Section 9 of the Advocates Act, 1961: Disciplinary Committees
Section 9 of the Advocates Act, 1961 requires every Bar Council to constitute one or more disciplinary committees. It prescribes the composition of each committee and identifies who acts as its Chairman.
What does Section 9 provide?
Section 9 - Disciplinary committees:
Every Bar Council must constitute one or more disciplinary committees. Each committee consists of three persons: two elected by the Council from among its members and one advocate co-opted by the Council who is not a member of the Council but possesses the qualifications specified in the proviso to Section 3(2). The senior-most advocate among the members of the disciplinary committee is the Chairman.
Composition of a disciplinary committee
Section 9(1) fixes the strength of each disciplinary committee at three persons. The composition is:
- Two elected members: elected by the Bar Council from among its own members.
- One co-opted advocate: selected by the Bar Council from among advocates who have the qualifications specified in the proviso to Section 3(2) and who are not members of the Council.
- Chairman: the senior-most advocate among the three committee members acts as Chairman.
Qualification referred to in Section 3(2)
Section 9 refers to the qualifications specified in the proviso to Section 3(2) of the Advocates Act, 1961. That proviso concerns the minimum standing at the Bar required for specified elected membership positions in a State Bar Council.
For Section 9 purposes, the important point is that the co-opted disciplinary committee member must satisfy the statutory qualification referred to in that proviso and must not be a member of the Bar Council constituting the committee.
Role of disciplinary committees
Section 9 primarily deals with the constitution of disciplinary committees. Their substantive disciplinary jurisdiction and powers are principally found in Chapter V of the Advocates Act.
For example, Section 35 governs disciplinary proceedings concerning professional or other misconduct by advocates on a State roll, while Section 36 deals with disciplinary powers of the Bar Council of India.
Section 9(2): Transitional protection for earlier committees
Section 9(2) is a transitional provision. It provides that, notwithstanding the amended composition rule in subsection (1), a disciplinary committee constituted before commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1964 could dispose of proceedings already pending before it as if Section 9 had not been amended by that Act.
This provision was designed to prevent pending disciplinary proceedings from being disrupted merely because the statutory composition of disciplinary committees changed in 1964.
Legislative history
The present Section 9 was substituted by section 5 of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1964 (Act 21 of 1964) and came into force on 16 May 1964.
Difference between Section 9 and Section 9A
- Section 9: concerns disciplinary committees.
- Section 9A: concerns legal aid committees.
The two provisions serve different purposes. Section 9 is part of the disciplinary architecture of the Advocates Act, while Section 9A provides for legal aid committees.
Related disciplinary provisions
Section 9 should be read with the provisions governing professional misconduct and disciplinary proceedings, including Sections 35, 36, 36A, 36B, 37 and 38 of the Advocates Act. These provisions deal with disciplinary references, powers of disciplinary committees, changes in committee composition, disposal of proceedings and statutory appeals.
Official reference
The current text of the Advocates Act, 1961 can be verified from the Government of India's official India Code page for the Advocates Act, 1961.
The consolidated statutory PDF is also available through the official India Code publication of the Advocates Act, 1961.