Tales From The Bench And The Bar

Title: Tales From The Bench And The BarAuthor: Vicaji J TaraporevalaPublisher: Penguin Enterprise 2010 (First)ISBN: 978-0-670-08412-8Pages: 150

Born in 1923, Vicaji J Taraporevala is a senior advocate based in Mumbai. His legal career spans six decades in which he had produced several books. The present one is a collection of anecdotes, humorous instances, remembrances and a bit of the general history of the Indian judicial system in the 20^th century.

The judiciary, as it may seem to the common man is not a forbidding institution in which quixotic black-robed figures freely roam and ponder over minutiae which he doesn’t understand, but sometimes even decides his fate. The imposing and supposedly impartial judges are also human beings who are at times swayed by their personal prejudices and interests. A few instances of such behaviour are mentioned in this book. When the judge wanted to watch a cricket test match, he connived with counsels on both sides and caused a main witness not to appear in the court, on which the judge feigning anger, adjourned the case and happily viewed the match in the stadium. Such irresponsible practice goes against the spirit of the pledge the judges take while they assume office, no doubt. Lord Macmillan in Law and Other Things says “The judicial oath of office imposes on the judge a hefty duty of impartiality. But, impartiality is not easy of attainment. For a judge does not shed the attributes of common humanity when he assumes the ermine. Few minds are as neutral as sheet of plate glass, and indeed the mind of that quality may actually fail in judicial deficiency, for the warmer traits of imagination and sympathy are needed to temper the cold light of reason if human justice is to be done” (p.90).

Most of the anecdotes referred occurred at the High Court of Bombay where the author practised. Many eminent lawyers and judges like C K Daphtary, Jamshedji Kanga, Chimanlal Setalvad, Homi Banaji etc, are mentioned along with the curious incidents on which they took part. The facts (fiction, sometimes!) described are based not only on the author’s direct experiences, but also on some interesting accounts narrated by senior lawyers, and some rare writings by legal luminaries. The work is arranged in a thematic way, with chapters on Humour in court, chambers, witnesses and cross examination, chance and destiny, judges, lawyers, nostalgic indulgenses and the like. It is also adorned with a foreword by Soli J Sorabjee, the former Solicitor General of India. The book begins with the etymology of the words bench and bar as he says, “In the olden days, English judges sat on the central portion of a long bench. When a new judge sat for the first time, the newly appointed judge was said to have been ‘elevated to the bench’”. The term ‘bar’ is derived from an actual bar, which formerly divided the dais of the judge and the seating arrangement for counsel. Advocates presented their cases standing in front of the bar. Those who have just qualified for this privilege were said to have been ‘called to the bar’.

A good book in any sense of the term as it gives the lay public a peep into the heavily jargoned legal arena where modern day’s battles and duels are fought. However, the episodes are not properly organised into distinct themes. In every chapter, we are finding some topics which suit any other chapter. Rather, the entire book may also be called a single chapter! I also wondered at the very large instances of Parsee lawyers and judges in the pages considering the Parsees to be a micro-minority in India. But, being aware that the author also belongs to that community makes sense of this paradox. The unusually high number of instances of first person narratives may be condoled for the extensive careers of the author and his equally eminent lawyer-father. Any way, the book is recommended.

Rating: 2 Star