The Bar Association of India A Snapshot History

The Bar Association of India A Snapshot History, Legacy and the Current and Future Flagship Endeavours

History The Bar Association of India was established in September 1959 and inaugurated on April 2, 1960 by then President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad in the august presence of then Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, then Vice President Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, then Chief Justice of India and many stalwarts of the profession whose names are taken with reverence even today. Shri M. C. Setalvad, the first Attorney-General of India was also the first President of the Association who, together with the illustrious, Dr. K. M. Munshi, Dr. N. C. Chatterjee and Mr. C. K. Daphtary and many other several legendary personages framed the constitution of the Association.

“A body like this can help in resolving many of the difficulties which may arise and in guiding public opinion in the country and if I may so also members of Legislatures in whose hands power of legislation is vested. ” Dr. Rajendra Prasad First President of India On April 2, 1960, while inaugurating the BAI

The visionary leaders of the Indian legal profession led by Mr. M. C. Setalvad, the first Attorney General for India and Founder President of the Association felt that a voluntary apolitical all India body of lawyers must be established at the same time as the statutory Bar Councils to uphold the core values, strengthen the Rule of Law and promote excellence in legal profession.

Structure of the Governing Council The Governing Council of the Association is composed of elected members from each state and union territory, one nominee each of District and High Court Bars from each state and UT, two nominees of SCBA, two nominees of SILF, Advocate Generals and Presidents of High Court Bar Associations Exofficio and others, who together elect the office bearers and the executive committee, besides having a Secretary for each state and UT.

That journey of excellence and unwavering faith and allegiance to the Rule of Law from 1960 till date has been led by such luminaries like. . . 1959 - 1974 1991 - 2010 1974 - 1983 2010 - 2014 1983 - 1985 2014 - 2016 Shri K. Parasaran 1985 - 1991 Dr. Lalit Bhasin 2016 -

The Association is window to the entire world for the legal profession in India and office bearers of the Association have led all the main international organisations of legal profession. Mr. RKP Shankardass, President, International Bar Association Mr. KK Venugopal, President Union Internationale Des Avocats Mr. Fali Nariman, President, Law. Asia Mr. Anil B. Divan, President, Law. Asia Late Mr. G. L. Sanghi, President, Law. Asia Dr. Lalit Bhasin, President, Inter-Pacific Bar Association Mr. Prashant Kumar, President, Law. Asia (Serving)

Flagship Programmes The Rule of Law Convention was launched in 2012. The event has established itself as the Flagship annual convention of the Indian legal profession, where legal luminaries, law teachers, judges and government are involved at the highest level to work on progressive agenda and to find various solutions for various challenges facing the legal profession and judiciary. In 2017, the Association plans to involve global profession in this Annual convention and launch it as the international Rule of Law Convention 2017, to be held each year, where leaders of professions from different countries will be invited to speak and participate.

December 3 - Lawyers Day of India As a unique initiative to further integrate and galvanise the legal profession, the Association has launched Lawyers Day of India to be celebrated each year on December 3, the birth anniversary of Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India who himself belonged to the profession and launched the Association on April 2, 1960. The first event in 2016 was celebrated by felicitating the luminaries who compose the Board of Advisors of the Association, who are all living legends of law.

Board of Advisors of the BAI Mr. Fali S. Nariman Mr. K. Parasaran Mr. Anil B. Divan Mr. Soli J. Sorabjee Mr. Ashok H. Desai Mr. K. K. Venugopal Mr. Dipankar P. Gupta Mr. R. K. P. Shankardass Mr. Harish N. Salve

Current Office Bearers of BAI With Mr. Fali S. Nariman, President Emeritus and Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Attorney General for India as Honorary Chairman (Exofficio), the current team of the office bearers of the BAI is led by Dr. Lalit Bhasin, who is also President of the Society of Indian Law Firms.

The other prominent office bearers of the Association are: Mr. Prashant Kumar, President - Elect Mr. Gopal Subramanium, Ms. Pinky Anand Mr. Amarjit Singh Chandhiok Mr. Shyam Divan Mr. A. N. S. Nadkarni Mr. R. N. Jhunjhunwala Mr. S. S. Naganand Mr. Arvind P. Datar Mr. Apurba Kumar Sharma Mr. Uday Prakash Warunjikar Ms. Priya Hingorani Mr. V. Shekhar Vice Presidents Mr. Yakesh Anand, Hony. General Secretary Ms. Triveni S. Potekar, Treasurer

The Executive Committee has, besides a member and secretary from each State and Union Territory, Mr. Manan Kumar Mishra, Chairman Bar Council of India, Mr. Rupinder Singh Suri, President, Supreme Court Bar Association and Mr. Jyoti Sagar, Associate President, Society of Indian Law Firms to ensure synergies with these pivotal organisations. Mr. Ranjit Kumar, Ms. Madhavi Divan Ms. Nandini Gore Ex-officio Members

INTERNATIONAL FLAGSHIP ENDEAVOURS Establishment of BRICS Legal Forum 10 -14 Dec, 2014, Brasilia, Brazil

INTERNATIONAL FLAGSHIP ENDEAVOURS Second BRICS Legal Forum, 13 -16 Oct, Shanghai, China

Third BRICS Legal Forum, 10 -12 Sept, New Delhi, India & Launch of International Dispute Resolution Centre for BRICS & Emerging Economies

MOUs with other national legal organisations: The Association recently executed Mo. U with Law Society of Hong Kong on January 9, 2017, the day Hong Kong celebrated its Opening of the Legal year, adding to a host of bilateral Mo. Us Association has, besides being the main recognised body in the IBA, UIA, Law. Asia, IPBA and ILAC (International Legal Assistance Consortium)

Presidents of Law Associations of Asia Summit (POLA) BAI was Chair of POLA Summit 2015, Goa, India and Working Chair for POLA Summit 2016, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

FUTURE ENDEAVOURS (1) Working with other BRICS partners to sign up professional bodies from minimum 30 emerging economies to endorse and support International Dispute Resolution Centre for BRICS and Emerging Economies by end of 2018. (2) Launch of Excellence in Legal Education in India Project in collaboration with SILF and MILAT (Menon Institute of Legal Advocacy Training) with objective to rate top 100 law colleges on various criteria like faculty, infrastructure and curriculum and helping them to achieve and surpass global standards in the legal education.

(3) Signing bilateral cooperation Mo. Us with at least 10 more jurisdictions in 2017 and enhanced participation and visibility for Indian Legal Profession in international events to disseminate information about the new laws and policy frameworks to help the country attract more trade and investment by propagating Amendments in Arbitration Act, Commercial Courts Division, Make in India. Mr. Shaym Divan and Ms. Pinky Anand represented BAI in a Law Asia event at Berlin on Hot FDI destinations in Asia organised in cooperation with the German Federal Bar Association and German Chamber of Commerce. Similarly a Seminar on FDI in India was organised at New Delhi in collaboration with Israel Bar Association.

(4) Collaboration with UNCITRAL to help develop better international commercial and trade law frameworks and their integration and implementation in India. Visit by delegation facilitated by the BAI, led by Chief Justice of India, two senior judges of Supreme Court, Attorney General, Ms. Pinky Anand, ASG and V. P. , BAI and Mr. Prashant Kumar, President Law. Asia in to Incheon, South Korea at UNCITRAL Asia – Pacific centre. (5) On May 14, 2017 Association will be making a presentation in Osaka, Japan on legal developments to facilitate FDI in India. (6) Bilateral visit to Washington D. C. in April 2017 of BAI and SILF combined delegation to ABA to coincide with the Spring meeting of ABA’s International law section.

(7) Institution Building and Reform New synergies with judiciary at the apex level to fill institutional gaps and strengthen administration of justice, CJ Hon’ble J S Khehar in meeting on 17 January, 2017 with President Mr Bhasin, VPs Mr Amarjit S Chandhiok, Ms Pinky Anand Mr Jyoti Sagar. and Rajiv Luthra of SILF, has assured of active collaboration and continuity of involvement and has expressed desire to have a structured meeting with a set agenda in two weeks in which future leadership of judiciary will also be present. Help in structuring a proposed pilot project in Delhi High Court to standardise court management system and processes and best practices for commercial court division Justice Clifford Wallace of US Appeals Court arranging expert assistance at no cost. (8) Effort to establish regular Bench – Bar dialogue for institutional reforms. (9) Developing legal framework for Digital Economy and Technology and future of Legal Profession – challenge of the future to be focus of the Association.

The Association, which its office bearers and Board of Advisers, in close synergetic collaboration with commercial bar through SILF, presents a unique and the most formidable brains trust of legal profession in India which is willing to engage positively with the Government in pursuit of national objectives of economic progress by helping develop progressive and uncomplicated legal and policy frameworks and to help showcase and propagate to the world strengths of the country and its just and fair legal system, steeped in the rule of law, and a reenergised and revamped dispute resolution system which is so very critical for the international community to build economic stakes in India. Our Motto From Wisdom of the Past to the Vision for the Future

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