New Delhi: The Supreme Court expressed its disapproval earlier this week over the appearance of senior advocates before it during the summer break, adding that it was not the first time that such an observation was made.
These remarks were made Monday by a vacation bench of Justices Sandeep Mehta and Prasanna B. Varale after senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared on behalf of Amtek Group promoter Arvind Dham in a money laundering case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which led Dham to seek interim bail during the vacations.
“We don’t understand the appearance of senior counsel in vacations. This court has often commented on that,” the bench observed, according to a Bar and Bench report.
ThePrint spoke to multiple senior advocates and other lawyers, and although many hold the view that summer vacations are a much-needed break, others say that irrespective of whether the lawyer is a senior or junior, anyone willing to work should be allowed to do so.
Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa told ThePrint, “The Supreme Court’s observation encouraging senior counsel to refrain from appearing during court vacations is both timely and welcome. I firmly believe that a lawyer who doesn’t know how to take a break and enjoy a vacation must learn the essential skill of life balance.”
He added that the profession demands intensity and long hours, and without conscious pauses, burnout is inevitable. “I have personally stopped working during vacations—especially in June—over the past several years, and it has helped me rejuvenate and return with greater focus and clarity.”
Underlining that a well-rested mind is sharper in court, besides being better equipped for a long and fulfilling career, Pahwa said, “While recruiting juniors in my office, I make it a point to guide them to take proper breaks.”
However, another senior advocate, Ritzu Ghosal—also a Congress leader—disagrees with the top court. “Irrespecitve of the fact that an advocate is a senior or not, anyone who is willing to work during vacations should be allowed to,” Goshal told ThePrint.
There is no bar under the Advocates Act, or the Bar Council of India Rules, preventing senior lawyers from coming to court during vacations, he said.
Also Read: SC steps in to protect 16-yr-old trapped in a forced marriage, ‘abused’ & let down by parents
Similar instances this year
On Tuesday, Justice Mehta made a similar remark as senior advocate Meenakshi Arora appeared before the vacation bench. “Ms Arora appearing for a transfer petition during vacations?” Justice Mehta said.
The advocate responded by saying that it was a Special Leave Petition (SLP) she was arguing instead. “One works when there is work. We are not lucky enough to have holidays,” she told the bench, adding that vacations had been rechristened as “partial working days”, and that the judges were present in the court that day.
Only last month, on 28 May, the Supreme Court had remarked that senior lawyers should refrain from arguing cases during the summer recess. A bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma said that junior lawyers should instead be given a chance to argue before the top court during the vacations.
What prompted the court to make this remark was the appearance of senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Mukul Rohatgi and Neeraj Kishan Kaul, while the court was acting on a challenge to an order passed by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). “Senior lawyers should not argue cases during these partial working days,” the bench had remarked then.
‘Partial court working days’
On 5 November last year, the Supreme Court (Second Amendment) Rules, 2024, were notified, which modified the previous 2013 Rules. Among the significant changes that came after this amendment was the substitution of the term “court vacation” with “partial court working days”. These partial working days are observed between 26 May and 13 July.
For instance, Order VI of the Rules was modified to say “during the partial court working days”, instead of “during the vacation”. The move assumes significance in the backdrop of court vacations being criticised as a “colonial legacy”.
Over two years back, in March 2023, a parliamentary panel had frowned upon this practice. ThePrint had reported that several MPs in the standing committee on personnel, public grievances, law and justice—headed by then Rajya Sabha MP from BJP, Sushil Kumar Modi—were of the view that the long summer and winter vacations in the Supreme Court and high courts impede the speedy disposal of cases.
Apart from this, on 14 June this year, Order II, Rules 1 to 3 of the Supreme Court Rules, 2013 were amended to bring changes to the top court’s administrative functioning. Among the new changes, an important one was the restoration of the second and fourth Saturday of every month as “working Saturdays”.
Notably, this year, the number of vacation benches sitting in the top court have also increased. While the earlier practice was having only two such benches, there are five vacation benches currently sitting at the top court.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
Also Read: ED’s now-withdrawn summons to Arvind Datar: The case, controversy & SC advocates body letter