The Bihar Advocates' Welfare Fund (Amendment) Act, 2015

1. (1) This Act may be Called the Bihar Advocates' Welfare Fund (Amendment) Act, 2015.
2. (2) It shall extend to the whole of the State of Bihar.
3. (3) It shall come into force at once.

After sub-section (n) of section 2 of the Bihar Advocates' Welfare Fund Act 1983 (hereinafter referred as the said Act), the following new subsection (o) shall be added. "(o) 'Bar Association' means the Associations of Advocates known by any name functioning in any Court, Tribunal or Authorities etc affiliated under rule 1(a) and 2(b) of the Advocates/Bar association Affiliation Rules, 1985, and registered with Bihar State Bar Council constituted under Advocates Act 1961."

In the said Act after sub-section (5) of section 5, a new sub-section (6) shall be added as follows, namely- "(6) Service Condition of the employees of the Trustee committee shall be governed by the Rules made under section-27 of the Act."

The following amendments shall be made in Section 16 of the said Act.

1. (a) In sub-section (3), the words: "two hundred rupees" shall be substituted by the words" Five hundred rupees."
2. (b) In sub-section (5) the words "fifty rupees" shall be substituted by the words "Two hundred rupees" and the words "one hundred rupees" by the words "Five hundred rupees" respectively.
3. (c) After sub-section (12) of section 16, the following new sub-sections (13) and (14) shall be added:- "(13)- No Advocate, who has attained the age of 50 or above on the date of application, shall be admitted as a member of the Fund.

1. (14) A member of the Fund even after completing his fifty years of existing membership of the Fund, may continue to be a member of the Fund till the date of his practice on the payment of annual subscription prescribed in sub section (5) or one time lump-sum amount fixed by the Trustee committee and be equally entitled to get all such benefits from the Trustee Committee at the prevailing rate prescribed under the Act and rules made thereunder and as duly decided by the trustee committee."

The following new Section 17A shall be added after Section 17 of the said Act:- "17A Review of the decision of the Trustee committee.-

1. (1) Any aggrieved Advocate-member of the Fund relating to his membership or payment of any claim, may prefer a review application against the order of Trustee Committee of the Fund passed under the provision of this Act and Rules made thereunder before the Trustee committee within the thirty days from the date of receipt/knowledge of such order:- Provided that trustee committee, with reasonable and sufficient reasons, may condone the delay in preferring such review application
2. (2) the review application shall be precise and be accompanied by-
   • (a) the order to be reviewed, and
   • (b) a fees of five hundred rupees which shall not be refunded
3. (3) on such review application after being heard the decision of the Trustee committee shall be finial."

The words "Five rupees" used in sub-section (1) of section 22 shall be substituted by the words "fifteen rupees."