Advocate turns up as liquidator, company law tribunal seeks clarify

Hyderabad: Noticing that advocates and chartered accountants were being appointed as liquidators or resolution professionals, the National Company Law Tribunal of Hyderabad Chapter sought an explanation from the Bar Council of India, Institutes of Chartered Accountants, Company Secretaries and Cost Accountants to clarify the rule position of whether practising advocates, CAs, CSs or Cost Accountants could practice two professions simultaneously.

The bench, comprising Bhaskara Panthula Mohan and Dr Binod Kumar Mishra, took the issue as a suo motu petition, when it was surprised to see an advocate still wearing his gown appearing as a liquidator of a corporate debtor, Super Agri Seeds Ltd.

The bench reminded that the Advocates Act prohibited a person from pursuing two professions simultaneously, one is an advocate and another is something else, and questioned his appointment as a liquidator.