Bar council cannot run law college it regulates, Supreme Court told

The Bar Council of India (BCI), the country's legal regulatory body, cannot simultaneously regulate and run a law college, advocate Prashant Bhushan argued before the Supreme Court. His assertion came as an apparent response to the BCI's recent announcement regarding its plan to establish an academy for lawyers.

Bhushan made the remarks while arguing a separate case, challenging the validity of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act. He did not elaborate on specific details but seemed to allude to BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra's announcement about setting up a National Legal Academy (NLA) at the BCI Trust-run India International University of Legal Education and Research (IIULER) campus in Goa.

According to legal news website Bar and Bench, Bhushan told the top court, "Bar Council cannot run a law college. In fact, we are filing a petition regarding that - that the Bar Council cannot run a law college. That they are regulating these law colleges and they are running a law college."

Mishra had previously stated on August 9 that the BCI aims to establish the NLA at the IIULER campus. This academy is intended to provide compulsory training for young lawyers from across the nation, with courses lasting 10 days to two weeks. Students at IIULER would also have opportunities to interact with judges, trainers, professors, and senior advocates.

“

Bar Council cannot run a law college. In fact, we are filing a petition regarding that - that the Bar Council cannot run a law college. That they are regulating these law colleges and they are running a law college.