Candidate who took last year’s AOR exam and were declared eligible to reappear have now moved the Supreme Court, filing a petition challenging the decision to cancel the Advocates-on-Record examination for 2026, which they say is unfair now.
A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court by candidates who attempted the AOR exam last year and were declared eligible to reappear in the next examination.
They are challenging the decision not to hold the Advocates-on-Record (AOR) exam in 2026.
Senior Advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India Surya Kant this morning.
The bench agreed to list the matter.
The petition has been filed through Advocate-on-Record Mandeep Kalra.
Earlier, On 30th April, The Supreme Court of India formally announced that the Advocates-on-Record (AOR) Examination will not be held in 2026.
In a notification issued by the Advocates-on-Record Examination Cell, the Court said the decision was reached after evaluating the current “overall strength” of Advocates-on-Record practicing in the Apex Court.
The notice, dated April 30, 2026, was issued under the orders of the Competent Authority. It states that the 2026 examination session has been cancelled, and that the examination is expected to resume in the next year.
The notice, signed by the Registrar (J) & Secretary of the Board of Examiners, states,
“The Competent Authority has been pleased to order that keeping in view the overall strength of the AORs, the Advocates-on-Record Examination shall not be conducted in the year 2026. The schedule and dates of the next examination likely to be held in the year 2027 shall be notified in due course.”
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The AOR examination is a demanding qualifying process for advocates who wish to appear and file matters before the Supreme Court.
As per the Supreme Court Rules, only an Advocate-on-Record is permitted to file any petition, vacancy, or other document before the Court.