GUEST LECTURE

BY SR. ADVOCATE SARESH LOTLIKAR

DATE: 13/07/2019

Brief Introduction:

The struggle to success:

The Speaker explained the students about the importance of Hard work in the field of
Advocacy/ Law. He specifically illustrated the amount of research that an Advocate needs to
do in order to make his case strong.
The Speaker quoted “One of the pillars on which our democratic structure stands is the
Judiciary”. He further said, the Legislature makes the laws that should govern the country,
the Executive enforces them and the Judiciary interprets and prevents their misuse. Speaker
opined that the task of judiciary is no less important than the making or the enforcing of the
laws.
Therefore, it is important for all the Law Aspirants to do hard work by way of reading books,
referring to different a law related articles, videos. The Law Student must be aware about the
new laws, amendments and general affairs taken place in the field of law.
Speaker emphasised on the Hard work by saying that law safeguards and guarantees the
rights of its citizens, protects them front the hand of tyranny and offers them a sense of
security. Like the doctor or the engineer, the lawyer is therefore indispensable, for it is he that
opens the door to justice. The Speaker advised the students to be prepared to hard work in
order to advice the client effectively and efficiently. The Students must be good in Drafting.
The Speaker recommended the students to learn the Drafting Skill through an Internship, The
Speaker focused on the practical aspect of the law field.
The field is highly competitive and infinite patience and hard work should go in before one
might make a mark. It may take even decades before one can build up a reputation and all
these years there cannot be much money to make.
He said that, A lawyer should not only help people with legal advice, but also know the ways
out of certain situations and circumstances.
In his view, it is important to know the respective case and be prepared to answer any
question posed by the Bench. Judges have their own views. But in his opinion and
experience, judicial discipline trains them to be objective and remain uninfluenced by their
own private views.
Rags to riches:
The speaker informed the students about the advantages of being an Advocate and explained
how Advocacy is a lucrative field.
The Speaker suggested the students to Practicing Advocacy after completing the respective
courses. He recommended the students to choose their field of Specialization. For example,
Corporate Law, Labor Law, Criminal Law etc. He gave many examples of Advocates who
went from Rigs to Riches over a period of time.
The Speaker requested the students to be patient in the field of Advocacy and learn the basics
of it. The returns will eventually be served over a period of time. He shared his own
experience of Advocacy and how he struggled in the initially days by travelling in buses and
staying late night at his Senior Advocate’s office. All this struggle helped him to learn the
different aspects of law and get familiarize to it.
Judiciary is the only savior:
The Speaker opined that, Legal education has expanded to include the study of various new
subjects like securities laws, environment protection laws, and taxation. However he said,
legal education has still to improve with the changing needs of society. A greater impetus is
required to learn digital laws as also conflict of laws. He further said that the old laws are the
foundation of the legal system must remain, like the law of contracts, transfer of property,
personal laws, law of crimes, administrative law, and finally, Constitutional law.
The speaker emphasised on the importance of Judiciary in India. He said that Law is an
instrument of social change. Law and Judgments of Court help to make social changes for the
betterment of society. Today, the Judgments of Courts protecting against noise pollution and
even protecting against pollution caused by firecrackers have become landmarks in our legal
system. He said that the Courts have helped to protect privacy and have also helped to
empower and protect women. Slowly but imperceptibly, society is accepting the social
change.
Justice Rafiq Dada:
The speaker requested the students to read the different articles written by Justice Rafiq
Dada. He said how knowledgeable Justice Rafiq Dada is and how he gave many landmark
judgements.
The Speaker recommended the students to watch and read some of Justice Rafiq Dada’s
interviews to upgrade the knowledge and to learn from this Learned person.
Mining has affected the Profession:
The Speaker opined that the the Goa government has suffered a revenue loss of almost 25 per
cent due to the mining industry shutdown in the wake of the supreme court order in 2018.

He said the ban has adversely affected the economy of the coastal state in the last 15 months.
He further said that just as when Goa was regaining hold over the economy after the global
slowdown, the ban on the mining industry posed another challenge for the government.

According to the Speaker, the ban on Mining has affected the field of Advocacy. The number
of cases is reduced pertaining to the Mining issues. He jokingly said that there are no more
cases filed due to Mining Ban.

Reading is must:
The speaker laid down the importance of Reading in the field of Advocacy. He said there are
a lot of different reasons why lawyers should prefer to read. He supported his statement by
giving following reasons:

1. Understanding the experiences of successful lawyers so that one can learn from their
wisdom and incorporate that in their own life and practice
2. Learning specific skills and techniques from non-law disciplines that can help a
lawyer in his practice and life
3. Acquire a larger or deeper understanding of the economic, political, sociological and
now even technological context or space in which lawyers operate

He further said that Learning to read is about listening and understanding as well as working
out what is printed on the page. Through reading cases, Advocates are exposed to a wide
range of words. This helps them build their own vocabulary and improve their understanding
when they listen, which is vital as they start to read. He said that it is important for
Advocates to understand how drafting of crucial sentences are done.
According to the Speaker, in a world where competition in every walk of life prevails,
Advocate need to build a child’s personality as to have considerable confidence in
themselves. Advocate who lack confidence in their early stages often leads to poor
presentation of the case in the courts. Reading books sharpens many skills. Reading will help
the Advocates to build confidence.
As per the Speaker reading a well-written law related book affects the ability to become
better at Drafting. He said that many successful Advocates gained their expertise by reading.
Advocates who read tend to develop better writing skills. Advocates with good writing skills
don’t fall victim to cramming and can express themselves more candidly through their words.

Concluding Statement:
The Speaker concluded the lecture by requesting the students to join the field of Advocacy
instead of joining as Legal Consultants in different companies. He said that India need more
Advocate who are efficient to give Justice.
He said that Law is an instrument of social change. Law and Judgments of Court help to
make social changes for the betterment of society. This can only be achieved if young
students join the field of Advocacy.