Lawyer's Collective Judgmenet
Copy of judgment available on: http://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/
The High Court held that:
· Since Foreign Law Firms' parent provide legal advice to clients all over the world, their liaison office in India, even though functioning as coordination and communication channels, would also be conducting activities in relation to providing legal advice. In other words, the activity of liaison office are "inextricably linked" to the head office of Foreign Law Firms.
· RBI's authority under S. 29 of FERA is limited to granting permission to foreign entities to set up a branch or liaison office in India for carrying any activity of trading, commercial or industrial nature. Based on judicial precedents, the High Court held that since the practice of law is a profession and not a business, trade or commerce, as covered under the scope of S. 29 of FERA. Therefore, the RBI has no authority to grant permission to foreign law firms to establish liaison office in India.
· The objectsof the Advocates Act is inclusive and is meant to regulate persons practicing law in any part of India as well as persons practicing the profession of law in any court, including Supreme Court. If it were to be held that practice of law did not include non-litigious practice, the purpose of Advocates Act would fail since any professional misconduct of an advocate while conducting non-litigious practice would not be punishable
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