Hey, I have doubt, I'm a 2023 law graduate, and I'm presently working as a legal Consultant in a Corporate company, can I register myself in a state bar council of India
If you are under an employment contract, with a fixed salary, then you cannot be enrolled as an advocate, or use the suffix Adv. If you already enrolled, then you would have to temporarily suspend your enrolment status from the Bar Council of the State in which you are enrolled.
If you are under a retainership, you can enroll, and stay enrolled.
It's basically a question of whether you are under-employed with a fixed salary, like other employees in companies like IT, HR, Sales, etc. If you are under a retainership with a firm or practicing as a lawyer in courts (litigation), then it is not employment, but only a professional retainership. Taxes also differ if you are an employee and not a retainer.
Loved the explanation. I was under the notion that if you want to register for BCI then you should not be under employment but not the case for states. Like for example if you view corporate law partners on the law firm website you'll see that they're part of the bar council of the state they prefer and not the bar council of India. Hopefully, you can clear this confusion for me.
Law Firm Partners are not employees of the law firm as far as my understanding goes. The Partners, the Principal/Senior/Junior Associates, etc. are basically under retainership to the corporate entity of the Firm (Normal Partnership or LLP or Pvt. Ltd. Company). They are service providers and law firms are service recipients which pay professional fees as per the retainership agreement. This fees is not a fixed salary like something an employee receives, but a professional fee, that is fixed for the services they offer. The treatment of a law firm lawyer, however, is like an employee in terms of work function and hierarchy.
Regards to the registration with BCI, there is no such registration. You can only enroll/register with State Bar Councils. The BCI is a separate body formed with members, and it does not function like the State Bar Councils do in terms of enrollment of advocates. Reference:
If you are under a retainership, you can enroll, and stay enrolled.
It's basically a question of whether you are under-employed with a fixed salary, like other employees in companies like IT, HR, Sales, etc. If you are under a retainership with a firm or practicing as a lawyer in courts (litigation), then it is not employment, but only a professional retainership. Taxes also differ if you are an employee and not a retainer.
Law Firm Partners are not employees of the law firm as far as my understanding goes. The Partners, the Principal/Senior/Junior Associates, etc. are basically under retainership to the corporate entity of the Firm (Normal Partnership or LLP or Pvt. Ltd. Company). They are service providers and law firms are service recipients which pay professional fees as per the retainership agreement. This fees is not a fixed salary like something an employee receives, but a professional fee, that is fixed for the services they offer. The treatment of a law firm lawyer, however, is like an employee in terms of work function and hierarchy.
Regards to the registration with BCI, there is no such registration. You can only enroll/register with State Bar Councils. The BCI is a separate body formed with members, and it does not function like the State Bar Councils do in terms of enrollment of advocates. Reference:
http://www.barcouncilofindia.org/about/about-the-bar-council-of-india/
http://www.barcouncilofindia.org/about/enrolment-of-advocates/