Final week, the Bar Council of India issued a press launch warning legislation corporations to not run adverts on social media or different platforms. This, after the legislation agency DSK Authorized purportedly ran an advert on Instagram. What are the foundations attorneys should comply with for advertising and marketing themselves?
What received DSK Authorized into bother?
Earlier this month, legislation agency DSK Authorized launched an commercial on Instagram advertising and marketing its providers and that includes the actor Rahul Bose. Within the commercial, which has now been faraway from the platform, Bose is seen signing paperwork ready by DSK Authorized with out even proofreading them, meant to be an endorsement of how reliable the agency is. However the advert brought on a backlash as attorneys identified that Rule 36 of the Bar Council of India (BCI) bans the authorized fraternity from promoting their providers.
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The BCI is a statutory physique arrange beneath the Advocates Act, 1961. It frames guidelines of conduct for all licensed attorneys within the nation and has the authorized authority to implement them and hand out punishments for violations. It additionally advocates for attorneys’ skilled pursuits.
How did the Bar Council of India react?
The BCI despatched a show-cause discover to DSK Authorized, asking it to take down the video and reply to the discover inside 10 days. The council additionally issued a press launch reminding advocates and legislation corporations that the foundations forbid them from soliciting work via promoting, on even on-line platforms comparable to Simply Dial or Quikr. The BCI additionally stated attorneys should not make public appearances at non secular, cultural and different public occasions, take pleasure in content material advertising and marketing on social media, or run digital adverts. The council added that so-called ‘authorized influencers’ have been spreading misinformation on essential legal guidelines comparable to the products and providers tax and Citizenship (Modification) Act, and expressly forbade attorneys from utilizing “Bollywood actors” and “influencers” to advertise their providers.
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What motion can errant attorneys face?
Legal professionals and legislation corporations violating Rule 36 might be suspended from practising legislation, have their enrolment within the Bar cancelled, and may even face contempt of court docket proceedings. In addition to, the social media platforms that these attorneys ‘misuse’ will also be held liable beneath Part 79 of the Data Expertise Act, 2000. In its press launch, the BCI requested these platforms to vet all authorized content material and take away misinformation as shortly as attainable.
However why can’t attorneys promote?
The Council framed these guidelines to guard the “noble service” of attorneys and guarantee it’s not commodified by promoting. That is not like different market the place attorneys can run adverts, such because the US, finest exemplified by the OTT drama Higher Name Saul. Different statutory skilled councils additionally ban adverts. The Medical Council of India bans docs from instantly promoting themselves or their providers. The Council of Structure prescribes elaborate guidelines on how architects can promote themselves and their corporations, together with the font dimension they will use for his or her identify.
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How has social media affected these guidelines?
It has made it tougher to implement guidelines on promoting. Most of those guidelines have been framed within the pre-internet period and don’t replicate the altering advertising and marketing panorama. Legal professionals, architects, docs, and others faucet content material on YouTube and Instagram to succeed in potential clients and circumvent these archaic guidelines. Many additionally argue that the blanket ban on adverts appears out of contact with actuality. In 2022, the Council of Structure drew widespread criticism for warning architects and corporations in opposition to selling their work on social media. New-age architects usually use Reels to advertise initiatives.
