Supreme Court scraps 25-year practice rule for CAs in tribunals

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday removed the rule requiring 25 years of practice for chartered accountants (CAs) to qualify as technical members of tribunals, including the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, calling the condition "arbitrary".

"We are in agreement with the submissions made on behalf of the ICAI (Institute of Chartered Accountants of India). If such a provision is held to be valid, it will permit the CAs to enter into service only after they attain the age of 50 years," a bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai clarified. "We have already held that a similar provision may not be sustainable in the case of advocates. There should be no difficulty in applying the same analogy."

The bench urged the government to keep its observation in mind while enacting a new law regarding appointment of tribunal members.


The top court's clarification came on a plea by ICAI, which sought parity for CAs with lawyers.

The ICAI counsel pointed out that the top court on Wednesday had struck down the requirement of minimum age of 50 years for advocates to be appointed as members of tribunals. And going by the requirement of having 25 years of practice, a CA would be entitled to be considered for appointment to a tribunal only after attaining the age of 50, he argued.

Accepting the ICAI's submission, the bench then went on to make the addition to its Wednesday's judgment, noting that the requirement of 25 years of experience for CAs for appointment as technical members was also "arbitrary".

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court had struck down provisions of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 regarding the appointment, service conditions and tenure of tribunal members, as unconstitutional.