The Delhi High Court recently directed the consumer fora in Delhi to ensure that litigants are represented before such fora by advocates only and not by non-lawyers [Anuj Kumar Chauhan And Anr. Vs Lieutenant Governor NCT of Delhi And Ors.]..Justice Sanjeev Narula passed this direction on a petition filed by advocates against the rampant practice of non-lawyers arguing before consumer fora without proper authorization and in violation of Consumer Protection Regulations and Advocates Act."All Consumer Commissions in Delhi are directed to ensure that the parties are represented by Advocates or by the agents/ representatives/ non-advocates strictly in terms of the Regulations specified above," the Court ordered..The Court made it clear that the practice of permitting non-advocates or agents to appear on the basis of authority letters issued by lawyers must cease with immediate effect.The Court also issued notice to the Bar Council of India and the Bar Council of Delhi and asked them to submit their responses on the issue.Further, the State Dispute Redressal Commission and the District Dispute Redressal Commissions were directed to give details of pending cases where non-lawyers are appearing..The Court observed that allowing non-advocates to argue was “fundamentally inconsistent” with the provisions of Advocates Act. “This is fundamentally inconsistent with the Advocates Act, which exclusively vests these functions in enrolled Advocates...Such a practice not only dilutes the legal and ethical responsibilities that define the role of an Advocate but also undermines the concept of a Vakalatnama,” the Court said.Further, it also opined that such practice does not protect attorney-client privilege and confidentiality since non-lawyers appearing on behalf of litigants are not bound by the Advocates Act.“This practice raises serious concerns about professional privilege and confidentiality, as non-Advocates are not bound by the Advocates Act,” the Court stated. The case will be heard next on March 18, 2025..Advocates Rahul Sharma, Vaibhav Singh, Akanksha Singh, S Surender and Aniket Tomar appeared for the petitioners.Additional Standing Counsel Anuj Aggarwal with advocates Yash Upadhyay, Siddhant Dutt, Ishita Panday, Singhdev, Tanishq Srivastava, Anum Hussain, Abhijit Chakravarty, Bhanu Gulati, Yamini Singh and Sourabh Kumar appeared for the respondents. [Read order]
