This is Mr. Vikrant Shinde, a first generation lawyer from Pune, Maharashtra who had been litigating in the district courts of Pune and the Bombay High Court for 16 years.
He had a few good matters and well-paying clients, but he was wondering how to get to the next level.
During COVID, he started to reflect on his practice.
How could he charge 3x more?
How could he get matters that only the renowned senior advocates get?
How could he represent clients at the Supreme Court?
He availed assistance of LawSikho to prepare for the Supreme Court AOR Exam.
Unlike the lawyers who prepare at the last moment for the AOR Exam, Vikrant started preparing early, almost 1.5 years in advance.
This gave him enough time to manage his practice alongside preparation.
The first step for him was not to start studying, but to build relationships with AORs in Delhi who had 10 years+ standing, with the aim of obtaining a commencement certificate from one of them so that he could submit it to the Supreme Court examination cell.
He approached many AORs on LinkedIn and through personal connections, and finally came across an AOR with 10 years standing who could give him a Commencement Certificate.
A few unexpected but interesting things happened.
A couple of his clients, who had engaged him to represent them at trial and the High Court, wanted him to represent them at the Supreme Court as well.
Since he had worked on the matter well until this stage and was also aware of Supreme Court practice, procedure and drafting, they wanted him to be involved even though he could not officially file the petition as he was not yet an Advocate-on-Record.
Given his hard work at the trial & High Court level, they even insisted that he argue the matter himself!
He advised the clients on the matters, drafted their petitions and had the cases filed through the AOR who had given him the Commencement Certificate.
This experience gave him additional confidence and he was able to DOUBLE his fees, even for trial and High Court matters.
Unlike most of the other lawyers in Pune & Mumbai who were not familiar with Supreme Court practice & drafting, and restricted their litigation strategy to the Bombay High Court level, he was able to guide clients much more effectively, with a wholesome litigation strategy.
If they got an adverse order at the High Court, they had the faith that they could engage him to represent them at the Supreme Court.
This is not a standalone story.
There are many of our learners who are already arguing matters before the Supreme Court before even attempting the exam, and earning much more.
This is what happens for any district court or High Court lawyer who starts preparation to qualify as a Supreme Court Advocate on Record.
Vikrant cleared the AOR examination in 2023.
His big secret to clearing the AOR exam was that he had practised writing answers by hand and obtained feedback, which most other lawyers fail to do. All of the work these days is done on the computer.
Of course, once he became an AOR, he increased his charges further.
He is now filing matters in his own name.
Recently, LawSikho legal aid team also engaged him to file a Transfer Petition at the Supreme Court for a lady who was thrown out of her matrimonial home.
You would be amazed to know that Vikrant did not shift his practice to Delhi and is currently operating from Pune.
After becoming an AOR he has a huge influx of matters so he has an office in Delhi to meet his Delhi clients and for regulatory requirements, but continues to live in Pune.
He files matters online and also most of his appearances at the Supreme Court are virtual.
His earnings have increased by approximately 3x, since clients are willing to pay very well at the Supreme Court level.
You would be interested to know that even a junior AoR charges anywhere between Rs. 50,000/- to Rs 1 lakh for drafting and filing a petition at the Supreme Court.
Charges for hearings vary from INR 20k to 1 lakh.
Although initially one may charge around 20k/hearing, advocates with 5-6 years of experience as an AOR charge up to 75k-1L for each hearing or even more, depending on the complexity of the case.
This is over and above the fee charged for rendering legal opinions, consultations, conferences etc.
Would you like to get results like Vikrant did?
You don’t need to shift to Delhi or abandon your existing practice at district courts & High court.