"Every lawyer has a responsibility to take on pro bono work"

We asked Mr. Dave about his thoughts on pro bono work. He prefaced his answer by underlining the importance of litigation practice -- not just to the courts, but to society, because the rule of law is the foundation of democracy. And that includes a sound judicial system that renders quick and impartial justice. A strong criminal justice delivery system is needed to secure the safety of people. For this, we need lawyers who are very thorough with the law and good prosecutors to represent the state. Unfortunately, Mr. Dave feels, the interest of young students in this branch of law is declining rapidly, and litigation is being neglected. It is not the first choice for students anymore -- graduates from Bangalore or Hyderabad or Jodhpur are all looking for corporate jobs. But until lawyers realise that there is a need for them in this field, it's going to be difficult find the best talent. And Mr. Dave firmly believes that as a lawyer, you must always be willing to give legal aid. "Whether this is through the courts' legal aid committees, or by appearing in cases as amicus - that's something that is part of our duty and we should take it on gladly... Pro bono work comes in various areas, and I think that every lawyer has a duty to accept it. Legal aid committees should be revitalised and young lawyers should be allotted some set number of cases per year. I'm sure the top lawyers like Mr. Nariman, Mr. Anil Dewan or Mr. Salve would be more than happy to appear. Ultimately, the satisfaction that you get from such a case is very different from the satisfaction of a paid brief."
This brought us to the topic of escalating fee for senior counsels, which we had discussed with Mr. Soli Sorabjee in an earlier interview (here, after two minutes and forty-five seconds on the video). Mr. Dave frankly called himself a capitalist in this regard. "I have, in my heart, sympathy, and I allow that sympathy to guide me in matters when the client is unable to pay the fee. But having said that, I feel that it is market forces that ought to decide. I think there is nothing wrong with charging whatever fees you can command. Every successful lawyer comes to the top with hard work, and he has to remain at the top only with hard work. If you have cases where the stakes run into many thousands of crores, why should the lawyer not charge a minuscule fee? I'm not suggesting that a percentage fee system be introduced -- but as long as they do their share of pro bono work, I see nothing wrong with it."
The burning topic of judicial corruption was next, and we asked Mr. Dave about people losing faith in the judicial system. He said that the judiciary at this stage is in an extremely delicate situation. The substantial majority of judges are hardworking, honest, and sincere. The simple pressure of work is not allowing them to render justice as quickly as possible, or leads them to make mistakes. A few judges have given a bad name to the judiciary, but this can be easily corrected. "With the appointment of the present Chief Justice, Justice Kapadia, things have changed. If you have someone at the helm that is straightforward, the message of sincerity and hard work percolates down to every judge. But judges are not independent of society; it is the individual who has to fight this from within. We have to raise our standards and need to have zero tolerance for corruption." An effective solution, according to him, would be frequent debates and discussions on the issue, and the judges of the Supreme Court Collegium should allow information to percolate to them from senior lawyers, who are in a position to inform them if a judge is corrupt. Ultimately, he was optimistic about such a change and thought that things could be substantially changed in the times to come.
We ended the discussion by asking him if he had any advice for young lawyers, and he deprecatingly replied that he didn't think he was qualified to give advice to anyone! But he felt that there is every reason for young lawyers to believe in their success in the legal profession; it offers every kind of opportunity. "One of the best things about being in law, is that you can never get bored or tired -- and I say this after thirty-two years at the Bar! It is always enjoyable and has several rewards, both financial and otherwise."

[@ravindahiya3110]

Absolute truth sir. Mr Dave is really too good a man. Upright in views.

[@venkateshagowda7836]

Great Sir, Really thought provoking. Every practising Advocate must listen , follow ideas in to practice.

[@AdvocateSubodhGupta]

I 100% agree with you sir

[@ravindraprasaddwivedi3191]

What about the person who is not belonging to a background of this profession.

[@Naturaljustice02]

Yeah , with education loan of 20lakhs... struggle in litigation for 5+years..... Kindly checkout the tution fee of NLU's...3+lakhs per month...😣😣

[@dhairya4912]

3 lakhs per year

[@darrylhancock3292]

Could you please direct me to a QC or Barrister on pro bono , I’ve been a full time proud father for the past 4 years on a 3/4 pension struggling with a mortgage I’m from Victoria Geelong Australia it’s a family court issue with massive amounts of perjury many thanks in advance Warmest regards Darryl

[@jgls2010]

It's an Indian video.