The behaviour of lawyers versus the delivery of justice

India needs reforms to restrain the dilatory tactics of lawyers from slowing judicial processes

- PRADEEP S. MEHTA

India's legal profession faces a behavioural crisis as lawyer strikes paralyse courts nationwide over trivial matters. This professional misconduct costs the nation ₹7,500 crore annually in lost productivity. We examine four critical issues that offer an unflattering portrait of advocate behaviour.

First, lawyers often engage in strikes over petty grievances. Second, advocates systematically seem to abuse adjournments while exploiting "exceptional case" clauses to monetize delays. Third, a cosy judge-lawyer nexus resists meaningful reform. Fourth, while the Advocates Amendment Bill of 2025 had proposed to ban strikes, it was withdrawn on resistance from lawyers, so we are back to square one.

In the light of good practices elsewhere, such as South Africa's strict adjournment caps and Singapore's fixed scheduling, we propose balanced reforms, such as a limit of three adjournments, professional accountability measures and timely enforcement mechanisms to restore judicial discipline while preserving legitimate professional autonomy.

Strikes over silly grievances: Recent events expose how many advocates have abandoned professional ethics to serve their egos. The Uttar Pradesh (UP) boycott in February left thousands stranded. Similarly, Jaipur lawyers broke their April 2023 undertaking at the Supreme Court by striking again over administrative issues. These incidents reflect a troubling pattern.