Bar Council of India (BCI) Allows Foreign Lawyers to Practice in India

In News: As per a recent notification issued by the Bar Council of India (BCI), foreign lawyers and law firms can now practice in India but will not be allowed to appear in court.

About

• The BCI regulates legal practice and legal education in India and has notified the Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022.
• Foreign lawyers and law firms can register with BCI to practice in India if they are entitled to practise law in their home countries.
• They cannot practise Indian law, appear before any courts, tribunals or other statutory or regulatory authorities.
• They can practise transactional work/corporate work such as joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property matters, drafting of contracts and other related matters on a reciprocal basis.
• They cannot be involved or permitted to do any work pertaining to the conveyancing of property, title investigation or other similar works.
• The step has been taken by BCI to address concerns about the flow of Foreign Direct Investment in the country and make India a hub of International Commercial Arbitration.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/foreign-lawyers-can-practise-in-india-but-not-appear-in-court-what-exactly-changes-8499747/