Whenever someone’s rights are violated in any democratic society, the first sentence we hear is, “I will sue you in Court”. This is the evidence of the faith, hope and confidence of the public in the judiciary. It is this faith, hope, and confidence of the people that inspires a law student to opt for a career in the judiciary. There are multiple gateways to enter the judiciary. At the basic level is the civil judge’s exams which are conducted by the state government in collaboration with the respective High Court. The educational qualification required for appearing in the said exam is a degree in law, either 3 years or 5 years. Until 2003, there was an additional requirement of minimum three years of practice for becoming a civil judge. The practice was abolished by the Supreme Court of India in All India Judges Association Vs. Union of India case. The idea behind this amendment was to attract young law professionals into the system.
The practice was followed for more than two decades and has recently been discontinued after the Supreme Court judgment in All India Judges Association Vs. Union of India case. In both the cases the petitioner was the same. The idea was followed, and it was observed by almost all the High Courts of India that the experience of not having the requirement of practice has backfired. The Supreme Court directed all the High Courts of India to furnish their opinion on the issue and barring two High Courts, all the High Courts of India have opined in favour of restoring the legal practice.
The rationale given by the stakeholders including the bar and the bench, was that the fresh law graduates becoming civil judges lacks the holistic understanding of the profession. They do not have the knowledge of the challenges faced by the advocates and, more importantly, the litigants. It is for this reason that there have been instances where the orders passed by the civil judges have been found to be patently incorrect and had to be reversed by the appellate Courts. It is not expected from the civil judges to give judgments that are absolutely correct, but, what was missing in their judgments was the basic understanding of the issues faced by the litigants. It is undoubtedly true that the judges are given proper training before being assigned to any Court. But, as stated by the Supreme Court, neither the judicial training nor the internships during legal studies can be a substitute for legal practice.
The flip side of the coin is the hardships through which the judiciary aspirants will have to undergo after this amendment. There are many aspirants who have been preparing for this prestigious position from the days of their college. Many have spent huge amounts of not only the money in their coaching but their priceless years of college life as well as their dreams. These aspirants are left with nothing but to wait for their dreams to come true. A law degree takes five or six years to complete. Three years of practice is not the only hurdle for them. There are states which take even two to three years for the completion of the entire process of recruitment. Adding to this, there are many aspirants who would be unable to qualify in their first attempt and would need two or three attempts. Adding all these, a judiciary aspirant might end up taking up to a decade to become a judge. The journey itself is not only tiring but stressful as well. Seeing the situation through the lens of gender equality, the situation becomes more daunting. In India, where a lack of women’s education itself is a major issue in many states, expecting Indian society to support their daughters for a decade in her education is difficult if not impossible.
It is fairly true that a judiciary aspirant must have practical exposure to become a judge and the judgment of the Supreme Court is a step in the right direction. The changed rules would definitely hamper the careers of many aspirants. But in the long run, the step will undoubtedly boost the level of legal acumen of the bench provided the rule is followed in practicality and not merely as a documentation formality which should be done at the grassroots level.