As a scholarly, advocate turned entrepreneur currently practicing at the Supreme Court of India, the Delhi High Court and district courts at New Delhi, Ms. Shriya Maini specializes in dispute resolution and as an unabashed feminist, particularly enjoys criminal and matrimonial litigation. She has majored in International Criminal Law from the University of Oxford on a full scholarship in the course titled BCL (Oxon) sponsored by Mr. Harish Salve,{ Senior Advocate}. As a recipient of the Oxford Global Justice Award 2015- 16 for Public International Law, she has recently returned from the United Nations Organization, more specifically the Cabinet of the President Judge, International Residual Mechanism for the Criminal Tribunals (“MICT”) seated at The Hague, Netherlands. Currently, she serves as an Adjunct Faculty for Criminal Procedure Code, Supreme Court Practice &Procedure and Human Rights at our college i.e. Lloyd Law College and a Visiting Faculty for International Criminal Law and Criminology at National Law University, Delhi.
Q. What subjects and related questions did your question paper deal with?
A. Being a subjective essay type test, the Advocate-on-Record Examination (hereinafter referred to as the “Advocate-on-Record Examination”) comprises of four different subjects, namely:-
• Supreme Court – Practice & Procedure
• Drafting
• Advocacy and Professional Ethics
• Leading Cases
In short, the subjects, as their names suggest are pretty distinct when it comes to the Examination testing an advocate’s procedural knowledge, drafting skills and of course, case law analyzing ability and moral compass respectively. Each Examination carries 100 marks each and lasts for 3 hours, with half an hour extra being provided to read the Drafting Examination question Paper. You must score atleast 50% in each subject and an over all aggregate of 60%. Additionally, the papers are held four days in a row, without a break. So be prepared to lose some sleep through the exam and make revisable notes, well in advance to sail through.
Being a subjective Question and Answer format, the pattern of the Examination can be best dealt with paper wise. While almost each paper has sufficient no. of options, Drafting and Leading Cases I would say are the two most lengthy and tricky ones. Drafting requires an Advocate to attempt 5 mandatory questions (20 marks each) and almost all of us are used to typing on laptops and computers now. So, practice a few questions by writing in hand prior to the examination. Leading Cases too require us to attempt any 5 questions out of 8, in effect limiting the number of available options. Infact, our paper (AOR 2019 Leading Cases) did not carry any questions on the conventional case-laws, focusing instead on niche issues (weaving 2 to 3 case laws together), necessitating that an in-depth study is required, covering almost the entire syllabus. Ethics was perhaps the one paper which was easily relatable, for it is a generic subject that could easily be bridged with examples we see in the real life court room scenario too. Like duties of an advocate to not return briefs, contingency lawyering etc. are moot issues experienced almost on a daily basis by practicing lawyers.
Last but surely not the least, Practice and Procedure is one of the most bulky reads to begin with. So I would say start with prepping this one! Our paper was divided into sections, with 10 Markers, 5 Markers and even 2 Markers. So this is one subject you just cannot and must not ignore because its very scoring and helps you tide over the minimum requirement of 60 % overall aggregate. We had specific questions ranging from jurisdictional issues (such as when to file an SLP or a writ), vacation benches to midnight hearings, Powers of registrar and Chamber Judges and circulation/urgent listing of matters.
Q. How should one prepare for the AOR examination from the start till the D-Day?
A. Now that’s a tricky for me to sum up in here, but I’ll nevertheless try my best to share with you certain tips of how to clear the exam in your first attempt itself. The examination does not require a lot of learning if you have run around the Court corridors a fair no. of times the year before Familiarity with the Court Room helps to pick up the nuances of Practice & Procedure. Readings judgements throughout the year is a must and you can pick any topic and read up a judgement a week! I would cursorily go through as many as possible while lazying on a Sunday evening.
So, the first tip is “Please make your own notes and study the Supreme Court: Rules of Practice & Procedure: Handbook”. I can’t stress any less on this because the exam requires an in-depth study into the subject of Practice and Procedure, which can be conveniently studied alongside the Drafting Paper and Leading Cases paper simultaneously. By this I mean, if you are studying Curative and Review Petitions under the SC Rules of Practice and Procedure, 2013 (sure shot exam questions by the way!), I suggest you prepare a sample draft of the same – Curative and Review Petition and keep alongside for the Drafting Exam. Presumably, you would have studied the Antulay and Rupa Hurra Judgements and these would concomitantly prepare you for the Leading Cases Paper. So you see, there are numerous overlapping topics across Papers which could easily be covered first. This was one pattern that I followed throughout my exam study, of finding common areas and innovating grey areas so as to score brownie points in my examination.
My second tip is “Be thorough with the latest case laws and SC Judgements, especially grey areas – like questions referred to larger benches”. For instance, in the Practice and Procedure Examination, my question paper dealt two specific questions on the Doctrine of Merger since Hon’ble (Retd.) Justice A.K. Sikri had come out with an interesting Order in 2019 itself and the Sabarimala and Rafale issue (so curatives and review were sprinkled all through!). Moreover, Prof. Venkatramani’s book is a real treat, so do pick it up and read through the topics of Vacation Benches, SLP, Writs, Curative, Review for even knowledge insight as such. Practice and Procedure basically is a test of “Jurisdiction” in its true sense. So, do prepare original suits, appellate and special jurisdictions as short notes for the exam. Another advise would be to fill in the Ethics paper with lots of examples and of course, the applicable law.
Additionally, Drafting is an examination you cannot prepare much for but for perusing the drafts really, as samples. You must while reading the Drafting Paper identify what will be filed at the outset, be it an SLP or a Writ or an Original Suit. For Advocacy and Ethics examination, the Bar Council Rules and Examiner’s Lectures usually suffice, if your caps of common sense are intact. I would say prepare topics such as duties of an advocate towards the Bar, fellow lawyers, judges and community. These are super easy and can fetch you brownie points!
Another very effective general tip would be “The papers are no doubt pretty lengthy so please ensure you finish each one of them”. Remember the 3 hour time is of the essence in here. I know the quality and quantity of the answers may be compromised a bit, but please finish till the last question and only then will you qualify for the marathon run! I remember the Examiner’s Lectures couldn’t stop stressing on it. This also in effect means that you must be precise and answer to the point, without just filling up answer sheets in a motorized fashion.
My last, final and most important tip would be “Attend the AOR Examiner’s Lectures (conducted in May usually every year at the SC premises) and follow each instruction very carefully, to the T”. I must thank all of them, Prof. Venkatramani, Mr. Siddharth Luthra and Mr. Pallav Shishodia for almost walking us through the examination topics, holding us by the hand, showing us the way ahead, just one month prior to the exams.
Q. In which aspects is the examination different and similar from other Bar examinations?
A. Oh, let me please warn you at the outset that it is rather a “not so easy” Examination. By this I mean, you must study well and that too, prepare topics with an in-depth understanding of WHAT IS and WHY THIS LAW? I would most definitely suggest undertaking a critique approach of proposing how the law could plausibly be amended. The papers require you to go beyond the settled law and propose changes, with cogent reasoning. This is a great scholarly exercise and it is unfortunate that in Law Schools, we make the students mug up the law, without really armoring them with the legal shields to challenge the existing laws. Not to discourage you all, but the passing rate is pretty low (11 – 20 %) and hence, it is said to be one of the tougher all India examinations. Besides, it is a subjective examination, so you must have enough material to be able to pen down so in that sense it is different from an Ail India Bar Examination, the latter being a Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) Paper.
Q. What is the eligibility for the examination and what is the procedure after one qualifies it?
A. To be eligible for the examination, you would require minimum 5 years of practical experience at the Bar. Next, you would have to intimate the Supreme Court that you have begun your training with an AOR (who has a practice of over 20 years) and file a certificate to that effect. After the expiry of one year training period, you would have to fill in the examination form and file your Certificate of Completion, to be duly given by the same Senior AOR certifying that you have completed the requisite statutory period of training.
Post qualification of the examination, if you pass this examination, you will have to show a registered office within a radius of 10 kilometers from the Supreme Court premises and a registered clerk. Then, the Chamber Judge of the Supreme Court would accept you as an AOR.
Q. What do you think are the perks of being an AOR?
A. Though it is undoubtedly one of the very coveted legal examinations in India, the reason why I wanted to become an AOR was that the office would no longer have to reply upon an independent external AOR each time a Supreme Court brief walked in. This would mean that in effect, for the Petitions, SLPs and Writs to be filed by our Chambers, I could play the dual role of not only being the Counsel but also the AOR on board. Simple procedural nuances – like how to get urgent matters listed; circulations; inspections; taking and receiving service of pleadings. Filings, mentioning to file pleadings within 3 days of listing have substantially eased out! So yes, most definitely, numerous perks in there to make live easy, as a lawyer in active practice!
Essentially, all the work in the Supreme Court is routed via an Advocate –
on – Record (AOR) when it comes to drafting, signing, filing and service of pleadings. Besides, the presence of the AOR concerned is mandatorily required on every single date of hearing in Court. Hence, an AOR is inevitably an integral part of the Apex Court brief, for no advocate other than an AOR can file an appearance or act for any party in the Supreme Court, unless he is instructed by an AOR. Besides, an added designation and knowledge never hurt!