sharmila raman (Law student ) 30 December 2009

How to form a legal consultancy?

I am a final year law student. At the same time I am working for a non-profit organisation. Our organisation is newly venturing to start with a consultancy service. Through this we are planning to employ a panel of lawyers and CAs who can provide help out the clients in compliance work. We are planning to take up both the work of soliciting and Legal Processess Outsourcing in addition to the compliance.

My query is how to register such an establishment- either as a partnership firm, or a company or a trust /society or as even an LLP. Which one is the best?

Are there any legal restrictions in practicing lawyers from being a part of such an enterprise?

Pls give me if you have any suggestions also in the working of such an organisation.

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10 Replies

PJANARDHANA REDDY (ADVOCATE & DIRECTOR) 30 December 2009

Daksh (Student) 30 December 2009

Dear Sharmila Raman,

In my humble opinion the Articles of Association of any organization speaks ipso facto the do's and don'ts for it. As it is evident from your post under reply the NGO with which you are associated can itself not suffice for this purpose and you have to taking in view the projected cost and volume of business and revenue work up the modalities for proprietory concern, partnership firm, Private Ltd Company etc.

Best Regards

Daksh

sharmila raman (Law student ) 30 December 2009

thank u so much for your advice.

My another concern is whether a lawyer who become our employee can also pursue his profession as a lawyer appearing in court?

A V Vishal (Advocate) 30 December 2009

Point One: If you register with Bar Council, then you are barred from joining into partnership with Non legal professionals like CA/CS/CWA.

Point Two: Without registering yourself as a member of the bar council you can enter into partnerships however, lawyers can join you and not advocates, if a advocate joins into service with you he cannot appear before a court as the representative of the firm and its clients.

sharmila raman (Law student ) 31 December 2009

Thank you so much Vishal.

Can you also give me an authority for this proposition. Does the BCI rules provide so?

A V Vishal (Advocate) 31 December 2009

Yes, Please refer the BCI rules and the Advocates Act.

A V Vishal (Advocate) 31 December 2009

Chapter - III

(Conditions for right to practice)

(Rules under Section 49 (1) (ah) of the Act)

1. Every advocate shall be under an obligation to see that his name appears on the roll of the State Council within whose jurisdiction he ordinarily practices.

Provided that if an advocate ...........................................................................................................

2. An advocate shall not enter into a partnership or any other arrangement for sharing remuneration with any person or legal practitioner who is not an advocate.

3.......................

sharmila raman (Law student ) 31 December 2009

This piece of information was of really great help.... thank you so much....

sharmila raman (Law student ) 31 December 2009

Other queries that i have in mind are:

whether those legal consultancies that have named themselves as------ & Co. are also partnerships or are they also companies?

Is an advocate as under the 1961 Act always a natural person.... can a company do advocacy?

Abhinav (Associate) 31 December 2010

Legal outsourcing has a long way to go. The key is to widen the scope of work from document processing to higher end, specialized services. Like patents, or copyright, or general high-end litigation support in various other fields.

- Abhinav.

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