In his two page circular, the Advocate General has cited the kind of discrepancies he has come across. He observed that the law officers are keeping the office in the dark about their intended leave and/or in most cases, a very short notice is issued, that too a verbal one, greatly inconveniencing their colleagues as well as the office, resulting in derailment of the court duty roster.

Also, it has been observed that some of the law officers proceed on leave on Wednesday and Friday.

On both these days, the courts hear regular matters which require longer time for preparation. When the briefs are sent to the substitute law officers, it becomes difficult for them to prepare the cases well in time. “All the law officers who intend to go on leave these days are required to submit an application at least two days in advance. The leaves would be granted only in accordance with the relevant provisions of the law,” reads the circular.

The AG also resented law officers not vetting the documents in time. “It has been noted that some of the law officers, assigned with the duty of vetting, do not reach office in time at 10 am and also slip away way before the office time ie 5 pm without prior permission or intimation. All the law officers are hereby called upon to adhere to the office time so that the office staff and other officials who come from various departments are not inconvenienced, “ the AG has directed.

The AG office also noted that those law officers to whom the opinion/drafting matters are marked, often delay the drafting because of which, limitation expires and causes avoidable delay in filing of appeals/revisions etc. As a word of caution, the AG has stated that the consequences of any such delays in the future will be borne by the law officers themselves.