The Bar Council of India (BCI) has issued a comprehensive code of conduct governing the use of social media by advocates, law students, interns and law teachers, stressing that the dignity of the judiciary, professional ethics and public confidence in the justice system must not be compromised.
The BCI said social media may be used for legal awareness, legal education and academic discussions. However, it cannot be used to sensationalise court proceedings, ridicule judges, lawyers or litigants, advertise legal services or solicit clients.
Expressing concern over the growing trend of lawyers, law students and interns posting court-related reels, short videos, edited clips and personal commentary online, the BCI warned that selective editing and out-of-context presentation of judicial proceedings could undermine the dignity of courts and erode public trust in the judiciary.
Punjab and Haryana High Court Advocate Hemant Kumar informed that a 37-page circular issued by the BCI in this regard flags the misuse of Artificial Intelligence (AI), stating that deepfake videos, voice cloning, fabricated judgments, fake legal citations, misleading legal advice, and AI-generated impersonation of judges and lawyers pose a serious threat to the credibility of the legal profession.
Reiterating that advocacy is a public service and not a commercial activity, the BCI said advocates are prohibited from directly or indirectly soliciting clients through social media. Promotional claims such as “guaranteed bail,” “divorce in a few days,” “confirmed stay,” or “100% success,” along with clickbait headlines, flashy thumbnails and self-promotional content, will amount to professional misconduct.
The guidelines also prohibit creating reels, videos or promotional content within court premises, courtrooms, barrooms, chambers and judicial buildings. Recording court proceedings, broadcasting edited court videos, using court premises or legal attire for personal branding, disclosing confidential client information, commenting on pending cases in a manner that may influence judicial proceedings, and publishing fake judgments, testimonials or AI-generated misleading content have also been barred.
Additionally, the BCI has banned the creation and circulation of AI-generated deepfakes, voice clones, face-swapped videos, synthetic avatars and other deceptive digital content involving judges, advocates, litigants or courts.
Under the new guidelines, students enrolling in LLB, LLM and other law courses must submit an affidavit at the time of admission and before commencing internships, undertaking not to disclose confidential information, record court proceedings or violate professional ethics. Law institutions have been directed to maintain records of these declarations.
The BCI clarified that factual and non-promotional content such as legal awareness material, constitutional literacy, academic discussions on judgments, case law updates, seminars, articles, podcasts and educational legal content may be shared on social media, provided it is accurate, balanced, respects privacy and does not mislead the public.
To ensure compliance, the BCI has directed all State Bar Councils to establish Digital Ethics Committees to investigate complaints and recommend appropriate action. Violations may invite disciplinary proceedings under the Advocates Act, 1961, contempt of court action, reports to courts, termination of student internships and other legal consequences.
The guidelines come shortly after the Supreme Court sought the BCI’s response in a public interest litigation concerning lawyers’ advertising and promotion on social media. The apex court also directed the Council to frame guidelines to address the growing issue of fake judicial citations generated using AI.
