The Bar Association of India has moved the Supreme Court seeking an Aadhaar-like nationwide digital registry for advocates to curb fake legal practitioners and verify credentials. CJI Surya Kant termed the proposal a “novel reform” and said all law universities must disclose details of their bona fide graduates.
The Bar Association of India (BAI) has approached the Supreme Court seeking the establishment of an Aadhaar-like digital registry for advocates nationwide.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice V Mohana heard the matter.
During the hearing, Bench said that the matter would require inputs from multiple stakeholders before any such initiative is taken forward.
The petition proposes the creation of the National Digital Registry for the Legal Profession of India (NDRLP) a centralized, technology-driven platform that would assign every advocate a unique identification number.
This number would be linked to verified information, including educational qualifications, enrolment details, and disciplinary records.
The aim is to enable real-time verification of lawyers’ credentials and to tackle the increasing problem of fake practitioners.
Describing the proposal as a potentially significant reform, CJI Surya Kant indicated that law universities would need to be made parties to the proceedings. He also asked for disclosure of details regarding genuine graduates from their institutions.
The CJI remarked,
“Looks like a novel reform, but all law universities have to be made parties and they should disclose who are the bona fide law graduates from those institutes,”
Counsel appearing for the BAI informed the Court that an interim policy paper would be filed and also suggested that the code of conduct applicable to lawyers should be updated.
The Court noted that it may consider forming a new committee to examine the issues raised in the petition.
During the hearing, the Bench also mentioned inappropriate public statements allegedly made by individuals who may be falsely presenting themselves as legal professionals.
CJI Kant observed,
“We may have to constitute a new committee with a new composition. We can show you a sample of what kind of nasty statements are being made, and I am sure they have nothing to do with law,”
Emphasising the need to strengthen the legal profession and support younger advocates, the CJI stressed the importance of integrating them into mainstream practice.
He said,
“Advocates are very responsible. Young members of the bar have to be strengthened. Unless they are trained and brought to mainstream and given some space in overcrowded courts, this problem will happen. Some young lawyers have formed real constructive associations. That is the silver lining,”
The matter has been scheduled to be listed on the first Monday following the Supreme Court’s ongoing summer vacation.
In its petition, the BAI argued that the legal profession is facing a structural governance crisis due to the lack of a unified, publicly accessible system to verify advocates’ credentials in real time.
The plea states,
“The governance of the legal profession has encountered a structural failure of systemic proportions: there is no single, publicly verifiable, real-time national record of who is enrolled as an advocate in India,”
The association pointed out that enrolment is currently handled separately by 23 State Bar Councils, which it claims leads to fragmentation, with no uniform standards, real-time interoperability, or immediate verification mechanisms for courts, litigants, and authorities.
According to the petition, the proposed NDRLP would create a permanent nationwide digital infrastructure offering a unique identifier for every advocate, verified educational qualifications, real-time enrolment status, and publicly accessible professional profiles.
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The registry is intended to be similar in concept to the Aadhaar system, and would also allow litigants to verify lawyers through simple digital tools.
The BAI further argued that the initiative would enhance confidence in India’s legal system and reinforce its standing as a rule-of-law-based democracy and a favourable investment destination.
In addition, the petition seeks directions for the Bar Council of India to develop a comprehensive regulatory framework governing advocates’ conduct on social media. It highlights concerns related to solicitation, misleading self-promotion, and the erosion of public trust in the justice delivery system.