Courtroom Discipline Matters: Gujarat HC Throws Out Case After Advocate Joins from Car

In a recent case, the Gujarat High Court has dismissed a matter where the learned advocate of a petitioner appeared through a hybrid mode and made her submissions while sitting in a car.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s advocate appeared through virtual mode but joined the court proceedings while sitting in a car.

In the first session, the court had already directed her to make the submissions from a proper place, like an office, residence, conference room, etc., instead of a car. The court cited The Gujarat High Court (Live Streaming of Court Proceedings) Rules, 2021 and Gujarat High Court Circular No. ITC/417/2026 dated 23.02.2026.

The law requires a participant to join the virtual or hybrid hearing from a place with decent ambience to maintain the dignity of the court. The court had said that even if the participants join the proceedings through mobile, they must not leave such a place and wander with the device during the virtual hearing.

Therefore, in the first session, the court clearly stated that joining from a vehicle is not allowed and asked the advocate to rejoin from a suitable location. However, when the case was called again, the lawyer did not appear. Due to this absence, the court dismissed the case for non-prosecution.