Delhi High Court Criticizes Blame Game Against Lawyers

The Delhi High Court has criticized the practice of blaming lawyers for delays in approaching the court. A bench led by Justices C Hari Shankar and Anoop Kumar Mendiratta emphasized that litigants should remain engaged with their cases even after hiring counsel, highlighting the need for responsibility.

In a landmark decision, the Delhi High Court has strongly criticized the tendency of litigants to blame their lawyers for delays in taking legal action. The court emphasized that hiring a lawyer does not absolve clients of their responsibility to monitor their legal matters.

Justices C Hari Shankar and Anoop Kumar Mendiratta underscored that while filing complaints with the bar council regarding a lawyer’s delay is straightforward, litigants must provide convincing proof of maintaining contact with their lawyer and demonstrate being misled.

The court dismissed a petition involving a six-year delay in challenging a Central Administrative Tribunal decision, stressing that the client had failed to satisfactorily explain the delays blamed on the counsel's misconduct.