(1) Every Legal Services Institution shall invite applications from legal practitioners for their empanelment as panel lawyers and such applications shall be accompanied with proof of the professional experience with special reference to the type of cases which the applicant-legal practitioners may prefer to be entrusted with.
(2) The applications received under sub-regulation (1) shall be scrutinised and selection of the panel lawyers shall be made by the Executive Chairman or Chairman of the Legal Services Institution in consultation with the Attorney- General (for the Supreme Court), Advocate-General (for the High Court), NATIONAL LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITY (FREE AND COMPETENT LEGAL SERVICES) REGULATIONS, 2010 District Attorney or Government Pleader (for the District and Taluk level) and the respective Presidents of the Bar Associations, as the case may be.
(3) No legal practitioner having less than three years' experience at the Bar shall ordinarily be empanelled.
(4) While preparing the panel of lawyers the competence, integrity suitability and experience of such lawyers shall be taken into account.
(5) The Executive Chairman or Chairman of the Legal Services Institution may maintain separate panels for dealing with different types of cases like Civil, Criminal, Constitutional Law, Environmental Law, Labour Laws, Matrimonial disputes, etc.
(6) The Chairman of the Legal Services Institution may, in consultation with the Executive Chairman of the State Legal Services Authority or National Legal Services Authority as the case may be prepare a list of legal practitioners from among the panel lawyers to be designated as Retainers.
(7) The Retainer lawyers shall be selected for a period fixed by the Executive Chairman on rotation basis or by any other method specified by the Executive Chairman.
(8) The strength of Retainer lawyers shall not exceed, —
(a) 20 in the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee;
(b) 15 in the High Court Legal Services Committee;
(c) 10 in the District Legal Authority;
(d) 5 in the Taluk Legal Services Committee.
(9) The honorarium payable to Retainer lawyer shall be, —
(a) Rs. 10,000 per month in the case of Supreme Court Legal Services Committee;
(b) Rs. 7,500 per month in the case of High Court Legal Services Committee;
(c) Rs. 5,000 per month in the case of District Legal Services Authority;
(d) Rs. 3,000 per month in the case of the Taluk Legal Services Committee:
Provided that the honorarium specified in this sub-regulation is in addition to the honorarium or fee payable by the Legal Services Institution for each case entrusted to the Retainer lawyer.
^(10) The Panel Lawyer or, as the case may be, the retainer lawyer shall be available to deal with legal aid cases:
Provided that such lawyers may take up other briefs, but shall not appear against a party to whom legal aid has been given through the legal services institutions:
Provided further that such restriction shall not be applicable where both the parties have availed legal aid.]
(11) The panel prepared under sub-regulation (2) shall be re-constituted after a period of three years but the cases already entrusted to any panel lawyer shall not be withdrawn from him due to re-constitution of the panel.
1. Substituted by Noti. No. L/61/2010-NALSA, dated 31-7-2012 (w.e.f. 25-8-2012).
* NATIONAL LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITY (FREE AND COMPETENT LEGAL SERVICES) REGULATIONS, 2010
(12) The Legal Services Institution shall be at liberty for withdrawing any case from a Retainer during any stage of the proceedings.
(13) If a panel lawyer is desirous of withdrawing from a case he shall state the reasons thereof to the Member-Secretary or the Secretary and the latter may permit the panel lawyers to do so.
(14) The panel lawyers shall not ask for or receive any fee, remuneration or any valuable consideration in any manner, from the person to whom he has rendered legal services under these regulations.
(15) If the panel lawyer engaged is not performing satisfactorily or has acted contrary to the object and spirit of the Act and these regulations, the Legal Services Institution shall take appropriate steps including withdrawal of the case from such lawyer and his removal from the panel.