New Delhi, February 11 The Supreme Court on Wednesday announced new guidelines for designating senior advocates, modifying its previous criteria.
According to the announcement, in line with a May 2025 decision by the apex court, the ‘Guidelines for Designation of Senior Advocates by the Supreme Court of India, 2023’ have been amended, modified, or replaced.
In a full court meeting held on February 10, the Chief Justice of India and the judges of the Supreme Court approved the new guidelines titled as ‘Guidelines for Designation of Senior Advocates by the Supreme Court of India, 2026’.
According to the new framework, a permanent committee, titled ‘Committee for Designation of Senior Advocates’, will handle all matters related to the designation of senior advocates in the apex court.
The committee will consist of the CJI as the chairperson and two of the most senior judges as its members.
“The committee shall meet whenever exigencies require. It shall have a permanent secretariat, whose composition will be decided by the CJI in consultation with the members of the committee,” the announcement said.
It added that the committee’s secretariat will initiate the process for designation at least once each year by inviting applications from lawyers, and that a minimum of 21 days will be given to the applicants to submit their applications online.
The new rules also prescribe the eligibility conditions, including a minimum age of 45 years, 10 years of experience as a lawyer, and the request for designation not being rejected in the last two years.
It stated that the secretariat will present the proposals before the full court, which will examine each application and make an overall assessment based on the ability, standing at the bar, or special knowledge or experience in law of the candidates.
“A lawyer has not been convicted by a competent court of law and should not have been punished for an offence involving moral turpitude or contempt of court, or should not have been punished by any state Bar council/Bar Council of India for any act of misconduct,” the announcement said.
It also detailed the decision-making process by the full court, besides providing a separate process, through a request-cum-consent letter in the prescribed format, for former chief justices and high court judges seeking the designation.
The announcement also mentioned the full court’s power to review and recall its decision regarding the designation if a lawyer is “found guilty of conduct which, according to the full court, disentitles him to designation”.
It said, “All questions relating to interpretation and/or application of these guidelines shall be referred to the CJI, whose decision shall be final. The CJI may issue directions for the removal of difficulties either in general terms or in a particular instance, as the exigencies may require.”