LexThe Himachal Pradesh Advocate's Clerks Welfare Fund Act, 2015
Himachal Pradesh · state statute
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THE HIMACHAL PRADESH ADVOCATE’S CLERKS
WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Sections:
1. Short title and commencement.
2. Definitions.
3. Advocate’s Clerks Welfare Fund.
4. Establishment of Welfare Fund Committee.
5. Disqualification and removal of nominated
members of the Committee.
6. Resignation by nominated members of the
Committee and filling up of casualvacancies.
7. Act of the Committee not to be invalid by defec t,
vacancy etc.
8. Vesting and application of Fund.
9. Functions of the Committee.
10. Borrowing and investment of Fund.
11. Powers and functions of the Secretary.
12. Himachal Pradesh Advocate’s Clerks Welfare Fun d
Stamp.
13. Recognition and registration of Advocate’s Cle rks
Association.
14. Duties of Advocate’s Clerks Association.
15. Membership of the Fund.
16. Payment from the Fund on cessation of
employment.
17. Restriction on alienation, attachment etc. of interest
of members in the Fund.
18. Group Life Insurance and other benefits for
members.
19. Meetings of the Committee.
20. Travelling and daily allowance to the members of
the Committee.
21. Review.
22. Protection of action taken in good faith.
2 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
23. Bar of jurisdiction of civil courts.
24. Power to summon witnesses and take evidence.
25. Power to make rules.
Schedule.
_____________
THE HIMACHAL PRADESH ADVOCATE’S CLERKS
WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
(ACT NO. 28 of 2015)
1
(Received the assent of the Governor on the 17 th October,
2015 and was published both in Hindi and English i n R.H.P. dated
20 th October, 2015 at p. 4804-4826).
An Act to provide for the constitution of a Welfare Fund and
utilization thereof for promotion of the Advocate's clerks
in the State of Himachal Pradesh and for matters
connected therewith or incidental thereto .
B
E it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of Himachal
Pradesh in the Sixty-sixth Year ofthe Republic of India as follows:—
1. Short title and commencement.— (1) This Act may be
called the Himachal PradeshAdvocate’s Clerks Welfar e Fund Act,
2015.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the St ate
Government may, by notification,appoint.
2. Definitions.— In this Act, unless the context otherwise
requires,—
(a) “Advocate” means a person whose name has been
entered in the State roll ofAdvocates prepared and
maintained by the Bar Council of Himachal
Pradeshunder section 17 of the Advocates Act, 1961
and who is a member of a BarAssociation or an
Advocates Association;
(b) “Advocate’s clerk” means a clerk employed by a n
Advocate and recognized bysuch authority and in suc h
manner as may be prescribed and who is a member
ofan Advocate's Clerks Association;
(c) “Advocate’s Clerks Association” means an Assoc iation
of Advocate's clerksrecognized and registered under
section 13;
1. Passed in Hindi by the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sa bha. For Statement of
Objects and Reasons see R.H.P. dated 29.8.2015, p. 3380&3390.
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 3
(d) “Bar Association” means an association of Advo cates
recognized and registeredby the Bar Council under
section 14 of the Himachal Pradesh Advocates
WelfareFund Act, 1996;
(e) “Bar Council” means the Bar Council of Himacha l
Pradesh constituted undersection 3 of the Advocates
Act, 1961;
(f) “cessation of employment” means removal of the name
of an Advocate's clerkfrom the State roll maintaine d by
the Committee on account of his retirement;
(g) “Committee” means the Himachal Pradesh Clerks
Welfare Fund Committeeconstituted under section 4;
(h) “dependant” means any of the following relativ es of a
deceased member of theFund, namely :—
(I) widow, minor legitimate son, unmarried legitim ate
daughter or widowedmother; and
(II) major legitimate son or legitimate married da ughter
who by virtue of infirmity is wholly dependant on t he
earnings of the member at the time ofhis death;
(i) “Fund” means the Himachal Pradesh Advocate’s C lerks
Welfare Fundconstituted under section 3;
(j) “Government” means the Government of Himachal
Pradesh;
(k) “Member of the Fund” means an Advocate’s clerk
admitted to the benefit of theFund and continuing t o be
a member thereof under the provisions of this Act;
(l) “notification” means a notification published in
Rajpatra, Himachal Pradesh andthe word ‘notified’
shall be construed accordingly;
(m) ‘‘prescribed” means prescribed by rules made u nder
this Act;
(n) “retirement” means stoppage of employment as a n
Advocate’s clerk for reasonother than joining service or
for carrying on any other gainful
occupation,communicated to and recorded in the
prescribed manner;
(o) “Schedule” means Schedule appended to this Act ;
(p) “stamp” means the Himachal Pradesh Advocate's
Clerks Welfare Fund stampprinted and distributed
under section 12; and
4 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
(q) “vakalatnama’ means a vakalatnama, memorandum of
appearance or any otherdocument by which an
Advocate or any other local practitioner is empower ed
toappear and plead before any court, tribunal or ot her
authority.
3. Advocate’s Clerks Welfare Fund.— (1) The Government
shall, by notification,constitute a Fund to be call ed “the Himachal
Pradesh Advocate's Clerks Welfare Fund”.
(2) There shall be credited to the Fund,—
(a) all amounts collected by way of sale of stamps under
section 12;
(b) any voluntary donations or contribution made to the
Fund by the Bar Council, anyBar Association, any
other Association or Institution, any Advocate or a ny
otherperson;
(c) any sum borrowed under section 10;
(d) all sums received from the Life Insurance Corpo ration
of India or any otherInsurance Company on the death of
a member of the Fund under a GroupInsurance Policy;
(e) any profit or dividend received from the Life Insurance
Corporation of India orany other Insurance Company
on the death of a member of the Fund under aGroup
Insurance Policy;
(f) any interest or dividend or other returns on a ny
investment made of any part ofthe Fund; and
(g) all sums collected under section 15.
4. Establishment of Welfare Fund Committee.— (1) The
Government shall, bynotification, establish with effect from such date
as may be specified therein, a Committee to becalle d the Himachal
Pradesh Advocate's Clerks Welfare Fund Committee.
(2) The Committee shall be a body corporate having perpetual
succession and a commonseal with power to acquire, hold and dispose
of property and shall, by the said name, sue or besued.
(3) The Committee shall consists of the following, namely:—
(a) the Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh -ex-offic io-
Chairman;
Bar Council
(b) the Secretary (Law)to the Government - ex-offic io
Member;
(c) the Secretary (Home) to the Government -ex-off icio
Member;
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 5
(d) the Secretary (Finance) to the -ex-officio
Member;
Government
(e) the Registrar General of Himachal -ex-officio
Member; Pradesh High Court
(f) three members to be nominated from amongst the
Advocate’s clerks by suchauthority and in such mann er
as may be prescribed, of whom one shall benominated
by the Committee as the State Treasurer of the Fund ;
and
(g) the Secretary to be appointed by the Chairman in
accordance with suchregulations as may be made by the
Committee in respect of the recruitment andconditio ns
of service of the Secretary:
Provided that the Secretary so appointed shall not have the
right to vote at the meetings ofthe Committee.
(4) In case the Secretary (Law), Secretary (Home) o r
Secretary (Finance) to theGovernment is unable to a ttend the meeting
of the Committee for any reason, he may depute anyo fficer of his
Department not below the rank of Deputy Secretary t o attend the
meeting.
(5) In case the Registrar General of Himachal Prade sh High
Court is unable to attend themeeting of the Committee for any reason,
he may depute any officer not below the rank of Dep utyRegistrar to
attend the meeting.
(6) A member nominated under clause (f) of sub-sect ion (3)
shall hold office for a term ofthree years from the date of such
nomination or until he ceases to be a member of the Advocate’sClerks
Association, whichever is earlier.
(7) The Secretary shall be paid such remuneration o ut of the
Fund as may be prescribed.
5. Disqualification and removal of nominated member s of
the Committee.— (1) Amember nominated under clause (f) of sub-
section (3) of section 4 shall be disqualified to b e amember of the
Committee and shall cease to be such member if he—
(a) becomes of unsound mind; or
(b) is adjudged as insolvent; or
(c) remains absent without leave of the Committee for
more than three consecutivemeetings of the Committee:
Provided that the member ceasing to hold office und er this
clause may be restoredby the Committee, if such mem ber makes an
application for condonation of absence; or
6 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
(d) is a defaulter to the Fund (if he is a member of the
Fund) or has committed breach oftrust; or
(e) is convicted by a criminal court for an offenc e
involving moral turpitude, unless suchconviction ha s
been set aside.
(2) The Chairman may remove any member who is or ha s
become disqualified under sub-section(1) from the membership of the
Committee:
Provided that no order removing any member shall be passed
unless the member has beengiven an opportunity of being heard.
6. Resignation by nominated members of the Committe e
and filling of casualvacancies.— (1) Any member nominated under
clause (f) of sub-section (3) of section 4 mayresig n his office by
giving three months notice in writing to the Chairm an and on such
resignationbeing accepted he shall be deemed to hav e vacated his
office.
(2) Any casual vacancy in the office of a member re ferred to
in sub-section (1) shall befilled as soon as possib le and a member so
nominated to such vacancy shall hold office for theresidue of the term
of his predecessor.
7. Act of the Committee not to be invalid by defect ,
vacancy etc.— No act done orproceeding taken under this Act or th e
rules made thereunder by the Committee shall be inv alidatedmerely
by reason of—
(a) any vacancy or defect in the constitution of t he
Committee; or
(b) any defect or irregularity in nomination of an y person
as a member thereof; or
(c) any defect or irregularity in such act or proc eeding not
affecting the merits of the case.
8. Vesting and application of Fund.— The Fund shall vest in
and be held and applied bythe Committee subject to the provisions
and for the purposes of this Act.
9. Functions of the Committee.— (1) It shall be the function
of the Committee toadminister the Fund.
(2) In the administration of the Fund, the Committe e shall,
subject to the provisions of theAct and the rules made thereunder—
(a) hold the amounts and assets belonging to the Fu nd;
(b) receive application for admission or readmissi on to the
Fund and dispose of suchapplications within sixty d ays
from the receipt thereof;
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 7
(c) receive applications from the members of the Fu nd,
their nominees or legalrepresentatives, as the case may
be, for payment out of the Fund;
(d) conduct such inquiry as it deems necessary, for the
disposal of such applications anddispose of the
applications within five months from the date of receipt
thereof;
(e) record in the minutes book of the Committee it s
decision on the applications;
(f) pay to the applicants amount at the rates spec ified in the
Schedule;
(g) maintain such accounts and books and send such
periodicals and annual reports to theBar Council, a s
may be prescribed;
(h) communicate to the applicants under certificat e of
posting the decision of theCommittee in respect of
applications for admission or re-admission to the F und
orclaims to the benefit of the Fund; and
(i) do such other acts, as are or may be, required to be
done under this Act and the rulesmade thereunder.
10. Borrowing and investment of Fund.— (1) The
Committee may, with the priorapproval of the Bar Co uncil, borrow,
from time to time, any sum required for carrying ou t thepurposes of
this Act.
(2) The Committee shall deposit all moneys and rece ipts
forming part of the Fund in anyScheduled Bank as de fined under the
Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 or invest the same in loansto any
Corporation owned or controlled by the Central Gove rnment or the
State Government or inany other manner as the Bar C ouncil may,
from time to time, direct with prior approval of theGovernment.
(3) All amount due and payable under this Act and a ll
expenditure relating to themanagement and administr ation of the
Fund shall be paid out of the Fund.
(4) The accounts of the Committee shall be audited annually
by a Chartered Accountantappointed by the Committee.
(5) The accounts, as certified by the auditor toget her with the
audit report thereon, shall beforwarded to the Bar Council by the
Committee and the Bar Council may issue such direct ions as itdeems
fit to the Committee in respect thereof.
(6) The Committee shall comply with the directions issued by
the Bar Council under subsection(5).
8 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
11. Powers and functions of the Secretary.— The Secretary
of the Committee shall—
(a) be the Chief Executive Authority of the Commit tee and
responsible for carrying out itsdecisions;
(b) represent the Committee in all suits and proce edings for
and against the Committee;
(c) authenticate by his signature all decisions an d
instructions of the Committee;
(d) operate the Bank Accounts of the Committee joi ntly
with the Treasurer;
(e) convene meetings of the Committee and prepare their
minutes;
(f) attend the meetings of the Committee with all necessary
records and information;
(g) maintain such forms, registers and other recor ds, as
may be prescribed, and do allcorrespondence relating to
the Committee;
(h) prepare an annual statement of business transa cted by
the Committee during eachfinancial year; and
(i) do such other acts as may be directed by the
Committee.
12. Himachal Pradesh Advocate's Clerks Welfare Fund
Stamp.— (1) There shall beprinted or caused to be printed b y the Bar
Council in such form and in such manner as may bepr escribed, stamp
inscribed “the Himachal Pradesh Advocate's Clerks W elfare Fund”
each of thevalue of five rupees.
(2) Every vakalatnama or memorandum of appearance f iled
before any court, authority ortribunal shall be aff ixed with a stamp as
specified in sub-section (1) in addition to the court feesstamps, if any,
and stamp to be affixed under any other Acts and va kalatnama or
memorandum of appearance shall not be valid unless it is so stamped:
Provided that this sub-section shall not apply to a ny
vakalatnama or memorandum of appearance filed on be half of the
Central or State Government.
(3) The person or authority receiving vakalatnama w ith such
stamp shall forthwith effectcancellation of the sta mp by punching out
the same.
(4) The custody of the stamps printed under this se ction shall
be with the Bar Council andthe supply and sale of s tamps shall be in
such manner as may be prescribed.
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 9
13. Recognition and registration of Advocate’s Cler ks
Association.— (1) AnAssociation of Advocate’s Clerks constituted
after the commencement of this Act may, within twom onths from the
date of such constitution and an Association of Adv ocate’s Clerks
constituted before the commencement of this Act may , within two
months from the date of commencement of this Act, a pply to the
Committee in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed, for
recognition and registration as an Advocate’s Clerk s Association
under this Act.
(2) Every application for recognition and registrat ion shall be
accompanied by the rules orbye-laws of the Associat ion, names and
addresses of the office bearers of the Association and anup-to-date list
of the members of the Association with name, addres s, age and the
ordinary place ofemployment of such member.
(3) The Committee may, after such inquiry as it dee ms
necessary, recognize theAssociation as an Advocate' s Clerks
Association and issue a certificate of recognition in such formas may
be prescribed.
(4) The decision of the Committee regarding the rec ognition
of Association shall be final.
14. Duties of Advocate’s Clerks Association.— (1) Every
Advocate’s Clerks Associationshall, on or before 15 th April every
year, intimate to the Committee a list of its membe rs as on 31 st March
of the year.
(2) Every Advocate's Clerks Association shall intim ate to the
Committee of,—
(a) any change of the office bearers of the Advoca te's
Clerks Association within fifteendays from such
change;
(b) any change in number of members including admi ssion
and re-admission within thirtydays of such change;
(c) the death or retirement of any of its members within
thirty days from the date ofoccurrence thereof; and
(d) such other matters as may be required by the
Committee from time to time.
15. Membership of the Fund.— (1) Every Advocate’s Clerks
in the State may apply tothe Committee, in such for m and in such
manner as may be prescribed, for admission as a memberof the Fund.
(2) On receipt of an application under sub-section (1), the
Committee shall make suchenquiry as it deems fit and either admit the
applicant to the Fund or for reasons to be recorded inwriting, reject
the application :
10 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
Provided that no order rejecting an application shall be passed
unless the applicant has beengiven an opportunity of being heard.
(3) Every applicant shall pay an application fee of rupees one
hundred alongwith application to the account of the Committee.
(4) Every applicant shall pay to the Fund an admiss ion fee of
rupees one hundred at thetime of admission or re-admission.
(5) Every person admitted as a member of the Fund s hall pay
a membership fee of rupeesone thousand five hundred payable in two
equal half yearly instalments.
(6) Every member of the Fund shall, at the time of admission,
make a nominationconferring on one or more dependan ts of his
family the right to receive the amount from the Fun din the event of
his death. However, that if he has no family he may nominate any
person he likes.
(7) If more than one person is nominated, the amount of share
payable to each nomineeshall be specified in the nomination.
(8) A member of the Fund may at any time cancel a
nomination by sending a notice inwriting to the Com mittee alongwith
a fresh nomination.
(9) Where on receipt of a complaint or otherwise, t he
Committee has reason to believe thatan Advocate’s c lerk secured
admission as a member of the Fund by misrepresentat ion, fraud
orundue influence, the Committee shall have power t o remove the
name of such Advocate’s clerkfrom the membership of the Fund :
Provided that no such order shall be passed unless the person,
likely to be affectedadversely, has been given an o pportunity of being
heard.
16. Payment from the Fund on cessation of
employment.— (1) A member of the Fundshall, on cessation of
employment, be entitled to receive from and out of the Fund an
amount at therate specified in the Schedule.
(2) In the event of death of a member, a consolidat ed amount
of rupees fifty thousand shallbe paid to the nominee or, where there is
no nominee, to his dependants.
(3) A member of the Fund may withdraw his membershi p at
any time after five years ofhis admission as a member of the Fund and
on such withdrawal he shall be entitled to receive fromand out of the
Fund an amount at the rate specified in the Schedul e and he may also
be eligible for re-admission to the Fund as a new m ember subject to
such conditions as may be prescribed :
Provided that a member suffering from permanent
disablement may withdraw hismembership at any time.
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 11
(4) For calculating the period of completed years o f
employment for the purpose of payment under this Ac t, every four
years of employment under an Advocate, if any, before admission of a
member to the Fund, shall be computed as one year o f employment
and added to the number of years of employment afte r such
admission.
(5) An application for payment from the Fund shall be made
to the Committee in suchform as may be prescribed.
(6) An application received under sub-section (5), shall be
disposed of by the Committeeafter such enquiry as i t deems
necessary.
17. Restriction on alienation, attachment etc. of interest of
members in the Fund.— (1)The interest or the right of a member of
the Fund or his nominee or legal heirs to receive a nyamount from the
Fund, shall not be assigned, alienated or charged a nd shall not be
liable toattachment under any decree or order of any court, tribunal or
other authority.
(2) No creditor shall be entitled to proceed agains t the Fund
or the interest therein of anymember of the Fund or his nominee or
legal heirs.
Explanation.— For the purpose of this section, “creditor”
includes the State, or any official assignee or off icial receiver
appointed, under the law relating to insolvency for the time being
inforce.
18. Group Life Insurance and other benefits for
members.— The Committee may, for the welfare of the members o f
the Fund,—
(a) take from the Life Insurance Corporation of In dia or
any other Insurance Companies, policies of Group
Insurance on the life of the members of the Fund; and
(b) provide for medical and educational facilities and such
other benefits, as may beprescribed for the members of
the Fund and their dependents.
19. Meetings of the Committee.— (1) The Committee shall
meet atleast once in three months or more often if found necessary to
transact its business under this Act or the rules made thereunder.
(2) Five members shall form the quorum for a meetin g of the
Committee.
(3) The Chairman or in his absence, a member, elect ed by the
members present at the meeting, shall preside over a meeting of the
Committee.
12 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
(4) Any matter coming before the Committee in the m eeting
shall be decided by a majority of the members prese nt and voting at
the meeting and in case of tie, the Chairman shall have acasting vote.
20. Travelling and daily allowance to the members o f the
Committee.— The nominatedmembers of the Committee shall be
eligible to get such travelling allowance and daily allowance,as may
be prescribed.
21. Review.— The Committee may, suo-motu, at any time or
on an application from any interested person, withi n ninety days of
any order passed by it, review any such order:
Provided that the Committee shall not pass any orde r
adversely affecting a person, unless such person ha s been given an
opportunity of being heard.
22. Protection of action taken in good faith.— (1) No suit,
prosecution or other legalproceeding shall lie agai nst any person for
anything which is, in good faith, done or intended to bedone in
pursuance of this Act or any rules made thereunder.
(2) No suit or other legal proceeding shall lie aga inst the
Committee or the Bar Council forany damage caused o r likely to be
caused by anything which is, in good faith, done or intended tobe
done in pursuance of this Act or any rules made thereunder.
23. Bar of jurisdiction of civil courts.— No civil court shall
have jurisdiction to settle,decide or deal with any question or
determine any matter which is under this Act requir ed to besettled,
decided or dealt with or determined by the Committee.
24. Power to summon witnesses and take evidence.— The
Committee shall, for the purposes of any enquiry under this Act, have
the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court whil e trying a suit
under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 in respect of the following
matters, namely:—
(a) enforcing the attendance of any person examini ng him
on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of docu ments;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavit; and
(d) issuing commission to the examination of witne sses.
25. Power to make rules.— (1) The Government may, by
notification, make rules forcarrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, a s soon as
may be, after it is made, before the Legislative Assembly while it is in
session for a total period of fourteen days which may be comprised of
one session or two successive sessions and if, befo re the expiry of the
session inwhich it is so laid or the next session i mmediately
H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015 13
following, the Legislative Assembly makes any modif ication in the
rule or decides that the rule should not be made, t he rules shall,
thereafter, have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect,
as the case may be, so, however, that any suchmodif ication or
annulment shall be without prejudice to the validit y of anything
previously done under that rule.
_____________
Schedule
[See sections 2(o), 9(2) (f), 16 (1) and (3)]
Rupees
One year as a member of the Fund —2,000/
Two years as a member of the Fund —4,000/
Three years as a member of the Fund — 6,000/
Four years as a member of the Fund — 8,000/
Five years as a member of the Fund — 10,000/
Six years as a member of the Fund — 12,000/
Seven years as a member of the Fund — 14,000/
Eight years as a member of the Fund — 16,000/
Nine years as a member of the Fund — 18,000/
Ten years as a member of the Fund — 20,000 /
Eleven years as a member of the Fund — 22,000/
Twelve years as a member of the Fund — 24,000/
Thirteen years as a member of the Fund — 26,000 /
Fourteen years as a member of the Fund — 28,000/
Fifteen years as a member of the Fund — 30,00 0/
Sixteen years as a member of the Fund — 32,00 0/
Seventeen years as a member of the Fund — 34,000/
Eighteen years as a member of the Fund — 36,00 0/
Nineteen years as a member of the Fund — 38,00 0/
Twenty years as a member of the Fund — 40,00 0/
Twenty one years as a member of the Fund — 42,000/
Twenty two years as a member of the Fund — 44,000/
Twenty three years as a member of the Fund — 46,00 0/
Twenty four years as a member of the Fund — 48,00 0/
14 H. P. ADVOCATE’S CLERKS WELFARE FUND ACT, 2015
Twenty five years as a member of the Fund — 50,0 00/
Twenty six years as a member of the Fund — 52, 000/
Twenty seven years as a member of the Fund — 54,00 0/
Twenty eight years as a member of the Fund — 56,00 0/
Twenty nine years as a member of the Fund — 58,00 0/
Thirty years as a member of the Fund — 60,000/
.
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