The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has designated 25 advocates, including four women, as Senior Advocates in its latest round of elevations, marking the first such exercise since December 2020.
A full court of the High Court unanimously approved the names following a detailed selection process that considered 45 applications. The decision was announced on Tuesday through an official press release from the Registrar General.
Designated Senior Advocates
The following lawyers have been conferred the Senior Advocate designation:
- Surrinder Singh
- Shabir Ahmad Naik
- Tahir Majid Shamsi
- Syed Manzoor Ahmad
- Mushtaq Ahmad Chashoo
- Aseem Kumar Sawhney
- Deepika Mahajan
- Ravinder Sharma
- Rakesh Kumar Chargotra
- Masooda Jan
- Amit Gupta
- Tasaduq Hussain Khawaja
- Chander Sheikher Gupta
- Vishal Sharma
- Nirmal Kishore Kotwal
- Rameshwar Prasad Sharma
- Ajay Sharma
- Shah Mohd
- Sakal Bhushan
- Rajnish Raina
- Shabeena Nazir
- Rohit Kohli
- Raman Sharma
- Anupam Raina
- Shivani Jalali Pandita
Selection Process
According to the court’s statement, the criteria for designation included:
- Professional standing and seniority at the Bar
- Length and quality of practice
- Integrity and merit
- Reputation in the legal community
The court emphasized that “due importance was also given to inclusiveness in the selection process.”
This is the first round of senior designations in five years, the last being in December 2020. The conferment of the senior gown is a recognition of distinction and standing at the Bar, in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in Indira Jaising v. Supreme Court of India (2017) 9 SCC 766.
