CJI designate Justice Surya Kant, addressing the convocation at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University in Lucknow on Sunday, shared a powerful lesson from his early legal career, warning graduates against the dangers of overconfidence. He narrated losing a seemingly straightforward case, a failure he said taught him to “start from zero every time” and became the “foundation” of his lifelong professional approach.
Recalling a property dispute between brothers, Justice Kant said, “I was so sure of my position that I did not bother to revisit my draft or re-examine my arguments.” He continued, “When I lost, I realised I had overlooked critical questions. That failure taught me to start from zero every time — to review every matter carefully. That habit, born from failure, became the foundation of my lifelong approach.”
This lesson in humility complemented his wider advice for graduates to “stay curious and never stop learning.” Justice Kant highlighted this as the key distinction between mere survival and true success in the legal profession. “It is the difference between lawyers who merely survive and those who truly thrive… in your willingness to stay curious and never stop learning,” he stated.
Evoking the university’s namesake, Justice Kant reminded the students that Ram Manohar Lohia “believed the most dangerous comfort is intellectual certainty.” He added, “Lohia’s legacy teaches us that growth requires the courage to ask — should it be this way, or different? Renewal begins when we dare to question.”
Addressing the inevitable challenges of early practice, he validated the self-doubt graduates might face. “You will ask yourself: Did I prepare thoroughly enough? Did I argue effectively? Did the bench find me credible? These are not unimportant questions — they are the foundation of a successful lawyer’s growth,” he said, assuring them that perseverance would be rewarding.
Justice Kant emphasised that the profession needs lawyers “not to accept the system as it is, but to make it what it should be.”
In his address, Allahabad High Court Chief Justice Arun Bhansali spoke to the graduates about the transition from academia to practice. “You have lived in the security of guidance… Now, you will stand on your own reasoning. No syllabus will prepare you; no final grades — only consequences, clients, and conscience,” he said.
Justice Bhansali stressed the primacy of diligence, asserting that “nothing beats preparation.” He concluded, “Eloquence may dazzle for a day, but preparation builds a career. The courtroom does not respect the loudest voice; it respects the most ready mind.”
