Lawyers in the State are up in arms against a set of proposals to reduce their fee for money suits.
Money suits are lawsuits filed in civil courts for the recovery of money as a legal remedy. It includes the money to be collected from a defaulter and damages or compensation claimed. The most commonly filed money suits include the ones related to cheques and promissory notes, recovery of bank loans, collection of rent arrears and those filed for the return of advance amount paid for the purchase of property. The government has proposed to reduce the fee by amending the Civil Rules of Practice, Kerala.
The proposal, which was originally mooted by the Registrar General of the Kerala High Court, seeks to reduce the fee for money suits of value ranging between ₹50,000 and ₹5 lakh to 3% from the existing 5% of the amount awarded or decreed by a court. For suits of value ranging between ₹5 lakh and ₹5 crore, the fee has been proposed to be slashed to 1% from the existing 3%. The fee for lawyers appearing in Motor Accidents Claims Tribunals shall also be calculated on the basis of the proposed amendment, it said.
Lawyers said the proposed amendments would lead to the reduction of their fee in appeal courts in all civil and criminal cases. It has also been suggested to remove the provisions for the fee legally entitled to junior lawyers. Incidentally, the fee was last revised in 2011.
Without consultations
Joseph John, chairman of the Bar Council, Kerala, said that the amendments were moved without consulting the council and the lawyers. All the 92 bar associations in the State had opposed the proposals. The council, which had asked the State government to put on hold the proposed amendments, had decided to go in for a Statewide protest this week, he said.
T. Asafali, president, Indian Lawyers' Congress, noted that the amendments would help only corporate houses, banks and other financial institutions and would be harmful to the lawyers.
There are around 50,000 lawyers on the rolls of the Kerala Bar Council.
