Under the Bar Council of India Rules (Part VI, Chapter IV), made under Section 49(1)(gg) of the Advocates Act, male advocates wear a black buttoned-up coat, chapkan, achkan or sherwani with white bands, or a black open-collar coat with a white shirt and bands; women advocates wear a black full-sleeve jacket or blouse, white bands and a saree or other traditional dress. Gowns are required only in the Supreme Court and High Courts. Wearing a black coat is optional in lower courts during summer.
Gowns are compulsory only in the Supreme Court and High Courts.
Quick check: Under the BCI Rules, the advocate's gown is compulsory in:
Only trial courts
All courts
The Supreme Court and High Courts only
Only the Supreme Court
Answer: C.
Why White Bands?
Tablets of the law
The white bands worn by advocates descend from the collars of English clerical and academic dress. A popular explanation is that the two strips represent the tablets of the law; this is a later symbolic reading rather than documented history.
The "tablets of the law" explanation is symbolic.
Why Black?
Authority and a legend of mourning
Black is said to represent authority, dignity and submission to justice, and it hides the wear of daily court use. A popular legend traces the English Bar's black gowns to mourning for a monarch — often said to be Queen Mary II in 1694 or Charles II — but historians regard these stories as unproven.
The mourning stories are legend, not established fact.
Wigs in Indian Courts
A colonial relic dropped
Judges and barristers in British India's High Courts followed English court dress, including wigs in some courts. The practice was abandoned after independence, and Indian judges and advocates do not wear wigs.
2006
"My Lord" or "Your Honour"?
Forms of address
In 2006 the Bar Council of India adopted a rule (Rule 49(1)(j) of its Rules) that advocates may address the Supreme Court and High Courts as "Your Honour" or "Hon'ble Court", and subordinate courts as "Sir" or its equivalent in regional languages, instead of the colonial "My Lord" and "Your Lordship". Many advocates still use the older forms, and several judges have asked lawyers not to.
BCI rule of 2006.
Quick check: Under the Bar Council of India's 2006 rule, advocates may address the Supreme Court and High Courts as:
"My Lord" only
"Sir" only
"Your Majesty"
"Your Honour" or "Hon'ble Court"
Answer: D.
18 more entries under this heading
"My Learned Friend" · Courtesy at the Bar
The Cab-Rank Rule · An advocate must not refuse a brief
No Advertising by Lawyers · Rule 36
Advocates Cannot Be Full-Time Employees · Rule 49
Lady Justice · Scales, sword and blindfold
Court Vacations · "Partial court working days"
Full Court Reference and Ceremonial Bench · Rituals of the Bench
Rising for the Court · Courtroom custom
Senior Advocates and Their Gowns · A different cut
Court Dress During COVID-19 · White shirts and virtual courts
Passover · A request to take up a case later in the day
Proxy Counsel · An advocate appearing briefly on behalf of another
Court Master · The officer who assists the bench in court
Robing Room · Where advocates and judges put on their robes
The Advocate's Clerk · The munshi who runs the chamber
The Oath of Judges · Judges swear to uphold the Constitution without fear or favour
Addressing the Court in the Supreme Court and High Courts · Courts have discouraged "My Lord" and "Your Lordship"
Boycotts and Strikes by Lawyers · Held illegal by the Supreme Court
PlusAll 23 entries, and every heading in the LibraryYours from ₹1,499, till CLAT 2028See Plus
