that we are not going to persue the case any more. I went to the shop of the client and i saw that the client was not present but his son was present . I asked the son where is his father and i also told him that today is the date. The son told me that his father is not present.On hearing this i told him that we are not going to persue their case anymore as i had no other option and my senior also told me to tell this.. I didnot appear before the Recovery tribunal on that date with an affidavit showing disclosure of the property of the client.

 

Now my question is ----

(1)Shall i be held responsible for nonappearence before the Recovery Tribunal with an affidavit showing disclosure of the property of the client.

(2) What steps the Recovery Tribunal can take.

 

(3) In what ways my senior is responsible for this.(MY senior had not signed the vakalatnama)

(4) In case of any dispute, how can i prove in court that he is my senior , as i have already mentioned above that we look like friends and i does not have any proof to show that he is my senior .

(5) Is the client not guilty by not communicating with us .



Learning

 14 Replies

DEFENSE ADVOCATE.-firmaction@g (POWER OF DEFENSE IS IMMENSE )     26 September 2010

Dear sir , this is simple problem. Just give a pursis before  DRT that you have no instructions.

Kiran Kumar (Lawyer)     26 September 2010

dear you are a 30 yrs old man now, may be junior or assistant counsel with some one...but you must not be so disturbed on such issues.

 

Mr. Sashi Kumar correctly advised you to apprise the DRT about lack of instructions and you may withdraw your Power of Attorney also.

 

As far as your relations with your senior are concerned, you have to manage it politely, you may leave his office to join some one else if you fell disturbed but dont take such incidents to heart....in my initial phase I argued worst possible cases for my senior....take it as a lesson and proceed ahead.

 

let the client face the consequences for his own conduct.

R.Ramachandran (Advocate)     26 September 2010

Mr. Sashikumar and Mr. Kiran have given very valuable advice to you.

In any case, only you having signed the Vakalatnama (and not your senior) as an Attorney you are responsible to your client.  You are supposed to communicate to your client (preferably in writing)  whatever that transpires in regard to the case in question.  In case any document etc., is required to be filed before the court as per the directions of the court, and the informationis required to be provided by the client, then on the same day the communication has to be made to the client asking him to bring the documents etc., on or before the next date of hearing.  Intimating the client in person on the last day "today is the date of hearing" is certainly not correct.

At least in future, instead of expecting the client to come to you and find out what is the outcome in the court, please be proactive and try to communicate with him in writing, to save you from any possible trouble.

For the present, ofcourse, you have received sound advice from Mr. Sashi and Mr. Kiran.

1 Like

Goutam (Student)     26 September 2010

I am agree with Mr. kiran kumar and Mr shashi kumar

Raghav Sood (Lawyer)     26 September 2010

sent regsitered letter to the client stating the entire  status of case and consequences

the he will ask your senior about everything

N.K.Assumi (Advocate)     26 September 2010

Dear LCI members, there is a dire need to supervise State BC regarding designation  of senior Advocate like screening of Law Graduates to take up practice by way of Bar Exam. What are the criterion of designinting an advocate as a senior advocate? These are the root cause of poisoning the Judiciary in the Country, and we need to look into these aspects of designiting an advocate as a senior advocate. What are the criterion or a standard of designiting an advocate as a senior advocate? by length of years as an advocate? We need a complete overhauling of the systems?

R.Ramachandran (Advocate)     26 September 2010

Dear Assumi,

It is not the BCI which is granting the status of senior advocates.  It is the concerned High Courts.  There is a proper process for this. 

It would be advisable for you to first understand the criterion and procedure, before passing any critical comment on the subject.  The issue is many of us are ready to provide the solution, even before understanding the problem.

1 Like

N.K.Assumi (Advocate)     27 September 2010

Thank you S.Ramachandran Sir, for the information. Sorry if there was any lapses in my postings and am ready to take it back as if it was never posted in the forum. Once again I stand corrected by your postings.

N.K.Assumi (Advocate)     27 September 2010

But let us ponder over for a Junior lawyer for 30 years?

R.Ramachandran (Advocate)     27 September 2010

Dear Assumi,

Again you are jumping to conclusions that the querist is a junior advocate for 30 long years.  On the contrary, he says that he is a junior advocate of 30 years.  When he says that he is a junior advocate of 30 years (not for 30 years), he does not  talk about his number of service as junior advocate, but his real biological age.    There is a vast difference between of 30 years and for 30 years.

Prashant Chamoli (Legal retainer)     27 September 2010

Plz communicate through registered letters next time rather than visiting him personally and do mention in such letters that if u fail to contact/meet ur vakalatnama will be be withdrawn. Most important is that u should be present in next date and withdraw ur vakalatnama with "NO instructions"

U can be held liable before BCI if he compalins that u didnt appear in court on the date fixed. so next time be cautious.
 

valentine (Advocate)     05 October 2010

The laid down procedure is to declare by the Sr. Advocate in concerned district court the names of his staff members and junior advocate. If a Jr. Adv. is appearing in a contested matter, the Hon. Court would definitely raise eyebrow and try to get the name of the Sr. Adv. Again all advocates should be careful in signing VPs. In the Vadodara Dist. Court, the President of the Baroda Bar Assocn. was prosecuted against and his Sanad has been suspended for 2 years in a case wherein his signature was taken as a goodwill without his knowledge of the facts. So be careful in future. Clever advocates gets the undertaking from the clients in the form of affidavit and they even mention the stage upto which his services would be available. Nowadays lawyers are called to the IT Office based on the length of their seniority. All these points should be kept in mind before signing any VP.

R.Ramachandran (Advocate)     05 October 2010

Dear Mr. Valentine,

I am sorry to say that what you have written here is completely out of context to the query posed.  Your reply has absolutely no connection whatsoever to the problem stated by the junior advocate. 

YN Gaikwad (self)     05 October 2010

i think if you have signed vakalath means you are bound to represent the client in the civil matter.

If you would like to withdraw vakalath for some reason, you need to do so by taking court's permission and communicate the same to the client on his permenant or residence address and obtain the acknoledgement. Else, difficult for honorable court to withdraw your vakalath.


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