Profession of Law

If you look at the names of the Presidents of the Indian National Congress, ever since the days when it came into existence nearly 70 years ago or more, you will notice that its Presidents and the leading members were all members of the Bar.  The names of people like Dadabhoy Nowroji, Rash Bihari Ghose, Sir Pherozshah Mehta and others come to my mind. But today we find that the Bar does not occupy the same position which it once occupied. The reason, if I may respectfully point out, is not far to seek. In those days — that is my analysis — the elite of the intellectuals had nothing else to fall back upon, except the legal profession, and in that profession it was possible for them to earn very large sum of money.  Ever since 1922, when the Indian Civil Service examination was open in India, and since independence, I am sorry to say, the best of the students do not come to the profession of law. Some others after having joined the Law College, compete for examinations and thereafter they leave the study of law. Some years ago I had the curiosity to have a survey of the Intermediate results.  I found that the best students, those who topped the list, took Group, i.e., Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, and 90 per cent. of them took to Engineering. So far as Group II was concerned, the best of them went to the profession of Medicine, and the other groups, except those who took to the various Honours Courses, went for the competitive examinations. Probably the best intellects are not attracted towards the Bar. That is the reason why some years ago when a friend of mine asked me which of the careers I would suggest for his son, I told him that any good intellectual must join the profession of law and try to succeed at it. I am glad to say that that friend took my advice and his son has justified himself in the advice which I gave him. Therefore, friends, I would suggest that even hereafter the profession of law will surely afford a good scope and field for the best intellectuals. The learned Judge has told you the various fields in which you ought to work. One of the things which I am always interested in doing propaganda is that in our country we find very few partnerships. Probably it may be due to the fact that we have followed the tradition of the English Bar, where Barristers are not allowed to form partnerships. But only the Solicitors are allowed such partnerships. But in other countries, where the Anglo-Saxon jurisprudence prevails, that is, the U. S. A. and the Dominions of Canada and Australia and various other countries, the Barristers form themselves into partnerships. The advantage of forming such partnerships is that if two or three of you, young men, begin to form a partnership at the very beginning of your career, it will be possible for you to take up various kinds of work. One can take up Appellate Side, another may take to criminal work. Some may be able to attend to Income-tax and Sales Tax work, etc. Therefore I would request you at this stage of your career, wherever you are practising, whether in Madras or in the mofussil, to seriously consider the matter. The other advantage of having a partnership is this. In U. S. A., you do not find a man clinging to a single profession. Take for example the well-known Secretary of State for foreign affairs of Mr. Eisenhower, Mr. John Foster Dulles. He was a senior partner of a very well-known firm of Barristers and Solicitors. They had a large amount of work, and it is because Mr. Dulles is a member of that firm that it is possible for him to take to politics. If also for some time he is away from the Bar, the partnership is there, his good-will is there, When he is no longer the Secretary of State, he can go back to resume his own profession. Take another example, of Acheson, another Secretary of State. He is a partner of a well-known firm in New York. Likewise if you form into partnerships it will be possible for you to take to politics as well. Some of you may be interested in politics and some others in social work. If a person is a Minister he can still be in such a partnership. Whenever he ceases to be a Minister, he can come into the profession. Therefore the advantages of partnership are manifold. The learned Advocate General himself began his practice as a member of a Partnership Firm. In our State, we had the partnership of Rajamannar and Subba Rao and other partnerships similar to that. So one of the things which I request you at the very threshold of your career is to see that some of you form such partnerships and then begin your practice. I need not dilate more on this aspect.  Then with regard to the profession itself, as to how you should prepare cases and how you should conduct cases, Mr. Sreenivasa Rau has told you sufficiently. As a member of the Bar who is to be interested in criminal practice as well, you may see very leading people taking to criminal work. Whether you are in the City or go to the mofussil places, do not neglect criminal work. You have various other kinds of fields to work hereafter, which were not available to the lawyer in the olden days. In the future, the Bar may not afford you such large fields as Mr. K. Bashyam or Alladi Krishnaswami Iyer or the jurist politician, Mr. S. Srinivasa Iyengar had. Every person who begins to work conscientiously and fries to do the work will easily be able to earn a good income at the Bar. I would like to say that your attention should be to see how cases are being fought. Those who wish to practise and who are at the beginning of your career, may not have cases. I would request them to attend the Courts and study the recent cases and the case law. You can sit in Court and see the Advocate General putting forward his legal points before a Bench. You will be able to learn a good deal of case law. You will be able to know how a particular case was fought in Courts. I would, therefore, request all of you during your term of apprenticeship, to attend to the courts and see what important cases are being argued. That itself is a great attention. First have some experience of attending courts and studying cases. I give you this piece of advice as an elderly person. For now I can tell you that I had the best of that. I can tell you the arguments in many of the cases I had argued. This is the spirit, which I like, should be with you. With regard to the dealing with clients, I need not go into that. Be true to yourself. Think that the person who comes to you is a person having some grievance and see that it is redressed.  I need not detain you long. You are coming here to attend the lectures. I would like you to follow the lectures and study the things. Another matter which one would like to say is whether you are practising here or elsewhere, general knowledge is the absolute sine quo non of success at the Bar. All the eminent persons who have succeeded in the Bar were not only erudite in Law, they also distinguished themselves in various subjects in the world. There is no subject which is unnecessary to a member of the Bar. You may be a student of Mathematics. Certainly problems of Mathematics arise in cases. Most of the lawyers of the English Bar were persons who have distinguished themselves in such walks of life. Lord Haldane, a great Lawyer, was a scientist and a great mathematician. During the course of arguments, you will see how he was able to get on in the Court of Appeal in his earlier days. When the Lord Justices confronted him with a point, he, as a student of Mathematics, was able to answer, and the Presiding Judge was very much pleased. You must be well up with world history and world geography. These are all matters a general reading of which is necessary. I suggest to you to begin your profession with faith in God, faith in your country, and faith in yourself.

Author Name: Hon’ble Justice P. Govinda Menon