Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987
No: 39 Dated: Oct, 11 1987
The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987
(Act No 39 of 1987)
An Act to constitute legal services authorities to provide free and competent legal services to the weaker sections of the society to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities, and to organize Lok Adalats to secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity.
BE it enacted by the Parliament in the Thirty-eighth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. Short title, extent and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification, appoint; and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and for different States, and any reference to commencement in any provision of this Act in relation to any State shall be construed as a reference to the commencement of that provision in that State.
2. Definitions . - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,
(a) Case includes a suit or any proceeding before a Court;
(aa) Central Authority means the National Legal Services Authority constituted under section 3;
(aaa) Court means a civil, criminal or revenue Court and includes any Tribunal or any other authority constituted under any law for the time being in force, to exercise judicial or quasi-judicial functions;
(b) District Authority means a District Legal Services Authority constituted under section 9;
(bb) High Court Legal Services Committee means a High Court Legal Services Committee constituted under section 8-A;
(c) legal service includes the rendering of any service in the conduct of any case or other legal proceeding before any Court or other authority or Tribunal and the giving of advice on any legal matter;
(d) Lok Adalat means a Lok Adalat organised under Chapter VI;
(e) notification means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(f) prescribed means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(ff) regulations means regulations made under this Act;
(g) scheme means any scheme framed by the Central Authority, a State Authority or a District Authority for the purpose of giving effect to any of the provisions of this Act;
(h) State Authority means a State Legal Services Authority constituted under section 6;
(i) State Government includes the administrator of a Union territory appointed by the President under Article 239 of the Constitution;
(j) Supreme Court Legal Services Committee means the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee constituted under section 3-A;
(k) Taluk Legal Services Committee means a Taluk Legal Services Committee constituted under section 11-A.
(2) Any reference in this Act to any other enactment or any provision thereof shall, in relation to an area in which such enactment or provision is not in force, be construed as a reference to the corresponding law or the relevant provision of the corresponding law, if any, in force in that area.