AP High Court (HC) Chief Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra said the onus of spreading awareness about the people’s rights at the grass - root level and the means to the enforcement of those rights lies on the advocates, calling them the torch - bearers thereof, while observing that the rule of law should be upheld in mofussil areas with greater emphasis.
In other places like where the High Courts are situated, the awareness of one’s rights was more, he stated, while expressing concern over the plight of advocates at the mofussil level and further down. Their survival would be especially tough where there were not even mofussil courts and they had to attend revenue courts, he pointed out.
Participating as the chief guest in the inaugural session of residential orientation programme for advocates jointly organised by the Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh and KL Deemed to be University on the premises of the latter at Vaddeswaram in Guntur district on Sunday, Justice Mishra said he had closely seen the difficulties of advocates during his campaign for election to the Bar Council of his home State Chhattisgarh in 2002.
He recollected that he had traveled to every nook and corner of the State at that time and had since been in the know of the problems faced by the advocates.
Justice Mishra stressed on the need for advocates to be up - to - date with their legal domain and be efficient in communicating in the courtrooms and with the clients outside in order to rise up in their profession.
He insisted that while continuously gaining legal knowledge, advocates should develop both written and spoken communications skills.
“If you are not articulate in the courts, a smart judge may pick holes out of your own submissions and you will most likely lose the case. Therefore, what not to say in a court is sometimes more important. Please keep it in mind that 90% of what you practice in courts will not be taught (in the law college) and 90% of what you learn will not be applicable in courts”, he advised the advocates.
Earlier, Justice Mishra, HC judge A.V. Sesha Sai, Bar Council chairman Ghanta Rama Rao, KL Deemed to be University Chancellor Koneru Satyanarayana and Vice-Chancellor G. Parthasarathi Varma lit the ceremonial lamp.
AP Human Rights Commission chairman Justice Mandhata Seetharama Murti and Bar Council members Muppalla Subba Rao and Brahmananda Reddy and HC advocate and All India Lawyers’ Union State general secretary Narra Srinivasa Rao and others were present.
