The High Court of Delhi ruled recently that internships of a legal nature that are finished before a formal enrolment as an advocate, to not be counted as active legal practices. This judgement came through in response to a plea by Ujwal Ghai who is an advocate and sought an empanelment within the Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee (DHCLSC).
It was rejected because of his lack of experience, post enrolment. The decision reflects a clear difference between a training that is academic and a practice that is made out in the professional legal arena. There is weight to the fact that internships though of value and exposure do not satisfy the requirements for active legal practice in participation to be seen in a professional setting.
Delhi High Court’s Ruling
In the case of Ujwal Ghai v. DHCLSC, the court terminated the petitioner’s argument asserted by him, that his internship amounting to an experience of six months should be regarded as a portion of three years of needed practice of law. This significant ruling reiterated the fact that legal professional experience may only start after the enrolment with the bar council as an advocate, the courtroom also acknowledged that paralleling an internship with that of a post enrolment practice would significantly cause a blur around the lines of academic preparation and actual on-field practice.
Previous Similar Rulings On The Legal Profession
The current ruling of the High Court of Delhi is in alignment with some of the previous similar decisions made by other courts. For instance, the Madhya Pradesh High Court requires that the candidates who appear for the judicial service exam should have three years of post-enrolment experience.
This mandatory requirement shows the judiciary impact on a practical experience, trumping upon the academic exposure. In other states like the state of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, similar prerequisites have been imposed for judicial exams, taking into account that the candidates have hands-on experience in the courtroom before they qualify for these roles.
Legal Career Paths, Other Than Active Practice
The legal internships, while being an intricate part of the academic training do not substitute for post-enrolment practice in legality. The students, with the help of internships, understand how a legal system works practically, but such internships are mostly academic and significantly to a greater extent than the practicality involved in working as a student or interning.
The Bar Council India has separated academic training and professional legal practice by striking differences between them while making sure that only the candidates who have practised law actively post their enrolment can be qualified for an empanelment or intricate judicial roles.
What are the other Career Options For The Qualified Lawyers?
Having discussed the rulings about the judicial roles, it is only fair to discuss some of the jobs that legally qualified lawyers can consider.
- Litigation lawyer – represents the clients in court, and prepares legal documents while providing legal advisory on legal rights.
Qualifications – a degree in law, bar enrolment, post-enrolment experience in practice.
Salary expectation – INR 5–15 LPA which varies depending upon the location and experience. - Corporate council – works in-house for the corporations, and handles legal matters that relate to mergers, compliance and acquisitions.
Qualifications – a degree in law, a specialisation, in corporate law.
Salary expectations – INR8 –20 LPA. - Legal consultant – offers legal advice on contracts, compliance and disputes to their clients.
Qualifications – law degree, and expertise in any specialised field of law.
Salary expectations – INR6 –12 LPA - Judicial services – a judge or the magistrate presiding over legal proceedings and making rulings.
Qualifications – law, degree, three years of post-enrolment experience minimum.
Salary expectations – INR7 –18 LPA. - Public prosecutor – represents the state in various criminal cases and ensures justice is served.
Qualifications – law degree, clearing state-level exams
Salary expectations – INR5 –10 LPA. - Legal advisor to the government bodies – provides legal advisory to the agencies of the government.
Qualifications – Law degree, clearing civil services exams.
Salary expectation – INR8 –15 LPA. - The mediator or arbitrator – resolves disputes between parties outside of court before the case reaches the court.
Qualifications – law, degree, being certified in mediation and arbitration.
Salary expectations – INR6– 15 LPA. - Intellectual property lawyer – protects the rights of the intellectual properties of individuals or different businesses.
Qualifications– specialisation in the field of Intellectual Property Law.
Salary expectations – INR7 –18 LPA. - Cyber law expert – handles legal issues that relate to cybercrime, privacy of data and online fraud.
Qualifications – law, degree, specialisation in the field of cyber law.
Salary expectations– INR 8–16 LPA - Human rights lawyer – advocates for the safeguarding and promotion of human rights.
Qualifications – specialisation in the field of human rights law.
Salary expectations– INR 5 –12 LPA. - Real estate lawyer – specialisation in property law helps with transactions and disputes while also handling contracts.
Qualifications – law degree, expertise in Property law.
Salary expectations – INR6 –14 LPA. - Taxation lawyer – offers advice on tax-related cases for businesses and also for individuals.
Qualifications – specialisation in taxation law.
Salary expectations – INR7 –15 LPA. - Environmental lawyer – deals with the laws that safeguard the environment and advocate for the justice of the environment.
Qualifications – degree, specialisation in the field of environmental law.
Salary expectations – INR6 –12 LPA. - Immigration lawyer – helps clients with immigration, visas and also citizenship issues.
Qualification - in the field of immigration law.
Salary expectation-INR6 –12 LPA. - Academic or legal researcher – teaches law and conducts legal research for academic institutions and think tanks.
Qualification – LLM, PhD in law.
Salary expectations – INR5 –10 LPA.
What are the Legal Job Qualification Prerequisites?
Each of the job options talked about earlier dictates qualifications that demand not just a degree in the field of law, but also some practical years of experience. Let’s take the judicial services and the role in litigation. These two typically require you to have three years of post-enrolment practice, while a council in the corporate sector and a legal consultant would benefit from an additional certification in the specialised fields, like in the corporate sector or cyber law.
How to get to a Legal Career Building - Post Enrolment?
After getting enrolled, the practice is critical for the development and building of a solid career in the legal field. Graduates of law are always advised to network and gain hands-on experience while specialising in the growing fields to enrich the prospects of their careers. While internships provide a strong base, the active practice remains quintessential for a long-term achievement of success in the legal profession.
Case studies
The case of Shashi Kiran v. DHCLSC 2023, similar to the Ujwal Ghai case, deals with an applicant who looked to have their internship experience accounted for three years of mandated post-enrolment experience for the role of jail visiting advocate with DHCLSC. The court said that post-enrolment legal practice only and solely qualifies for the prescribed criteria.
Another case by the Supreme Court of India, Dheeraj Mor v. High Court of Delhi 2020, wherein it was clarified that only experience in post-enrolment practice will be considered for a candidate to be eligible for judicial services. In this case, we have the petitioner arguing that pre-enrolment work should also be taken into account, but the court held that these experiences do not amount to, a professional legal practice and hence do not make the statutory requirement of professional legal experience under the Advocates Act.
To conclude, we may say that the High Court of Delhi’s ruling establishes the requirements for a clear difference between internships and legal professional practises. Internships while remaining an excellent way for gainful exposure still do not act as a substitute for the legal experience required in various legal career paths.
The graduates of law should emphasise their focus on practising after getting enrolled to grow successfully in their legal careers in any of the many diverse fields of law available to us today.
Join LAWyersClubIndia's network for daily News Updates, Judgment Summaries, Articles, Forum Threads, Online Law Courses, and MUCH MORE!!"
Tags :Others
