West Bengal Advocates Welfare Fund Act, 1991
No: 13 Dated: Dec, 17 1991
THE WEST BENGAL ADVOCATES WELFARE FUND ACT, 1991
West Bengal Act XIII of 1991
An Act to provide for the constitution of a Fund and utilisation thereof for promotion of welfare of the advocates practising in West Bengal and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Whereas it is expedient to provide for the constitution of a Fund and utilisation thereof for promotion of welfare of the advocates practising in West Bengal and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto;
It is hereby enacted as follows :-
1. Short title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Advocates Welfare Fund Act, 1991.
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification, appoint.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "advocate" means an advocate whose name is entered in the State roll and who is a member of a Bar Association, but does not include an advocate to whom the provisions of this Act do not apply under section 22;
(b) "Bar Association" means an association mainly of advocates practising in any court, or before any tribunal or person legally authorised to take evidence, or before any other authority or person before whom such advocate is by or under any law for the time being in force entitled to practise, in West Bengal, and recognised as such by the Bar Council under section 16;
(c) "Bar Council" means the Bar Council of West Bengal constituted under section 3 of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(d) "cessation of practice" means the cessation of practice by an advocate of the profession of law upon death, or retirement, or suspension from practice, or removal of name from the State roll under section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(e) "Fund" means the West Bengal Advocates Welfare Fund constituted under section 3;
(f) "member of the Fund" means an advocate admitted to the benefits of the Fund, and continuing as such member under this Act;
(g) "notification" means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(h) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(i) "regulations" means the regulations made under this Act;
(j) "retirement" means removal of name of a member of the Fund from the State roll by the Bar Council upon a request from such member under section 26A of the Advocates Act, 1961 or voluntary withdrawal by a member of the Fund from practice of the profession of law or completion of thirty years by an advocate as a member of the Fund, whichever is earlier;
(k) "State roll" means a roll of advocates prepared and maintained by the Bar Council under section 17 of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(l) "suspension from practice" means suspension from practice under section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(m) "Trust Committee" means the West Bengal Advocates Welfare Fund Trust Committee constituted under section 4.
3. Constitution of Fund. - (1) The State Government shall constitute a Fund to be called the West Bengal Advocates Welfare Fund.
(2) There shall be credited to the Fund-
(a) an initial grant of-
(i) rupees thirty lakhs, or such higher sum as the State Government may determine, by the State Government, and
(ii) rupees thirteen lakhs, or such higher sum as the Bar Council may determine, by the Bar Council, within such period after the commencement of this Act as the State Government may fix in consultation with the Bar Council;
(b) any contribution or voluntary donation made by the Bar Council of India constituted under section 4 of the Advocates Act, 1961 or by any Bar Association or by the Central Government or the State Government or by any local authority or any company, corporation or association of persons or any institution or any advocate or other individual;
(c) all sums borrowed under section 12;
(d) all sums received from the Life Insurance Corporation of India established under section 3 of the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956,-
(i) on the death of any member of the Fund, or
(ii) on account of any bonus declared by that Corporation in respect of any member of the Fund, under any policy issued by that Corporation under any Group Insurance Scheme;
(e) all fees for application for membership of the Fund under section 18 and all sums on account of annual subscription to the Fund and all interest on the arrears of annual subscription to the Fund under section 19;
(f) any interest or dividend or other sum on any investment made out of any part of the Fund.
(3) The Bar Council shall pay to the Fund annually such sum, not exceeding twenty per cent of the enrolment fee referred to in clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 28 of the Advocates Act, 1961, as it may determine from time to time:
Provided that the sum as aforesaid shall be calculated after deducting the sum payable by it to the Bar Council of India under section 46 of the Advocates Act, 1961.
(4) The State Government shall pay to the Fund annually such sum as it may consider necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act:
Provided that such sum shall not be less than three times of the sum payable by the Bar Council under sub-section (3):
Provided further that no such sum shall be paid by the State Government except by appropriation out of Consolidated Fund of the State in accordance with law.