TN Courts/tribunal shall have power to demand lawyers'ID cards

Madras High Court today said courts/ tribunals in Tamil Nadu shall have power to demand identity cards,enrollment certificate and address proof of a lawyer if it has doubts and even direct them to produce photostat copies and refer it to Bar Council for verification, if required.
Justice S Vaidyanathan stated this, while cancelling the anticipatory bail in a criminal case, to four persons in a matrimonial matter and after going through details of advocates who appeared in the case.
The judge was irritated over the 'mess' caused by the lawyers on the matter by suppressing facts and duplication of the lawyers representing them and filing the 'vakalats'.

He suggested that the Bar Council of India and the Centre amend the All India Bar Council Examination Rules, 2010, if necessary the Advocates Act, 1961, to allow enrollment of new aspiring advocates only after passing Bar Council exams.
Earlier, Advocate-GeneralVijay Narayan submitted that to avoid fraud and filing of fake documents, the High Court could frame certain guidelines so that it can be followed by the Registry before numbering the petition.
The Appellate Side Rules need amendment for procedures.

The AG drew the judge's attention to Rule 8 of the Rules, which said execution of a Vakalat has to be attested by a lawyer other than the one in whose favour it is executed or one who has appeared for the party in the proceedings.

The judge,after referring to a statement by Tamil Nadu Bar Council chairman that more than 33 per cent lawyers in the State are fake, said filing procedure procedures shall be followed while executing the Vakalat in terms of Rule 8 to avoid malpractices.
He then listed certain procedures to be followed for filing of vakalat and this would apply to all courts and tribunals in Tamil nadu and take effect from fromJanuary 2, 2018.