The
Supreme Court on Tuesday held that advocates are not liable for deficiency of
services under the Consumer Protection Act 1986 and cannot be sued for poor
service before consumer courts.
A
bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal said the legal profession is
sui generis (unique) and the nature of work is specialised and cannot be
compared with other professions.
"Advocates have to respect client's autonomy,
not entitled to make concessions without express instructions from client and
transgress authority. Considerable amount of direct control is with client of
advocate. This strengthens our opinion that contract is of personal service and
excluded from definition of service under Consumer Protection Act," the
bench said.
The judgement came on plea filed by bar bodies, such
as Bar Council of India, Delhi High Court Bar Association and Bar of Indian
Lawyers, and other individuals challenging a 2007 verdict of the National
Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), which has ruled that advocates
and their services come under the purview of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.