Jharkhand High Court Bar Association Bans Lawyer Reels and Fee Advertising

The Jharkhand High Court Advocates Association has ordered its members to stop filming reels and advertising their fees on social media, saying the practice breaches professional conduct rules. The direction was issued in Ranchi and reported on November 1, and it applies to advocates who post images and videos from the high court campus, share pictures of court proceedings, or publish fee details to attract clients.

The association said it had learned that several advocates were uploading videos filmed on the court premises set to film songs, or posing inside courtrooms as if arguing a case. Others were sharing their fee packages or rates online to draw clients. The association described such self promotion as advertising and solicitation.

Rules invoked against solicitation

In a notice signed by its president, general secretary and other office bearers, the association said these activities fall under advertising and inducement, which are barred under the Advocates Act, 1961 and Rule 36 of the Bar Council of India. It said the conduct also undermines the dignity of the legal profession and the standing of the court. Legal compliance with the Bar Council rules, it noted, applies to how advocates present themselves publicly, not only to how they handle client matters.

The association told members to stop the activity immediately and to take down material already posted. It warned that lawyers who ignore the instruction will have their cases sent to the Jharkhand State Bar Council for appropriate disciplinary action. The association described advocacy as a dignified profession dedicated to delivering justice rather than a business or an entertainment stage.

Why the direction matters for careers

The instruction puts young lawyers in Jharkhand on notice that building a practice through short video content carries professional risk. For junior advocates who rely on social media to reach clients, the boundary between visibility and solicitation has become a career issue rather than a question of etiquette. Firms and individual practitioners that use online channels for client development must now review what they publish, including material posted by staff or filmed on court property.

The episode sits alongside wider scrutiny of lawyer conduct in India. Senior Advocate Aditya Sondhi said at a conference on ethics and evidence in arbitration in Bengaluru that lawyers often take liberties in arbitration proceedings that they would not take in open court, citing an instance in which a tribunal of retired judges was allegedly pressed to recuse itself. He suggested that greater transparency, including the reporting of arbitral awards, could improve accountability, and noted that arbitral tribunals lack some disciplinary powers that courts hold.

The broader question of professional standards is also being addressed regionally. In Uganda, Court of Appeal judge Geoffrey Kiryabwire told lawyers at the launch of a legal chatbot in Kampala that practitioners who do not adopt modern technology and artificial intelligence risk being pushed out of the profession. He said computers will not replace lawyers, but lawyers who use them effectively will replace those who do not. The Uganda Law Society said such tools can streamline research and improve access to justice.

What to watch next

The immediate test is how strictly the Jharkhand association enforces its notice and how quickly members remove existing posts. Referrals to the state bar council would indicate whether complaints against social media activity become routine disciplinary matters. Bar bodies elsewhere in India may weigh similar guidance if the Ranchi direction is followed through, which would affect how lawyers market themselves and how practices supervise the online behavior of their staff.