Clients Can’t Sue Their Lawyers Under Consumer Law, Says Supreme Court

The Supreme Court held on Tuesday that the services rendered by advocates will not fall under the ambit of the Consumer Protection Act as the legal profession is sui generis, that is, unique in nature, and cannot be compared with any other profession.

The court said that a professional, such as an advocate, requires training and an advanced education in some branch of learning. The nature of work is skilled and specialised, a substantial part of which is mental rather than manual, the court said.

“A professional requires a high level of education, training, and proficiency, which involves skills and a specialised kind of mettle for operating in specialised spheres of work. Achieving success for a professional depends on many factors beyond one’s control.”

The court observed that the very purpose and object of the Consumer Protection Act were to provide customers with a safeguard from unfair trade practices and unethical business practices only.

“There is nothing to suggest that the legislature ever intended to bring professionals within the Act’s ambit," the court stated.

The relationship between an advocate and his client is unique, it noted.

“Advocates are generally perceived to be their client’s agent. They undertake all the traditional duties that agents owe to their principals. Advocates are also not entitled to make concessions or undertakings to the courts without the express approval of their clients. He is the only link between the court and the client."

Thus, the client exercises a significant amount of direct control over how the advocate performs his services during the course of employment, it said.

All of this, the court noted, reinforces the classification of services provided by an advocate as a contract of personal service.

As a necessary corollary, a complaint alleging a deficiency of service will not be maintainable under the Consumer Protection Act, the court said.