Economic, linguistic barriers pose obstacles to poor in accessing courts, legal education: CJI

Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai on Wednesday (September 17, 2025) said geographical, economic, and linguistic barriers have acted as formidable obstacles to marginalised and vulnerable citizens in accessing courts and legal education.

“In many parts of the country, the nearest court or law school remains physically out of reach, creating a justice gap for those living in rural and remote areas,” Chief Justice Gavai said in his speech at the First Professor N.R. Madhava Menon Memorial Lecture on ‘Legal and Justice Education @2047: An Agenda for 100 Years of Independence’.

The event also saw the launch of three books – Sustainability and Subsistence: Legal Strategies for a Green Planet and Disaster Management Laws in Asia: A Retrospect, both edited by Prof. (Dr.) S. Sivakumar; and Law and Society: During and Post Covid Pandemic edited by Mr. Sivakumar and Prof. (Dr.) Lisa P. Lukose.

Justice Surya Kant, who is the next Chief Justice of India as per the seniority norm, said compassion and conscience must govern justice administration.

“Let algorithms schedule hearings, but let compassion govern proceedings. Let software find precedents, but let conscience find proportion. In 2047, the machine may assist, but the human must answer,” Justice Kant said in his address.

Chief Justice Gavai noted that linguistic exclusion and economic disadvantage had led to perpetual alienation and marginalisation.

“Linguistic exclusion too, has perpetuated alienation, with legal education and proceedings dominated by languages unfamiliar to large sections of our people. If law is to be truly a tool of empowerment, then dismantling these barriers is essential,” Chief Justice Gavai noted.

Justice Kant said the lawyer of 2047 must be fluent in two languages — “the language of the law, and the language of the people”.

The Chief Justice said legal education must be reimagined and expanded using technology to promote instruction in regional languages, strengthening legal aid, and creating pathways for first-generation learners.