Lawyer appears in T-shirt during virtual hearing, SC says minimum court etiquette be followed

A lawyer appeared during a virtual hearing within the Supreme Court while lying on bed and donning a T-shirt, drawing displeasure of the judge who observed that “minimum court etiquette” should be followed given the general public nature of hearings.

The apex court observed that lawyers appearing in matters via video- conferencing should be “presentable” and avoid showing images which aren’t appropriate.

Justice S Ravindra Bhat accepted the apology tendered by the advocate, who said it had been “inappropriate on his part to form a court appearance, whilst lying on bed wearing a T-shirt”.

“This court is of the view that when counsel appear in court video hearings, they ought to be presentable and avoid showing images, which aren’t appropriate and may only be tolerable within the privacy of their homes,” the court noted in its June 15 order.

“We are all passing through trying times and hearings by virtual courts has become an order of the day. Yet minimum court etiquette in terms of what are often considered decent dress, background, etc should be followed, given the general public nature of the hearings,” the apex court said.

The incident had happened when the highest court was hearing a petition seeking transfer of a case pending during a domestic relations court in Haryana’s Rewari to a competent court in Bihar’s Jehanabad.

The apex court, which has restricted its functioning amid the COVID-19 pandemic, is presently hearing matters through video-conferencing.

In April this year, an identical incident had come to light when a lawyer had appeared during a bail hearing conducted through video-conferencing in vest, drawing the ire of the Rajasthan supreme court .

The supreme court had criticised the advocate for not appearing in proper uniform during the hearing.