The Schedule to the Advocates Act, 1961 - Repeal of Certain Enactments

The Schedule to the Advocates Act, 1961 is expressly referred to in Section 50(5). It identifies four enactments, or provisions of enactments, that stand repealed as part of the statutory transition to the unified framework governing advocates and Bar Councils in India.

In brief: The Schedule repeals the whole of the Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, 1923 and the Legal Practitioners (Fees) Act, 1926, Section 53 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, and Section 31 of the Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960.

Official Schedule - Repeal of Certain Enactments

The Schedule is headed "Repeal of Certain Enactments" and is linked to Section 50(5) of the Advocates Act, 1961. The current official text lists the following four repeals:

Sl. No.	Short title	Extent of repeal
1.	The Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, 1923 (23 of 1923)	The whole.
2.	The Legal Practitioners (Fees) Act, 1926 (21 of 1926)	The whole.
3.	The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 (37 of 1956)	Section 53.
4.	The Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960 (11 of 1960)	Section 31.

What Does the Schedule Mean?

A statutory Schedule forms part of the Act to which it is attached. Here, the Schedule works with Section 50(5)(b), which provides that the enactments specified in the Schedule stand repealed to the extent stated in the Schedule when the whole of the Advocates Act comes into force.

The phrase "extent of repeal" is important. Where the Schedule says "The whole," the entire named enactment is repealed. Where it identifies a particular section, only that specified provision is repealed by the Schedule.

Definitions and Key Expressions

Schedule: A Schedule is an appended part of legislation containing supplementary statutory material. In the Advocates Act, 1961, this Schedule identifies enactments and provisions repealed under Section 50(5).
Repeal: Repeal means the legislative removal of an enactment, or a specified part of an enactment, from operative law subject to any applicable saving or transitional provisions.
Extent of repeal: This expression identifies how much of the earlier enactment is repealed. In this Schedule, two Acts are repealed in full and two Acts are repealed only to the extent of particular sections.
Section 50(5): Section 50(5) provides for the final stage of repeal after the whole Advocates Act has come into force. Clause (b) specifically gives effect to the repeals listed in the Schedule.
Saving provision: A saving provision preserves specified rights, liabilities, proceedings or legal effects despite repeal. The effect of repeal should therefore be read with the relevant saving and transitional provisions of the Advocates Act and general law.

Explanation of the Four Entries in the Schedule

1. Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, 1923

The Schedule states that the Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, 1923 is repealed in its entirety. The repeal formed part of the broader consolidation of the law governing legal practitioners under the Advocates Act, 1961.

2. Legal Practitioners (Fees) Act, 1926

The Legal Practitioners (Fees) Act, 1926 is also repealed in full by the Schedule.

3. States Reorganisation Act, 1956 - Section 53

The Schedule does not repeal the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 as a whole. It repeals only Section 53 of that Act.

4. Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960 - Section 31

Similarly, the Schedule repeals only Section 31 of the Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960, and not the entire enactment.

Section 50 and the Current Legal Position

Section 50 contains a staged repeal mechanism corresponding to the commencement of different Chapters of the Advocates Act. Earlier sub-sections deal with provisions of the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926, the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879, the Bombay Pleaders Act, 1920, the Supreme Court Advocates (Practice in High Courts) Act, 1951, Letters Patent provisions and other laws relating to admission, enrolment, the right to practise, and disciplinary matters.

Section 50(5) addresses the point when the whole Act has come into force. Clause (a) repeals the remaining provisions of certain enactments referred to in Section 50, subject to the statutory exception stated there, while clause (b) gives effect to the Schedule.

Current-law update: Section 50(6) was inserted by the Repealing and Amending Act, 2023 (Act 33 of 2023) and came into force on September 30, 2024. It provides that, on the date Section 45A of the Advocates Act comes into force, Sections 1, 3 and 36 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879 stand repealed. This amendment updates Section 50 itself; it does not add or remove any of the four entries in the Schedule.

Legal Effect of the Schedule

It operates through Section 50(5)(b) of the Advocates Act, 1961.
Two earlier enactments are repealed in full.
Two reorganisation enactments are affected only to the extent of the specified sections.
The Schedule should be read together with Section 50 and the saving and transitional provisions of the Advocates Act.
The present Schedule continues to contain four entries.

Official Legal References

The current central Act and the Schedule may be checked on India Code, the official legislative database of the Government of India.

Related Provisions of the Advocates Act, 1961

Advocates Act, 1961

Chapter VII - Temporary and Transitional Provisions

Note: This article explains the Schedule and its connection with Section 50 for general legal information. The effect of a repeal in a particular legal dispute may also depend on applicable saving provisions, transitional provisions, amendment legislation and judicial interpretation.