Revolt of the ranks: Law takes a back seat as lawyers fight LHC

LAHORE: In the corridors of law, it is the bar versus the bench in Lahore. Trouble began on October 8, when a seven-member advisory committee of the Lahore High Court (LHC) headed by its chief justice took disciplinary action against Lahore Bar Association Vice-President Rana Saeed Anwar.

The LHC suspended the advocate’s licence along with issuing a notice to another over misbehaving and insulting judges of the lower courts for not deciding cases in their favour.

The bar including the superior bodies of the lawyers — Pakistan Bar Council and Supreme Court Bar Association — came not only to the rescue of the suspended lawyer but also sent a strong message to the bench telling them to refrain from taking action against lawyers over hurling insults towards any judge.

Invited by the Punjab Bar Council — a regulatory body for lawyers of the province — a lawyers convention was held on Saturday to send this ‘strong’ message. The convocation went a step ahead and demanded the resignation of the chief justice LHC for putting together an advisory committee to deal with the matters of advocates’ conduct towards the judges. Interestingly enough, the convocation did not comment over the advocate’s misconduct towards the judges.

According to the 1992 Supreme Court Monthly Review 90, the conduct of advocates can be scrutinised by the apex court.

In 2001, the Supreme Court had dismissed the practice license of a lawyer. It stated:  “We would, therefore, order that Yusuf Ali Khan be removed from practice of the Supreme Court under Rule 30. However, we may observe that it will be open to Yusuf Ali Khan to apply for recalling of this order upon the expiry of three years provided his conduct remains satisfactory”.

The disgraced advocate assailed the above order by taking preliminary objection as to the competency of the Supreme Court to frame rules under Article 191. He also pleaded to be ultra vires to Legal Practitioner and Bar Council Act 1973, however the SC dismissed his objections and upheld the earlier order disentitling him from practice.

The misconduct of lawyers has become a normal practice so the litigants are left with no other option but to let it go and the Bar council will always favor lawyers, even if it has to cross any limit. Case in point is the recent row with the bench.

Hopefully, this tussle will end soon as the bench has begun dialogues with bar representatives, but once again, it is the bar that seems to be on the winning side at the cost of the bench’s respect. 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2016.