An Appeal to Bar Council of Tamil Nadu (BCTN),

Madras High Court Advocates Association (MHAA), Madras Bar Association

(MBA), All Bar Associations & all Senior Advocates

Dear learned Bar Leaders and Senior Advocates,

You are well aware that this is the 13th day of national lockdown due to
COVID-19 pandemic. The Madras High Court has, however, been taking up only
matters of urgent importance since 18.03.2020 and there were restrictions in
place.

These restrictions and the lockdown, including the shutting down of Courts on
24.03.2020, have had an unforeseen impact on the livelihoods of thousands of
Advocates. We have been confined to our homes since 24.03.2020 and it is
impossible for Advocates whose income is entirely dependent on independent law
practice to sustain themselves and their dependent family members.

While the State has launched a few ameliorative measures to support the
economically disadvantaged sections of the populace, it is necessary and important
that professional bodies devise mechanisms to help it’s members tide over this
difficult period. The Madras Bar Association, for example, has decided to help its
Members Advocates and their clerks who are in need of financial assistance
through voluntary contributions from their members. They have also decided that
the identity of the receipient of the contribution so made will not be disclosed.
Likewise the Kerala Bar, Delhi Bar also devises some mechanism in this regard

Hence, the unprecedented situation warrants immediate action by the all the Bar
Council of Tamilnadu, Advocate Associations, Senior Advocates and Senior
members of the Bar to serve the needs of its members, who have been put to great
hardship for weeks due to the lockdown. At an individual level, several senior
Advocates have been extending help to their colleagues, but sporadic gestures
cannot replace a collective and concerted effort by the bodies such as BCTN,
MHAA, MBA with access to resources and the means to supervise a financial
assistance programme over the next few weeks to benefit those members who are
in immediate need of the same.

Due to this extraordinary situation, the BCTN is requested to devise a plan to

allocate a sum of Rs.2,00,00,000 as corpus fund and solicit contributions from
resourceful Advocate associations like MHAA, MBA each to the sum of
Rs.50,00,000 and also solicit contributions from Hon’ble Judges, Bar Council
Members, Senior Advocates, the senior members of the Bar and other Bar
Association and collect the fund around atleast a sum of Rs.5,00,00,000 and
distribute at least a minimum sum of Rs.5000 in a systematic manner to a targeted
group.
We suggest that eligibility criteria for the Advocates along the following lines can
be adopted for this purpose:-
(a) Age must below 35 years
(b) Enrolment and practice below 10 years
(c) She/he must be the regular practicing Lawyer
(d) She/he must be in a position not able to support by her/his senior

These kinds of categorization and the distribution may the first step to help at least
the young lawyers & junior Advocates. Every Bar may constitute a committee for
scrutiny which consists of the present President & the Secretary of the Bar, the
Ex-President & the Ex-Secretary along with reputed Seniors of the Bar which will
give confidence among the fraternity and also facilitate some of the applicants to
channelize and verify with respective seniors whether that young lawyers & junior
Advocates can get support domestically or recommend for state level financial
support. The above said recommendation not only meant for the financial
assistance but it is the responsibility of the professional bodies to devise
mechanisms domestically and reduce the overall load.

After this Bar Council in consultation with the State Government could evolve a
scheme that who are in dire need of further financial assistance, if the lockdown
period extends beyond 15.04.2020. The Bar Council in consultation with the
Banks could also consider providing loan facilities for the middle aged practitioners
who had completed 10 years of practice to manage their office and assists them to
come out from this national disaster.

With regards,

Advocates, Tamil Nadu

S. Name Enrollment Bar Mobile No.

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