State Bar Councils
Section 3 of the Advocates Act, 1961 deals with state Bar Councils. There shall be a Bar Council-- (a) for each of the States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, [Jammu and Kashmir], [Jharkhand], [Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh], , , [Karnataka], Orissa, [Rajasthan, Telangana [Uttar Pradesh], [Uttaranchal, Meghalya, Manipur and Tripura]] to be known as the Bar Counc The Act came into force on 16 Aug 1961.
(1) There shall be a Bar Council--
(a) for each of the States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, 1[Jammu and Kashmir], 2[Jharkhand], 3[Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh], 4***, 5***, 6[Karnataka], Orissa, 7[Rajasthan, Telangana 8[Uttar Pradesh], 9[Uttaranchal, Meghalya, Manipur and Tripura]] to be known as the Bar Council of that State;
10[(b) for the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Mizoram and Nagaland to be known as the Bar Council of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Mizoram and Nagaland;]
(c) for the State of Kerala and the Union territory of 11[Lakshadweep] to be known as the Bar Council of Kerala;
12(cc) for the 13[State of Tamil Nadu] and the Union territory of Pondicherry to be known as the Bar Council of Madras;]
14[(ccc) for the States of Maharashtra and Goa and the Union territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and and Daman and Diu, to be known as the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa;]
15[(d) for the States of Punjab and Haryana and the Union territory of Chandigarh, to be known as the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana;
(dd) for the State of Himachal Pradesh, to be known as the Bar Council of Himachal Pradesh;]
(e) for the State of West Bengal and the 16[Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands], to be known as the Bar Council of West Bengal; and
(f) for the Union territory of Delhi, to be known as the Bar Council of Delhi.
(2) A State Bar Council shall consist of the following members, namely:
(a) in the case of the State Bar Council of Delhi, the Additional Solicitor-General of India, ex officio; 17[18[in the case of the State Bar Councils of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland, the Advocate-General of each of the States of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh , Mizoram and Nagaland] ex officio; in the case of the State Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana, the Advocate-General of each of the States of Punjab and Haryana, ex officio;] and in the case of any other State Bar Council, the Advocate-General of the State, ex officio;
19[(b) in the case of a State Bar Council with an electorate not exceeding five thousand, fifteen members, in the case of a State Bar Council with an electorate exceeding five thousand but not exceeding ten thousand, twenty members, and in the case of a State Bar Council with an electorate exceeding ten thousand, twenty-five members, elected in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote from amongst advocates on the electoral roll of the State Bar Council:]
20[Provided that as nearly as possible one-half of such elected members shall, subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf by the Bar Council of India, be persons who have for at least ten years been advocates on a State roll, and in computing the said period of ten years in relation to any such person, there shall be included any period during which the person has been an advocate enrolled under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926 (38 of 1926).]
21[(3) There shall be a Chairman and a Vice-Chairman of each State Bar Council elected by the Council in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3A) Every person holding office as Chairman or as Vice-Chairman of any State Bar Council immediately before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1977 (38 of 1977), shall, on such commencement, cease to hold office as Chairman or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be:
Provided that every such person shall continue to carry on the duties of his office until the Chairman or the Vice-Chairman, as the case may be, of each State Bar Council, elected after the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1977 (38 of 1977), assumes charges of the office.]
21[(4) An advocate shall be disqualified from voting at an election under sub-section (2) or for being chosen as, and for being, a member of a State Bar Council, unless he possesses such qualifications or satisfies such conditions as may be prescribed in this behalf by the Bar Council of India, and subject to any such rules that may be made, an electoral roll shall be prepared and revised from time to time by each State Bar Council.
(5) Nothing in the proviso to sub-section (2) shall affect the term of office of any member elected before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1964 (21 of 1964), but every election after such commencement shall be held in accordance with the provisions of the rules made by the Bar Council of India to give effect to the said proviso.]
22[(6) Nothing in clause (b) of sub-section (2) shall affect the representation of elected members in any State Bar Council as constituted immediately before the commencement of the Advocates (Amendment) Act, 1973 (60 of 1973), until that State Bar Council is reconstituted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.]
Section 3, The Advocates Act, 1961 (Act 25 of 1961).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 25
- s. 2 Definitions
- s. 4 Bar Council of India
- s. 8A Constitution of special Committee in the absence of election
- s. 9 Disciplinary committees
- s. 49 General power of the Bar Council of India to make rules
- s. 50 Repeal of certain enactments
- Advocates' Welfare Fund Act s. 2 Definitions
- Andhra Pradesh Advocates' Clerks' Welfare Fund Act s. 2
- Assam Advocates' Welfare Fund Act, 1998 (Single Document) s. 2 Definitions
- Chhattisgarh Adhivakta Kalyan Nidhi Adhiniyam s. 2 Definitions
- Goa Advocates' Welfare Fund Act s. 2 Definitions
- Gujarat Advocates Welfare Fund Act s. 2
and 13 more
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Ajitsinh Arjunsinh Gohil vs Bar Council of Gujarat
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Bar Council of India, when exercising original jurisdiction over disciplinary proceedings automatically transferred to it under Section 36B(1) of the Advocates Act, 1961 due to non-disposal by State Bar Council within one year, cannot remand such proceedings back to the State Bar Council. The Bar Council of India is obliged to conduct the inquiry and dispose of the case on merits as if it were a proceeding withdrawn for inquiry under Section 36(2), and the power to remand is available only when Bar Council of India exercises appellate jurisdiction under Section 37, not when exercising original jurisdiction under Section 36B(1). The statutory transfer by operation of law confers original jurisdiction on Bar Council of India, and the legislative intent is that the complaint shall be finally decided by Bar Council of India and not sent back to State Bar Council.
On this section: Deals with State Bar Councils and their constitution
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… High Court of Andhra Pradesh shall be regulated in accordance with the like principles as immediately before the date referred to in sub-section (1) of section 30, are in force with respect to the right of audience in the High Court at Hyderabad." He submits that there is no need for any separate amendment in Section 3 of the Advocates Act as it stands amended by Section 34(1) of this Act. However, it was pointed out to him that under Section 34(2) an option has to be exercised by practising advocates as stated therein. None of the counsel appearing before us was able to point out whether such option had, in fact, been exercised …
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… High Court of Andhra Pradesh shall be regulated in accordance with the like principles as immediately before the date referred to in sub-section (1) of section 30, are in force with respect to the right of audience in the High Court at Hyderabad." He submits that there is no need for any separate amendment in Section 3 of the Advocates Act as it stands amended by Section 34(1) of this Act. However, it was pointed out to him that under Section 34(2) an option has to be exercised by practising advocates as stated therein. None of the counsel appearing before us was able to point out whether such option had, in fact, been exercised …
Made under this section, and citing it
3 instruments name this provision in its title or its text without being made under it.
Questions about Section 3
What have the courts held on Section 3 of the Advocates Act?
Ajitsinh Arjunsinh Gohil vs Bar Council of Gujarat (06 Apr 2017) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Deals with State Bar Councils and their constitution.
How do I find court cases under Section 3 of the Advocates Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Advocates Act 1961 3, section 3 Advocates Act 1961, section 3 of the Advocates Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Ajitsinh Arjunsinh Gohil vs Bar Council of Gujarat (06 Apr 2017).
What should I read with Section 3 of the Advocates Act, and has it changed?
25 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. 3 instruments name it without being made under it, most recently BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA CERTIFICATE AND PLACE OF PRACTICE (VERIFICATION) RULES, 2015 (2015), then BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA RULES PART-I TO III (2009).
When did Section 3 of the Advocates Act come into force?
Section 3 of the Advocates Act, cited as Advocates Act 1961 3, came into force on 16 Aug 1961, having been enacted on 19 May 1961. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 24. Persons who may be admitted as advocates on a State roll867 words
- 58A. Special provisions with respect to certain advocates572 words
- 50. Repeal of certain enactments564 words
- 42. Powers of disciplinary committee560 words
- 49. General power of the Bar Council of India to make rules514 words
- 58. Special provisions during the transitional period445 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.