# Centre issues new guidelines for empanelling panel counsel 2026-08-22T15:28:30+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets The Union Ministry of Law and Justice has issued new guidelines for empanelment of advocates as panel counsel to represent the government before the Supreme Court, High Courts, subordinate courts, tribunals and other forums. The guidelines, issued through an Office Memorandum on August 20, 2026, lay down eligibility criteria including a law degree, enrolment with a State Bar Council, and qualification of the All-India Bar Examination (AIBE). Advocates with at least 10 years of legal experience during government service may be considered. For the Supreme Court, the minimum practice required is five years for Group A counsel, four years for Group B, and three years for Group C. For several High Courts, the post of Deputy Solicitor General requires 10 years of practice. The guidelines also allow de-empanelment for misconduct or conviction, and require one month's notice for resignation. Existing empanelments remain valid until their tenure ends. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Both livelaw.in and barandbench.com covered this as straight procedural reporting, each presenting the guidelines neutrally with no editorial slant. Livelaw.in provides greater structural detail, listing the three-tier practice requirements for each High Court, while barandbench.com emphasises the disqualification conditions and the discretionary nature of case allocation. Neither source questions the policy or contextualises it within broader legal reforms. The careful reader should note that the guidelines centralise control over legal representation and tighten accountability, but their practical impact will depend on how the Department exercises its broad discretion in empanelment and de-empanelment. Watch for the first review cycle and any challenge to the guidelines in court. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - livelaw.in (neutral report) Straight news reporting, no slant detected - barandbench.com (neutral report) Straight news reporting, no slant detected This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above. Tags: All-India Bar Examination, Bar Council of India, Department of Legal Affairs, Supreme Court Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/centre-issues-new-guidelines-for-empanelling-panel-counsel/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/centre-issues-new-guidelines-for-empanelling-panel-counsel/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/