About

• Statutory body established under the Advocates Act, 1961.
• Constituted under Section 4 of the Act.
• Objective: To regulate the legal profession and legal education in India.

Composition

Ex-officio Members

• Attorney General of India
• Solicitor General of India

Elected Members

• One member elected by each State Bar Council from among its members.
• Elected members hold office for a term of five years.
• The BCI elects its Chairman and Vice-Chairman from among its members for a two-year term.

Functions of the Bar Council of India (BCI)

• Prescribes standards of professional conduct, ethics and etiquette to ensure discipline, integrity and accountability among advocates.
• Promotes and regulates legal education by prescribing minimum academic standards, recognising universities whose law degrees qualify for enrolment as advocates. 
• Conducts the All India Bar Examination (AIBE) and grants the Certificate of Practice to eligible advocates.
• Exercises disciplinary jurisdiction by framing disciplinary rules and hearing appeals against orders of State Bar Councils.
• Safeguards the rights, privileges and welfare of advocates through welfare schemes, legal aid initiatives and representation of the legal profession.
• Exercises general supervision and control over State Bar Councils to ensure uniform standards in the legal profession. 

Bar Council of India – Recent Developments

Regulation of Legal Education

• Three-Year Moratorium on New Law Colleges (2025): BCI imposed a three-year moratorium on approval of new Centres of Legal Education to improve quality and curb indiscriminate expansion.
• Curriculum Alignment with New Criminal Laws: Directed law universities to incorporate the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 into their curriculum.
• Focus on Emerging Technologies: Recommended inclusion of Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Security, Blockchain, Mediation and Constitutional Values in legal education.