Lawyers in Patna and other parts of the state on Tuesday staged a protest opposing Bar Council of India Rules 2014.

The new rule, christened, Certificate of Practice and Renewal Rules 2014, calls for periodic registration of the advocates and payment of fee. The lawyers are opposing these.

The Bar Council came up with the new rules in October, stating that an advocate cannot start his/her practice in the Supreme Court unless they have at least five-year experience in the lower and high courts.

The rules allow an advocate to argue in the Supreme Court only after practising for at least two years in a trial court and three years in any of the high courts in the country. Similarly, for practising in a high court, a lawyer must have two years of experience in a lower court.

The five-year experience prerequisite, which is in Rule 7, provides that from now, the certificate of practice needs to be renewed every five years by filing an application with the state bar council six months in advance from the date of the certificate's expiry.

The rule further states: 'If an advocate fails to get the certificate renewed, he/she would not be entitled to practice before any court of law, nor would they be allowed to remain members of any bar association. The state bar councils will put up a list of non-practising advocates to ensure that such persons are not allowed to practice. Such advocates would also not be entitled to receive any benefits from the bar councils.'?

Senior high court lawyer Dinu Kumar said: 'We oppose the rule vehemently as it is derogatory in nature. When one passes an examination conducted by the Bar Council of India, he or she can practice anywhere in the country. There arises no need to get certificates to practice in courts and also going for its renewal after every five years.'