The disciplinary committee's action timeline can be extended to exclude periods during which it is judicially prohibited from considering a complaint.

JUDGMENT

Dated this the 16^th day of December, 2025 This writ petition is filed seeking a direction to the Bar Council of Kerala and its Disciplinary Committee to convene sittings and ensure expeditious disposal of Disciplinary Case No.3 of 2025, wherein the petitioner is the complainant. 2. Learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that as per Section 36-B (1) of the Advocates Act , disciplinary proceedings initiated under Section 35 must be concluded within one year, failing which the complaint has to be transferred to the Bar Council of India. It is contended that if the Disciplinary Committee of the Bar Council of Kerala fails to decide the petitioner’s complaint immediately, he will be put to undue prejudice by his complaint being transferred to the Bar Council of India.

3. Learned Standing Counsel for the Bar Council of Kerala submits that, presently, the Bar Council of Kerala is not in a position to consider petitioner’s complaint as its activities are curtailed by the Division Bench of this Court as per the judgment in W.A.No.1043 of 2025.

4. True, the Advocates Act prescribes a time limit of one year for consideration of complaint by the disciplinary committee and transfer of the complaint to the Bar Council of India, if the complaint is not decided within that period. Be that as it may, in the case at hand, the Disciplinary Committee is disabled from considering the complaint by reason of the Division Bench judgment. Being so, the time limit stipulated in Section 36-B (1) of the will not come into play, as this is not a case of the Disciplinary Committee not considering the complaint, but being prevented from taking up the complaint for consideration. As such, the period during which the interdiction continues has to be excluded while computing the one year period. Here, even though the complaint was filed in 2023 it was taken up for consideration only in 2025 and within a short period, the writ appeal judgment, curtailing the activities of the Bar Council of Kerala and the Disciplinary Committee, was rendered.

5. Learned Standing Counsel for the Bar Council of India points out that the appeal preferred against the order dismissing the review petition filed in the writ appeal is pending before the Supreme Court.

Taking all the above factors into consideration, the writ petition is disposed of by directing to exclude the period during which the Disciplinary Committee of the Bar Council of Kerala is prevented from considering petitioner’s complaint while computing the one year period stipulated in Section 36-B (1) of the Advocates Act .