The Supreme Court Monday said it would consider listing pleas related to conferring of senior designation to lawyers by the some high courts by using "arbitrary and discriminatory" secret voting as a norm and mentioned that “some development” might take place in a week to two.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana took note of the submissions of senior advocate Indira Jaising, on whose PIL the apex court had come out with a slew of guidelines for designating lawyers as seniors in 2017.
Jaising has sought urgent listing of her fresh miscellaneous application alleging that some high courts have been using secret voting process as the norm for conferring senior designation which is “arbitrary and discriminatory” and should be declared so.
The designation of lawyers should be on the basis of marks given by the designated committee and the voting should be resorted to "only" when it is "unavoidable", she said, adding that some high courts use the voting method as a norm and not an exception.
"There are some problems about senior designation in various courts.
The SCBA (the Supreme Court Bar Association) has also requested for senior designation. I want to take this up," said the CJI.
The bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Aniruddha Bose, referred to the demise of senior advocate Soli Sorabjee, who was one of the members of the apex court's panel for taking initial decisions on applications of lawyers for grant of senior designation and said that a new appointment has to be made.
"You know one of our seniors Soli has passed away. We have to replace", the bench said, adding that a three-judge bench would hear the case.