The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : It is no more ‘My Lord’

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 10, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

It is no more ‘My Lord’

Staff Reporter

Advocates and litigants can address judges as ‘Your Honour’

Bar Council sends communication in this regard
Judges of lower courts can be addressed as sir

BANGALORE: It is official. The judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court need not be addressed as “My Lord.” Advocates and litigants can address them as “your honour.” Similarly, judges of the lower courts can be addressed as “Sir.”

The Bar Council of India has sent a communication to High Courts, including the Karnataka High Court, stating that from now on, judges of the High Courts and Supreme Court would be addressed as your honour and not My Lord and judges of the Sessions, District, Fast Track, Family and other subordinate courts as sir.

Apart from your honour, another term — this honourable court — can also be used during the court proceedings.

Incidentally, the change in the nomenclature in Karnataka was decided sometime by the Karnataka State Bar Council (KSBC) after the BCI decided to change the way of addressing the judges.

Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court Cyriac Joseph told the advocates during the hearing of a case that he had received a communication from the BCI notifying the change in the nomenclature. He said the BCI had felt that “your honour” was colonial and, hence, wanted the change.

He said he had asked the Registrar of the High Court to issue immediately issue a circular to all the judges and presiding officers of courts to ensure that they knew about the change and did not take umbrage at being addressed in a new manner.

Interestingly, the decision to change the mode of addressing the judges is a fallout of a petition filed before the Supreme Court seeking a direction to end the practice of addressing them as My Lords. The Supreme Court had, however, stated that it was the prerogative of the Bar and the Bench and that it could not take any decision on it. The main contention urged that the practice was a colonial hangover and it should, therefore, be discontinued with.

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