Lawyers' strikes and boycott calls are impermissible; courts may proceed and Bar Councils must act against unprofessional conduct.

Lawyers have no right to strike or boycott court work, and an advocate who has accepted a brief is expected to attend court despite any strike call. Such abstention is treated as unprofessional and disruptive of the administration of justice; courts are not required to adjourn matters because lawyers are absent and retain supervisory control over proceedings. Bar Councils and Bar Associations must not support strike or boycott calls, and where contumacious or unbecoming conduct is brought to notice, they are expected to act in accordance with law. Courts may proceed with work and, in appropriate cases, impose costs on advocates who stay away pursuant to strike calls.

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Issues: Whether a call for strike or boycott by lawyers and retaliatory steps against advocates who do not join the strike amount to contempt, and what is the legal position regarding lawyers' strikes and the power and duty of Bar Councils and Courts in such matters.

Analysis: The Court reiterated the settled law that an advocate who has accepted a brief must attend court and cannot refuse to appear merely because of a strike or boycott call. A lawyer's participation in a strike is unprofessional and disruptive of the administration of justice. Courts are not obliged to adjourn matters because lawyers are on strike, and they retain supervisory control over conduct in court. The Court also reaffirmed that Bar Councils are expected to uphold the dignity of the profession and, when informed of contumacious or unbecoming conduct, must act in accordance with law. A call for strike or boycott by Bar Councils or Bar Associations is impermissible, and requisitions for meetings to consider such calls are to be ignored. In appropriate cases, courts may also impose costs on advocates who abstain from appearance pursuant to strike calls.

Conclusion: Lawyers have no right to go on strike or give a call for boycott, no advocate can be penalised for refusing to join a strike, Bar Councils must not support such calls and must take disciplinary action where warranted, and Courts may proceed with work and impose costs against defaulting advocates.

Ratio Decidendi: The right of an advocate to practice does not include a right to strike or boycott court work, and the control of conduct inside court remains with the Courts, while Bar Councils must act against unprofessional conduct that undermines the administration of justice.

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