Many law students in India today, aspire to land a corporate law job in a law firm or a company after graduating from their respective law schools. It is only if no job offer comes their way do they settle for a path in litigation. This unusual bias that prevails in most students can attribute its existence to the uncertainty that lies in-front of a recent graduate. Whether it be the number of cases that come your way or your next pay cheque, the initial years for a lawyer are extremely tough and define the make-or-break period of one’s career. Thus, going after a more secure job seems to be the better course of action.

Fundamentally litigation is the process of settling a dispute between two or more parties in a court of law. Many a times, litigation and dispute resolution are used interchangeably. Technically,  they are two very different affairs. While litigation is the process of settling the matter within the court and complying with court mandated procedures, dispute resolution involves settling the matter outside the court room through approaches such as arbitration, conciliation, mediation etc. Litigation thus includes the whole process of paper work, investigation, analysing the evidence, negotiation, preparing arguments, complying with procedure, appearing before judges etc. One would call it the traditional concept of the law procedure.

The due course of litigation requires an advocate to appear before all kinds of courts at all levels. According to the nature of the case, an advocate would be required to appear before a special tribunal or the district court initially. During the trial stage, the main concern of the lawyer would be to scrutinise the evidence and establish all the facts in a manner which support his case advantageously. At the appellant stage, the focus is only on the questions of law and the evidence. Several memos and other applications have to be constantly filed in the courts according to the procedural laws such as the CPC and the CrPC. The limitation period for different types of cases is mostly covered in the Limitation Act, 1963.

Litigation is a very complex path and as nearly all law schools do not do any justice in teaching the practical aspects of law, the initial years are a period of immense learning for a young lawyer. Keeping the complexities in mind, most graduates seek to work as juniors under advocates who have more experience in the legal field. While choosing a senior advocate to work under, one must always keep in mind that as much as the skills and ability of the person to attract clients are important, the office environment should be a place where one gets to learn and is also monitored by the advocate incharge. Many judges often insist junior lawyers filling in for their seniors to present cases in the courts. These kind of opportunities are very intimidating but are truly an enriching experience in a young lawyer’s journey.

India has produced many great litigators over the years such as Ram Jethmalani and Nani Palkhiwala. K.K. Venugopalan, the Attorney General of India has said, “I don’t think anybody is born a good lawyer. It takes hard work, a lot of hard work, to be a good lawyer.^[1]” Thus, after analysing the lives of these great litigators one can say that hard work and good mentors can lead one to achieve true success in the field of litigation. Apart from the usual personal goals, litigation is also a path one can take to bring about real change in our country. Many real game changers understand the value of litigations and have even turned down offers from top law firms to undertake a journey in litigation.

^[1] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/no-one-is-a-born-good-lawyer-says-attorney-general-k-k-venugopal/articleshow/59815082.cms