Bar Council Of India : The Bar Council of India (BCI) discovered the circulation of a fake document attributed to the Council. A document, dated 15th February, 2025, titled “Official Notification- Mandatory Minimum Fee Structure for Advocates in India”, claims the “mandatory minimum fee structure for advocates in India”, has been epoch from 1st March, 2025.
The document — a letter — claims itself to be a communication from the Bar Council of India itself, an advice to the public and the members of the legal profession, leaving the impression that it is released by an official authority. As such, this fraudulent fabrication is an act of forgery as it is the making of a false document with the intent to cause damage, support a false claim, or perpetrate a fraud.
It is unsigned and has no reference numbers nor any accompanying procedural documentation. The specific addition of “No Signature Required” is a deliberate attempt to bypass verification/ authentication, a classic method of creating forged documents.
Also, a fake impression of legitimacy has been created by wrongly using the name and address of Bar Council of India. It is an intentional misrepresentation aimed at misleading the general public and the advocate community to believe that the Bar Council has issued an official Bhushan directive. The alleged mandatory minimum cost for advocates is a clear dirt to mislead and confuse.
The motive of this forgery seem to be aimed at defaming the Bar Council and misleading not just the legal fraternity but also the general public at large, thereby causing immense reputational damage to the Bar Council.
The Bar Council of India strongly condemns the manufactured and circulated document. The Council assures the legal community and the public that immediate steps are being taken to commence legal proceedings against those responsible for this Act. Proselytizing false and misleading information constitutes a grave criminal capital offense and any such acts will be subjected to severe legal punishment.
