Bar Council on the warpath again

JUST WEEKS AFTER slamming the Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF) for its protectionist approach towards the entry of foreign law firms into India, the Bar Council of India (BCI) today sent strongly worded notices flagging unauthorised collaborations or combinations between Indian law firms and foreign law firms, particularly mentioning CMS IndusLaw and Dentons Link Legal, the two firms that have forged arrangements with foreign legal entities.

- JYOTSNA BHATNAGAR

Senior lawyers said the BCI's ire was "probably directed at the use of a common brand name which it feels is in violation of the BCI new rules."

It may be recalled that the BCI, after several flip-flops over the years, had finally come out with detailed guidelines permitting the entry of foreign law firms and lawyers into the rapidly growing Indian legal industry, on May 14 this year. Soon after, on May 28, reputed full services law firm IndusLaw had announced a tie-up with global legal giant CMS.