Tucked away among the millions of pages that populate the World Wide Web today, are a few hundred that belong to the Indian law fraternity. These inform the public about legal services, fees and court procedures. They allow the downloading of commonly used legal forms, exhibit sample sale agreements and, most importantly, provide easy-to-understand information on everything from protecting copyright to dealing with unforgiving creditors.
And they continue to grow daily, as the digital era beckons everyone from Lall and Sethi Advocates to the Lawyer's Collective - HIV/AIDS Unit to take the plunge. A development that would have been quite unremarkable, except for one small fact - lawyers are prohibited from any form of advertising under Rule 36 of the Bar Council of India Rules, framed under Section 49 (1) of the Advocates Act, 1961.
As in many other countries, the chief aim behind the directive is to "preserve the dignity of the legal profession". What this essentially means is that no lawyer, solicitor or legal firm may broadcast their name or showcase services, client lists or achievements in any media whatsoever, for whatever purpose.
Which gives rise to a debatable issue: Is putting up a Web site different from advertising in a newspaper?
It has been argued that the presence of lawyers online is different from other types of advertising, because potential clients are unlikely to come across these sites unless they hunt for them. This opinion was first rejected by several key judgments in US courts, where it was held that lawyer's sites were put up with the aim of soliciting clients, and thus violated the rules against public media advertising.
Subsequently, the Bar Council of India, in a notice dated 21 October 1999, reaffirmed that such 'advertisements' on the Internet are considered an offence. It ordered all legal Web sites to be withdrawn immediately, under threat of legal action ranging from temporary suspension to permanent debarring of the lawyer from practice.
Two years later, the directive is yet to be enforced, leaving the Indian position strangely ambiguous.
Not that anybody is complaining. For, though logging in to Singhania and Company will never replace face-to-face meetings regarding full-blown lawsuits, information oriented sites like lexsite and Indian legal 2000 are putting consumers in the driver's seat, educating them about their options and offering quick and low-cost ways of handling straightforward issues and concerns.
Government departments are also beginning to realise the potential of the Internet. Among those with a fully developed online presence are the Department of Company Affairs, the Law Commission of India, Ministry of Environments and Forests, Ministry of Information Technology, Reserve Bank of India and the Securities Exchange Board of India.
Prominent at these sites are full texts of all legislation specific to their jurisdiction, rules and regulations, FAQs and drafts of standard letters and forms.
Similarly, the Registry of the Supreme Court provides the full text of all judgments delivered after December 1998, searchable by name of parties, date or subject matter. The Supreme Court posts the weekly cause list, searchable by name of judge or lawyer, case or court number and name of parties, saving litigants many weary and futile trudges to the courtroom boards.
These are encouraging forays for, even as the Bar Council of India deliberates upon the legality of these digital tools, it is the consumer who appears to be winning.
Anubha Charan is a freelance journalist and practising lawyer.
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