Chapter II Constitution and management of Advocates Welfare Fund

1. (1) The Government shall constitute a fund called the Goa Advocates‘ Welfare Fund.
2. (2) There shall be credited to the Fund–
   • (a) an initial amount of rupees one lakh to be contributed by the Government;
   • (b) all the amounts to be contributed by the Bar Associations from the year 1995 onwards;
   • (c) any other contribution made by the Bar Association;
   • (d) any voluntary donation or contribution to the Fund made by the Bar Council of India or any other Bar Council or any Bar Association;
   • (e) any voluntary donation made to the Fund by any Advocate or his relatives;
   • (f) contributions paid by members of the Fund to the Fund under section 19;
   • (g) all sums received from the Life Insurance Corporation of India on the death of any member of the Fund under any Group Insurance Policy;
   • (h) any profit or dividend from the Life Insurance Corporation of India in respect of policies of Group Insurance of the Members of the Fund;
     • (i) any interest or dividend or other return on any investment made of any part of the Fund.

1. (1) There shall be a Board to be known as Goa Advocates‘ Welfare Fund Board consisting of the following members, namely:–
   • (a) The Advocate-General, Goa State—Ex-Officio—Chairman.
   • (b) The Law Secretary to the Government— Ex-Officio.
   • (c) Finance Secretary to Government or his nominee— Ex-Officio.
   • (d) One representative from each registered Bar Association to be recommended by the Executive Council or Managing Committee of the Association concerned.
   • (e) One member to be elected from amongst the members of the Board, who shall be treasurer of the Board.
   • (f) The Under Secretary (Law) to the Government — Ex-Officio Secretary.
2. (2) The Board shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal with power to acquire and hold property and shall by the said name, sue and be sued. Synopsis The Government vide order No. 8-1-1-2001/LD-Estt/311 dated 14-2-2011 published in the official Gazette Series-II No. 48 dated 24-2-2011 constituted Board as follows :- Department of Law and Judiciary Law (Establishment) Division Order No. 8-1-1-2001/LD-Estt/311 Read: 1. Government Order No. 8-1-1-2001-LD dated 19-04-2002. 2. Government Order No. 8-1-1-2001-LD--Estt./1880 dated 09-11-2010. Government is pleased to constitute the Goa Advocates Welfare Fund Board under Section 4 of the Goa Advocates Welfare Fund Act, 1995 (Goa Act No. 2 of 1997) consisting of the following members, namely: 1 Advocate General of Goa State Ex-officio Chairman. 2 Law Secretary to the Government of Goa Ex-officio Member. 3 Finance Secretary to Government of Goa or his nominee Ex-officio Member. 4 Shri Vipinkumar L. Bendale Member of Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa Member. 5 Adv. Ehrlich A. De Sousa Representative of North Goa Advocates Association, Panaji Member. 6 Adv. Anacleto Viegas,Representative of South Goa Advocates Association, Margao Member. 7 The Under Secretary (Establishment) to the Government of Goa Ex-officio Secretary The Board shall elect one Member from among the members of the Board, who shall be Treasurer of the Board. A person elected or recommended as a Member of the Board shall hold office for a period of four years or for the duration of his membership in the Bar Association or Bar Council, whichever is less. This issues in supersession of earlier orders No. 8-1-1-2001/LD dated 19-04-2002 and No. 8-1-1-2001/LD-Estt/1880 dated 09-11-2010. Porvorim, 14th February, 2011. By order and in the name of the Governor of Goa. N. P. Singnapurker, Under Secretary, Law (Estt.).

A person elected or recommended as a member of the Board under 3 [clauses [(d), (dd) and (e)] of sub-section (1) of section 4 shall hold office for a period of four years or for the duration of his membership in the 4[Bar Association or Bar Council, as the case may be] whichever is less.

1. (1) A person shall be disqualified to be a (nominated) member, if he–
   • (a) is adjudged by a competent court to be of unsound mind; or
   • (b) is adjudicated an insolvent and has not obtained his discharge; or
   • (c) is convicted of an offence which in the opinion of the Government involves moral turpitude; or
   • (d) has, in the opinion of the Board committed a breach of trust or where he is a member of the Fund and has committed persistent default in payment of his contribution to the Fund.
2. (2) The Board may remove any elected or recommended member, who is or has become disqualified under sub-section (1), from his office as a member of the Board: Provided that no order removing any member shall be made unless that member has been given an opportunity of being heard.

An elected or recommended member may resign his office by giving three months‘ notice in writing to the Board and on such resignation being accepted by the Board, the elected or recommended member thereof shall be deemed to have vacated his office.

A casual vacancy in the office of a elected or recommended member occurring on account of death, resignation or removal of the member may be filled up, as soon as may be, by the executive Council or managing committee of the concerned registered 5[Bar Association or by the Bar Council] as the case may be under 6[clauses (d), (dd) and (e)] of sub-section (1) of section 4 and the person so elected or recommended as the case may be shall hold office so long as the member in whose place he is elected or recommended would have been entitled to hold office, if the vacancy had not occurred.

1. (1) The Board shall meet, at least once in three calendar months or more often if found necessary to transact business under this Act or the regulations made thereunder.
2. (2) Five members of the Board shall form the quorum for a meeting of the Board.
3. (3) The Chairman or, in his absence, member elected, shall preside over a meeting of the Board.
4. (4) Any matter coming up before a meeting of the Board shall be decided by a majority of the members present and voting at the meeting and, in the case of an equality of votes, the Chairman or the member presiding over the meeting shall have a casting vote.

The Fund shall vest in, and be held and applied by the Board, subject to provisions, and for the purposes, of this Act.

1. (1) The Board shall administer the Fund.
2. (2) In the administration of the Fund, the Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and the regulations made thereunder,–
   • (a) hold the amount and assets belonging to the Fund in trust;
   • (b) receive applications for admission or re-admission to the Fund, and dispose of such applications within ninety days from the date of receipt thereof;
   • (c) receive applications from the members of the Fund, their nominees or legal representatives, as the case may be, for payment out of the Fund, conduct such enquiry as it deems necessary for the disposal of such applications within five months from the date of receipt thereof;
   • (d) record in the minute book of the Board, its decisions on the applications;
   • (e) pay to the applicants amounts at the rates specified in the schedule;
   • (f) sanction employment of such officers and servants as it may think necessary for performance of its duties and functions under this Act and determine their conditions of service;
   • (g) communicate to the applicants by registered post with acknowledgement due the decisions of the Board in respect of applications of admission or re-admission to the Fund or claims to the benefit of the Fund.
   • (h) do such other acts as are, or may be, required to be done by it under this Act and the regulations made thereunder.

The Secretary of the Board shall–

1. (a) be the Chief Executive Authority of the Board and responsible for carrying out its decisions;
2. (b) represent the Board in all suits and proceedings for and against the Board;
3. (c) authenticate by his signature all decisions and instructions of the Board;
4. (d) operate the bank accounts of the Board jointly with the treasurer;
5. (e) convene meetings of the Board and prepare their minutes;
6. (f) attend the meetings of the Board with all the necessary records and information;
7. (g) maintain such forms, registers and other records as may be prescribed from time to time and do all correspondence relating to the Board;
8. (h) inspect and verify periodically the accounts and registers of the Bar Associations regarding the stamps jointly with the treasurer;
   • (i) prepare an annual statement of business transacted by the Board during each financial year jointly with the treasurer;
9. (j) make appointments of the Officers and servants of the Board as sanctioned by the Board and have power to take disciplinary action against any such officer or servant;
10. (k) do such other acts as may be directed by the Board.

For carrying out the provisions of this

Act, the Board may appoint such officers and servants on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.

All amounts due and payable under this

Act and all expenditure relating to the management and administration of the Fund shall be paid out of the Fund.

The Board shall send to the Government such periodical and annual reports as may be prescribed.

1. (1) The Board shall cause to be maintained such books of accounts and other books in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed.
2. (2) The accounts of the Fund shall be audited annually by such person as may be prescribed or by any other person empowered by the Government to perform the functions of an auditor.
3. (3) After the account of the Fund is so audited, the Board shall send a copy of the auditor‘s report and balance sheet to the Government.
4. (4) The Board shall comply with the report of the auditor. CHAPTER III Recognition of Bar Associations

1. (1) Any association of Advocates duly registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (Central Act No. 21 of 1860) known by any name functioning in any Court or before any Tribunal or before any other authority or person legally authorized to take evidence or to adjudicate or decide any disputes may apply to the Board in the prescribed form for recognition and registration.
2. (2) Every application for recognition (and registration) shall be accompanied by the rules or bye-laws of the Association, the names and addressess of the office-bearers of the Association and an up-to-date list of the members of the Association showing the name, address, age, date of enrollment and the ordinary place of practice of each member.
3. (3) The Board may, after such inquiry as it deems necessary, recognize or refuse to recognize the association.
4. (4) On recognition of such an association, the Board shall issue a certificate of recognition in the prescribed form.
5. (5) Any association aggrieved by the decision of the Board under sub-section (3) may prefer an appeal against the said decision to such authority as may be prescribed and the decision of such authority on the appeal shall be final.
6. (6) The appeal shall be accompanied by–
   • (a) the order appealed against;
   • (b) fee of two hundred rupees which shall not be refunded.
7. (7) The appeal shall be filed within thirty days from the date of receipt of the order appealed against.

1. (1) Every recognized Bar Association shall, on or before the 31st January every year, intimate to the Board a list of its members as on the 31st December of the previous year.
2. (2) Every recognized Bar Association shall intimate to the Board–
   • (a) any change of the office-bearers of the Association within thirty days from such change;
   • (b) any change in the membership, including admissions and re-admissions, within sixty days of such change;
   • (c) the death, retirement, suspension, cessation of practice of any of its members within ninety days from the date of occurrence thereof; and
   • (d) such other matters as may be prescribed or required by the Board from time to time.