New Delhi, July 30, 2026: Sixty-seven lawyers and legal professionals from across India have written to the Bar Council of India (BCI), strongly opposing the proposed increase in enrolment fees for new advocates under the Draft Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The signatories, associated with the National Alliance for Justice, Accountability and Rights (NAJAR), have termed the proposed hike "exclusionary" and "punitive", arguing that it would create a significant financial barrier for aspiring lawyers, particularly those from economically weaker and marginalised backgrounds.
Under the draft amendment, the enrolment fee for new advocates is proposed to increase from the existing ₹750 to ₹22,500, representing a 30-fold or 3,000 per cent increase. While the draft provides a concessional fee of ₹5,625 for candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Persons with Benchmark Disabilities, NAJAR argues that even this reduced amount is substantially higher than the current fee and does not adequately account for the structural disadvantages faced by these communities.
In a detailed representation addressed to the BCI, NAJAR stated that the legal profession is not merely a trade but an essential public service that forms the foundation of India's constitutional democracy. It argued that lawyers play a crucial role in safeguarding fundamental rights, representing vulnerable communities and ensuring access to justice. According to the organisation, a diverse and inclusive Bar is indispensable for maintaining public confidence in the justice delivery system, and any measure that restricts entry into the profession based on financial capacity undermines the rule of law.
The organisation further highlighted the financial challenges already faced by law graduates, including the high cost of legal education, education loans, low stipends paid to junior advocates, particularly those entering litigation, and the rising cost of living in major cities. It contended that requiring fresh graduates to pay ₹22,500 before they are even able to begin earning from legal practice would place an unreasonable burden on young professionals at the very start of their careers.
NAJAR argued that the proposed fee hike would disproportionately affect students and graduates from middle-class, working-class and economically vulnerable families, effectively limiting access to the profession to those with greater financial means. It warned that such a move risks reinforcing perceptions of the legal profession as an elitist institution rather than one that reflects the diversity of Indian society.
The representation also questioned the BCI's reliance on recent Supreme Court judgments in Gaurav Kumar v. Union of India and Pankaj Sinha v. Bar Council of India to justify the proposed amendment. According to NAJAR, these judgments do not endorse an arbitrary or steep increase in enrolment fees of the magnitude proposed in the draft legislation.
The organisation also pointed to the BCI's own circular dated October 15, 2024, which recommended minimum monthly stipends of ₹20,000 for junior advocates in urban areas and ₹15,000 in rural areas. NAJAR argued that when compared with the proposed enrolment fee of ₹22,500, a newly enrolled advocate would effectively be required to spend the equivalent of several months' recommended income merely to gain entry into the profession, even before accounting for other financial obligations.
Questioning the rationale behind the proposal, NAJAR said the BCI's explanation that higher enrolment fees are necessary to meet expanding institutional responsibilities does not withstand scrutiny. It maintained that the statutory functions of the Bar Councils should be supported through appropriate State funding rather than by imposing substantial financial burdens on young entrants to the profession.
Calling for immediate withdrawal of the proposed fee structure, NAJAR urged the BCI to retain enrolment fees at an affordable and accessible level for graduates from all sections of society. It further demanded that any future revision of enrolment fees should be preceded by meaningful consultations with stakeholders, including advocates, law students, Bar Associations and legal academics.
The organisation has also appealed to State Bar Councils, Bar Associations, lawyers' collectives, legal scholars and student organisations across the country to submit formal objections to the BCI before the consultation deadline of 3 pm on July 31, 2026. NAJAR expressed hope that the Bar Council of India would reconsider the proposal in the interest of preserving an inclusive, independent and accessible legal profession that remains open to talented individuals irrespective of their financial or social background.
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