The Bar Council of India (BCI) has again tried to sell All India Reporter (AIR) case reports to law schools, even expanding the obligatory catalogue of electronic AIR publications law college libraries must stock, despite having agreed two years ago that such a requirement to buy from a single vendor was unfair.
A BCI resolution amending the Legal Education Rules 2008 (LE Rules) was passed on 26 April 2015, with the BCI sending a letter to all Indian law colleges on 17 February 2016, stating:
The [Legal Education] Committee considered matter with respect to minimum library requirements under Rule 15. It is felt that in addition to what has been recorded therein the following material should also be added i.e. combo offer of CD of AIR Pvt Ltd containing electronic version of AIR, Cr. L.J., AIR Manual etc. to be updated every year.
According to the resolution, the curriculum of law colleges should be amended to include these additional AIR products.
The resolution was approved by the BCI general council on 2 May 2015.
This is far from the first time that the BCI has been aggressively pushing colleges to buy AIRs.
One year ago, BCI pushed a ‘discounted’ Rs 2.6 lakh AIR electronic package to all law colleges
Some time after 2 May 2015, the BCI had tried to float a similar proposal strongly recommending a Rs 2.6 lakh discount package (reduced from just under Rs 3 lakh, see AIR quotation below) from AIR for law schools to purchase.
The Legal Education Committee considered matter in respect of minimum library requirements under Rule 15. It is felt that in addition to what has been recorded therein the following material should also be added i.e. combo offer of C.D. of AIR Pvt. Ltd. containing electronic version of AIR, Cr. L.J., AIR, Manual etc. to be updated every year.
Office to follow the procedure for amendment of this rule as per requirement and then to include these materials in the curriculum of law colleges/schools after getting approval of the Council.
The above recommendation was approved by the Bar Council of India at its meeting held on 2nd May, 2015.
Herewith the Combo offer given by the All India Reporter (Pvt.) Ltd. Is enclosed.
Not BCI’s job to pick products, says VC
One vice chancellor (VC) of a law school, who wished to remain anonymous, told Legally India that it was not the business of the regulator to prescribe the publishers whose products law schools are supposed to have in their libraries, and that such a move by the BCI was opposed two years ago by various law schools.
The VC said that the BCI could, under the 2008 Legal Education Rules, prescribe a minimum amount to be spent by law schools on various infrastructural heads, such as the library.
According to the 2008 Rules law schools that minimum earmarked for libraries at each college should be at least Rs 1.5 lakh (raised from the earlier Rs 50,000).
But the VC said that most established law schools usually spent more than the minimum prescribed amount on libraries, as the products of good publishers were quite expensive, and that the minimum amount was therefore mostly directed at new law schools that try to admit students without even having basic infrastructure.
Very similar letters were sent to all law colleges over the past three years, including on 21 March 2013 and 16 January 2014.
AIR managing director Sumant Chitaley, when contacted for comment by Legally India today, said: “You please speak to the BCI.” When we told him that the news was relating to AIR, he added “I don’t know anything about this”, and ended the conversation.
Earlier today we have sent an email to BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra, who has not responded at the time of publication.
In 2014, BCI reminded schools of special discount Jubilee AIR package…
On 16 January 2014, the BCI had sent a circular with a resolution requesting a “reminder to ask for compliance report” from all law schools in respect of whether they had sufficient course materials for students, citing a 24 and 25 November 2013 BCI resolution.
In that same letter, the BCI then also cited a 2013 resolution of the BCI to buy “AIR products with 58% discount… on the occasion of Golden Jubilee year” of the BCI, helpfully also providing contact details of AIR:
Moreover the Bar Council of India has sent a circular No. BCI:D:211:2013(LE/Circular No.3) dated 21st March, 2013 as per the Resolution of the Bar Council of India to the all the (sic) law colleges and Universities to subscribe AIR products with 58% discount to the libraries of law colleges and Universities imparting legal education on the occasion of Golden Jubilee year of the Bar Council of India.
But so far most of the law colleges have not complied the above said circular.
Therefore you are once again requested to comply the above said Resolution and the circular and inform the Council on or before 31st March, 2014. After receiving your compliance report the matter will be placed before the above said Committee.
I am also enclosing a copy of the above said circular for your consideration.
The address and contact numbers of M/S. All India Reporter Pvt Ltd is given in the enclosure.
Only 6 months later, in June 2014, the BCI backtracked
The BCI’s proposal was stiffly opposed by a number of law schools, eventually resulting in the BCI back-tracking in June 2014.
In a BCI resolution dated 17 June 2014 sent to all law colleges (see below), the body held:
Council re-considered the Resolution No.240/2013 passed by the Bar Council of India at its meeting held on 24th and 25th November, 2013 whereby legal institutes are required to subscribe the Law Journal, Manual etc. for library as per Clause-15 of Schedule-III of Rule-11 of the Rules of Legal Education-2008 and observed that some of the colleges has raised objections before the inspection team that it is not fair to make compulsory to purchase the law journals published by the All India Reporter (AIR). After detailed discussion Council took the following decision :-
Resolution No.118/2014
RESOLVED that the Resolution No.16/2013 as well as 240/2013 shall be withdrawn immediately and it is not necessary to purchase the books/journals from a particular seller/company. The institues are required to follow Clause-15 of Schedule-III of Rule-11 of the Rules of Legal Education-2008 only.
Full disclosure: BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra has sent a defamation legal notice to Legally India regarding stories published pointing out the problems with the AIBE Legally India in its response had denied defaming the BCI or its chairman since all reports were based on facts.
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Although I am myself a subscriber SCC Online Premium Edition on CD ROM, I personally believe that there is a sphere where of all the law reports AIR has an edge. And that sphere is, reports since 1896 when most of the principles of law we apply today were developing. The judgments of today grossly lack quality and in most cases they are only attempts to apply the principles already developed in slip shod manner.
So if students are to be taught principles of law, they need to have access to the law reports which reported those judgments And only a few would fit the bill like AIR, CWN etc. Hence it is good that BCI has given such instruction.
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