Senior Advocate Anil Singh has been appointed again as India's Additional Solicitor General (ASG) for the Bombay High Court. He will represent the Central Government in legal cases in Maharashtra and Goa.

He held this position from 2014 to 2023 but decided not to continue and returned to private practice.

After Anil Singh resigned, Devang Vyas was temporarily appointed but stepped down in January 2024. Singh was offered the position twice and eventually accepted it.

During his time in office, he worked on major cases with the ED, NIA, and CBI, including narcotics cases involving actors Rhea Chakraborty and Shah Rukh Khan's son, Aryan Khan.

A National Law University (NLU) will be established in Jammu & Kashmir, announced by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, with ₹50 crore allocated in the budget. This fulfills a long-pending demand and makes it the 28th NLU in India.

The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) welcomed the move, with President Ummar Jamal calling it historic. JKSA had advocated for this, highlighting the financial burden on students forced to study outside.

The NLU will enhance legal education, providing modern infrastructure, practical exposure, and top faculty. It will strengthen J&K’s legal system, making it a hub for legal research and scholarship.

The J&K and Ladakh High Court ruled that courts cannot compel employers to retain contractual employees or alter employment terms. 

The Court dismissed a plea by 150 contractual healthcare workers from GMC Jammu, stating that contractual employment does not guarantee permanent jobs.

The petitioners were hired for temporary COVID-19 hospitals under a one-year contract, extendable to three years. As COVID-19 declined, hospitals closed, and the government denied further extension.

The court ruled that fixed-term contracts do not guarantee automatic job continuation but ordered the government to release pending wages if there were no legal obstacles.

The Centre approved the appointment of Justice Joymalya Bagchi as a Judge of the Supreme Court, filling one of the two vacancies. 

Bagchi will become CJI following the retirement of Justice K V Viswanathan on May 25, 2031, but will have a short tenure until October 2, 2031.

Justice Bagchi, with 13 years of judicial experience, has handled a wide range of legal matters. He also served at the Calcutta High Court as well as the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

With this, the Supreme Court now has 33 judges, leaving one vacancy.

Dr. Anju Rathi Rana, an Indian Legal Services officer, has been appointed as the Secretary of the Department of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Law and Justice, becoming the first woman to hold the position.

Previously she was serving as Additional Secretary. She will assume the role for an initial period of two years from the date she takes charge.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet issued a notification on March 5 confirming her appointment, stating that she will serve either for two years or until further orders.

Rana’s historic appointment marks a significant milestone in the legal and administrative landscape.

The SC Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA) has launched a Help Desk to assist Advocates-on-Record (AORs) handle Supreme Court cases.

This Help Desk is meant to assist AORs with important legal procedures, such as filing cases, meeting deadlines, and following court rules. This initiative was introduced after receiving valuable suggestions from Supreme Court Judges.

The Help Desk is managed by experienced AORs who can guide new and existing members.

The desk is open twice a month on the first and third Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM) at the SCAORA office and is also available via phone and email.

SCAORA encourages all AORs to use this support system to strengthen their practice.

As per Section 247 of the new Income Tax bill, authorities of the Income Tax Department may access people’s social media accounts, emails, bank accounts, online investment accounts, trading accounts, and more without prior consent, if they suspect tax evasion.

These officers can bypass passwords, override security settings, and unlock files if the access is denied. This new bill eliminates gray areas, making it legally binding for taxpayers to hand over access.

Critics argued that it violates the right to privacy secured under the Puttaswamy Judgement, to prevent the misuse.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has released new draft regulations that redefined "discrimination" and  "caste-based discrimination" in universities.

The rules state that caste-based discrimination applies only to Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs). Unlike the 2012 regulations, which covered multiple forms of bias, the 2025 draft applies to all stakeholders in an institution.

It also proposes Equity Committees to handle complaints and introduces penalties for false complaints, though it does not define what is "false." Critics say the draft ignores anti-reservation discrimination.

Public feedback is open for 30 days, and non-compliant universities may lose recognition.

The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir has approved new rules to protect vulnerable witnesses, such as children, people with disabilities, survivors of sexual violence, and witnesses facing threats. 

The new rules aim to create a safer environment for witnesses who may feel intimidated while giving evidence in court.

These rules include live video interviews, private hearings, support persons, special waiting rooms, and age-sensitive questioning to reduce trauma.

Court will prioritise such witnesses, avoid delays, provide transport assistance, and ensure easy access for those with disabilities. The rules also protect privacy while allowing fair cross-examination. 

These guidelines take immediate effect and apply in all courts in J&K and Ladakh and will be reviewed annually.

The Bombay High Court imposed a ₹1 lakh cost on a litigant, Sajid Abdul Jabbar Patel, for audio-recording court proceedings on his mobile phone without permission.

A division bench noted that Patel, a respondent's relative in a property dispute case, was caught recording the session.

His phone was seized and forwarded to the Registry. Patel’s lawyer sought leniency, and he agreed to pay ₹1 lakh to the High Court Employees Medical Welfare Fund within three days.

The court accepted his undertaking and adjourned the matter to March 5 for compliance.

The Karnataka HC has quashed a police notice issued via WhatsApp to a student accused of identity theft, ruling that such notices are impermissible under the law.

The Court cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI, which held that notices under Section 35(3) BNSS / 41(A) CrPC must be served through legally recognized methods, not WhatsApp or electronic means.

The Court allowed the police to issue a fresh notice following proper procedure, reinforcing that WhatsApp cannot replace formal legal service methods in criminal proceedings.

The Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa (BCMG) has issued a circular exempting advocates from wearing black coats from March 1st to June 30th every year due to rising temperatures.

Previously, this exemption was applicable only for May and June, but BCMG has now extended it from March 1st onwards. The circular, issued on February 27, officially revises the definition of summer months in dress rules.

Advocates can now avoid wearing black coats/jackets during these months, ensuring comfort while maintaining professional attire.

Tuhin Kanta Pandey, a 1987 batch IAS officer from Odisha, has been appointed as 11th chairman of SEBI for a three-year term. 

He will replace Madhabi Puri Buch, who will complete her three-year term as the first woman to lead the regulator.

Tuhin has worked with both the Government of Odisha and the Central Government. He worked with Odisha State Finance Corporation and Odisha Small Industries Corporation.

From 2019 to 2025, he led the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), overseeing disinvestment and the privatisation of Air India. Recently, he drafted the 2025-26 Budget and a new Income Tax Bill.

The Delhi High Court, while rejecting a student's plea requesting to appear in the third semester LLB Examination at Delhi University's Faculty of Law despite being short of the low attendance criteria, remarked, "Students must pursue professional courses with all seriousness and due diligence."

The Court remarked that the shortage in attendance shall not be allowed unless some urgent, unavoidable circumstance such as a medical emergency intervenes.

The Bench further observed that the petitioner was well-informed regarding the attendance shortage when she deposited her unpaid fee on time despite attending remedial classes, her attendance was a mere 54%.

Emphasized that LL.B being a professional degree require more serious pursuit than any regular degree course.