Unit 4 of Practical Training – I: Professional Ethics and Professional Accounting System (syllabus: Module 4 — Constitution Arts. 129, 215; Contempt of Courts Act 1971; BCI accounting rules). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.
What this unit covers
- Where does the power to punish for contempt come from, and can Parliament take it away?
- What is the difference between civil and criminal contempt?
- Is criticism of a judgment contempt, and what else is not contempt?
- What is the punishment for contempt, does an apology help, and within what time must proceedings be started?
- An advocate is convicted of contempt - can the court suspend his licence, and how does he purge the contempt?
- May a Bar Association pass a resolution against a judge or call a strike, and what should it do instead?
- What accounts must an advocate keep for his client, and what follows if he keeps none?
- How do the client account, the income statement and the balance sheet actually work?
Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.
Provisions
- Constitution of India, s. Arts. 129, 215, 142(2) and 19(1)(a) with 19(2)
- Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, s. s. 2
- Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, s. ss. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 13
- Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, s. ss. 10, 12, 14, 15, 18 and 20
- Advocates Act, 1961, s. ss. 34(1), 24A, 35 and 38, with Arts. 129, 142 and 215 of the Constitution
- Advocates Act, 1961, s. ss. 6(1)(dd), 6(1)(ee), 7, 34(1) and 38, with Arts. 121 and 124(4) and (5) of the Constitution
- Bar Council of India Rules, Part VI, Chapter II, s. Section II, Rules 25 to 32, with rules 20, 23 and 24 and s. 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961
- Bar Council of India Rules, Part VI, Chapter II, s. Section II, Rules 25 to 30
Leading cases
- Supreme Court Bar Association v Union of India (Supreme Court
- Mrityunjoy Das v Sayed Hasibur Rahaman (Supreme Court
- In re Arundhati Roy (Supreme Court
- Pushpaben v Narandas V. Badiani (Supreme Court
- C. Ravichandran Iyer v Justice A.M. Bhattacharjee (Supreme Court
- R.D. Saxena v Balram Prasad Sharma (Supreme Court
Full case summaries
- In re Arundhati Roy (2002)
- Brahma Prakash Sharma v State of Uttar Pradesh (1953)
- Indirect Tax Practitioners Association v R.K. Jain (2010)