The Bar Council of India (BCI) has permitted foreign lawyers and law firms to practise foreign law in India on a reciprocity basis, which is a significant development in the legal community.
To allow foreign lawyers and arbitrators to practise in India, the BCI has published the Bar Council of India Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022.
The Rules’ Objects and Reasons state:
“The time has come to make a decision on the issue, and the Bar Council of India believes that opening up law practise in India to foreign lawyers in the field of foreign law; diverse international legal issues in non-litigious matters and in international arbitration cases would go a long way in helping the legal profession/domain grow in India, to the benefit of lawyers in India as well.”
The BCI has also stated that if law practise in India is opened up to foreign lawyers in a limited, well-controlled, and regulated manner, India will not suffer any disadvantage.
It continued, “Let us make sure that an opportunity to create development and growth for the legal profession and in the legal sphere in India is not lost. These rules will also help to address the concerns expressed about flow of Foreign Direct Investment in the country and making India a hub of International Commercial Arbitration.
