India News | Senior Advocates Must Render Pro Bono Legal Aid to Poor for Quality Access to Justice: SC Judge

New Delhi, Oct 24 (PTI) Supreme Court judge justice U U Lalit Sunday called upon senior advocates to render pro bono legal aid to the poor and marginalised sections to ensure that they get quality access to justice.

Justice Lalit, who is the Executive Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority, was speaking at a function organised by Karnataka State Legal Services Authority in association with the District Legal Services Authority, Kalaburagi on 'Actualisation of Rights and Entitlements in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals –2020'.

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"Merely training the panel lawyers will not be sufficient. The solution to the problem is that some of the senior advocates must take legal aid as a matter of choice and keep on appearing for matters pro bono so that the man who comes through the door of legal aid service clinic is assured that it is not going to be a matter which is botched up and a quality legal aid will be extended to him," Justice Lalit said.

Stressing the importance of empowering the poor and downtrodden, he said legal aid to the poor does not mean it is of poor level and it has to be of better quality and standard.

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Stressing the need to empower women, the judge said women should be empowered to such an extent that she may run shoulder to shoulder with everyone of us.

Justice Lalit commended the efforts of the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority with respect to the establishment of the off-campus legal services clinics and release of a graphic novel to spread legal literacy in the state.

The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) and the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority (KSLSA) have been performing instrumental role in bringing justice to the doorstep of citizens by creating legal awareness amongst the common citizens.

As part of NALSA Pan India Awareness and Outreach Campaign and on the occasion of UN Day which is celebrated globally to mark the anniversary of the UN charter coming into force on 24 October in 1945, the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority in association with the District Legal Services Authority, Kalaburagi organised the programme.

The programme was attended by judicial officers, members of the local bar, law students, teachers and around 300 members of the Banjara Community (known colloquially as Lambanis).

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)