KATHMANDU, Aug 6: The government has introduced a bill to regulate legal practitioners. If the bill to amend the Nepal Bar Council Act 2050 BS is passed, it will lead to a thorough review of the conduct of legal practitioners and disciplinary actions against them.
The Ministry of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs registered the bill in the National Assembly on Friday. Besides regulating legal practitioners, the bill aims to establish a legal professionals' institution (Lawyers Academy) under the Nepal Bar Council.
The bill also aims to set standards for curricula taught by educational institutions providing undergraduate or equivalent higher education in law. This is to ensure that legal education is of a high standard and professional quality.
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The bill provides for regulating the professional conduct of lawyers and stipulates that fees be collected through banking channels. By amending Section 21 of the Nepal Law Practitioners Council Act, 2050 BS, the bill proposes that to become a Senior Advocate, an individual must have practiced law for 25 years at the Supreme Court or Appellate Court level. This is intended to ensure that the advocate has maintained high professional standards and contributed positively to the court and society. Previously, the title of Senior Advocate was granted after 15 years of legal practice.
The bill allows the Nepal Law Practitioners Council to establish offices as needed in the provinces. It also provides for the inclusion of a Secretary as a Council member and adds three more advocates, including one woman, increasing the total number of advocates from two to four. The bill includes provisions for the Council to register and update the offices or firms of law practitioners. Additionally, it includes a system for maintaining records of lawyers who provide voluntary free legal services (pro bono).
The bill includes provisions for the Disciplinary Committee to issue warnings, give advice, suspend certificates, and recommend the cancellation of certificates to the Council. Previously, the Disciplinary Committee did not have such authority.
If a lawyer advertises for professional promotion, makes derogatory, defamatory, or humiliating comments through media, fails to maintain confidentiality of facts and information obtained from case parties, accepts service fees without keeping records, presents facts not included in the case file during arguments, fails to wear the prescribed attire during court proceedings, or does not adhere to the conduct required by this Act and its regulations, the Disciplinary Committee will be empowered to issue warnings to the lawyer.
The Disciplinary Committee will be authorized to issue warnings to lawyers if they set their fees based on the outcome of a case, file a case citing non-existent laws, provide legal opinions, or accept commissions for referring cases to other lawyers, among other such actions.
The bill includes provisions that allow the Disciplinary Committee to suspend the certificate of a lawyer if they provide legal advice to the opposing party on the same matter, contact or meet with a judge in a manner that could affect the case, or appoint intermediaries to obtain a case.
The bill stipulates that if a lawyer misuses a document provided by a party for purposes other than intended, uses a document provided by a party to benefit the opposing party, collaborates with the opposing party to falsify evidence, or gives a party misleading advice or counsel with bad faith, their certificate can be revoked. If this bill is enacted, it will impose strict control on lawyers.
