Bar is mother of Bench: SC judge

Bar is the mother of the Bench and the Bench learns from the Bar,” said Supreme Court Judge TS Thakur while inaugurating the valedictory session of the two-day long national seminar on ‘Global legal Education’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Bar in association with KIIT University here on Sunday. 

Highlighting the importance of continuing legal education, Thakur said the judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are made from the best of the Bar. “India needs to have globally recognised and respected law institutions, which must attract best human resources to achieve excellence,” he added.

Advocate General of Odisha SP Mishra said that globalisation of legal education poses multiple challenges of legal practice. Underscoring the role of communication, he said, law students should have high proficiency in English, which is the global language.NlSIU, Bangalore, Prof NR Madhava Menon said emphasis should be given on practical knowledge of law and one year practical diploma should be introduced in law institutions.

Principal legal Practitioner and Director of the Koffels Solicitors and Barristers in Australia Ross Koffel said there must be an independent regulator, having representations from all stakeholders, for maintaining quality legal education.Earlier in the day, 12 parallel working sessions were held on various topics. Each working session was chaired by a judge of the Supreme Court and co-chaired by Chief Justice or a senior judge of a High Court. More than 1,100 advocate-delegates from all parts of the country, including 700 from Odisha, participated in the seminar.