PUNJAB LEGAL AID ACT 2018

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THE PUNJAB LEGAL AID ACT 2018 
(XIX of 2018) 
CONTENTS 
1. Short title, extent and commencement 
2. Definitions 
3. Punjab Legal Aid Agency 
4. Functions of the Agency 
5. Superintendence of the Agency 
6. Administration of the Agency  
7. Director General 
8. Duty to provide legal aid 
9. Provision of legal aid  
10. Panel of Advocates 
11. Code of Conduct  
12. Payment 
13. Unauthorized disclosure 
14. Information to indigent persons 
15. Annual report 
16. Furnishing false information  
17. Cognizance of offence 
18. Delegation of powers 
19. Rules 
20. Removal of difficulties  
 
 
 
TEXT 
1
THE PUNJAB LEGAL AID ACT 2018 
(XIX of 2018) 
[24 May, 2018] 
An 
Act 
to provide of the establishment of a legal aid agency to provide legal aid to the 
indigent persons.  
It is necessary to establish and maintain the Punjab Legal Aid Agency to provide 
legal aid to the indigent persons; and, for matters ancillary thereto.  
Be it enacted by Provincial Assembly of the Punjab as follows:– 
1. Short title, extent and commencement .– (1) This Act may be cited as the 
Punjab Legal Aid Act 2018. 
(2) It shall extend to whole of the Punjab. 
(3) It shall come into force at once. 
2. Definitions.– (1) In this Act:  
(a) “Act” means the Punjab Legal Aid Act 2018; 
(b) “Agency” means the Punjab Legal Aid Agency established under the 
Act; 
(c) “court” means a court established under any law for the time being in 
force; 
(d) “Director General” means the Director General of the Agency; 
(e) “family dispute” means a dispute, involving a female indigent person, 
relating to divorce, maintenance, dowry, dower or custody of children;  
(f) “Government” means Government of the Punjab; 
(g) “indigent person” means a person, involved in the commission of an 
offence or a femal e involved in a family dispute 
2
[or a ny person who 
filed a complaint under section 7 of the Punjab Protection o f Ownership 
of Immovable Property Act 2025 (CI of 2025)] and does not have the 
financial capacity to engage an Advocate on his or her own; 
(h) “legal aid” means the legal services provided by an Advocate to an 
indigent person under the Act;  
                                                           
1This Act was passed by Provincial Assembly of the Punjab on 16 May 2018; assented to by the Governor of the Punjab on 21 
May 2018; and, was published in the Punjab Gazette (Extraordinary), dated: 24 May 2018, pp.8125-8128. 
2Inserted by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.2a (i). 
(i) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules; 
3
[*] 
(j) “rules” means the rules made under the Act 
4
[; and] 
5
[(k)    “Tribunal” means the Tribunal established under section 11 of the 
Punjab Protection of Ownership of Immovable Property Act 2025 (CI 
of 2025).] 
(2) A word or expression used in the Act and not defined shall have the 
same meaning as is assigned to it in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (V of 
1898) or the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act, 1973 (XXXV of 1973) 
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[or any 
other law for the time being in force]. 
3. Punjab Legal Aid Agency .– (1) The Government shall, by notification in the 
official Gazette, establish Punjab Legal Aid Agency.  
 (2) The Agency shall consist of the Director General and such other 
employees as the Government may, in the manner prescribed, appoint. 
4. Functions of the Agency.– (1) The Agency shall:  
(a) evolve policies, principles and guidelines for providing legal aid; 
(b) design and establish an effective mechanism for provision, monitoring 
and evaluation of legal aid; 
(c) advise the Government or any other agency in regard to enforcement 
of the right to fair trial and due process; 
(d) undertake and promote research in the field of legal aid with special 
reference to the need of such aid to the indigent persons; 
(e) devise and recommend structure of fees for le gal aid for approval of 
the Government;  
(f) perform such other functions as may be assigned to it by the 
Government; and 
(g) do all other things necessary for carrying out the purposes of the Act. 
5. Superintendence of the Agency .– The superintendence and control  of the 
Agency shall vest in the Government and shall be exercised in the prescribed 
manner. 
6. Administration of the Agency .– (1) The administration of the Agency shall 
vest in the Director General who shall be responsible for effective administration and  
                                                           
3Omitted the word "and" by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab 
Gazette (Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.2a (ii). 
4Substituted by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXX IX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.2a (iii). 
5Added by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.2a (iv). 
6Inserted by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.2b. 
 
management of the affairs of the Agency so as to ensure that the objectives of the 
Act are faithfully accomplished. 
(2)  The Director General shall exercise such administrative and financial 
powers as may be prescribed or assigned by the Government.  
7. Director General.– (1) The Director General of the Agency shall be appointed 
by the Government on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.  
(2) The Director General shall, unless sooner removed in the prescribed 
manner, hold office for three years or for such further period as the Government may 
determine.  
(3) The Director General may tender resignation to the Government and 
he shall cease to hold office on the communication of acceptance of the resignation. 
8. Duty to provide legal aid .– 
7
[(1)] The Agency shall make appropriate 
arrangements for the provision of legal aid to an indigent person in such manner and 
to such extent as may be prescribed. 
 
8
[(2) In addition to the category provided under sub -section (1), the Agency 
shall also make appropriate arrangements for provision of legal aid to such category 
of persons, classes of cases or proceedings, as the Government may, by notification 
in the official Gazette, declare under this sub-section. 
 (3) The procedure and mechanism provided under the Act for indigent 
persons shall be equally applicable for a category of persons declared under sub -
section (2).] 
9. Provision of legal aid .– (1) An indigent person seeking legal aid shall apply, 
in the prescribed manner, to the Agency. 
 (2) The application for legal aid shall be supported by an affidavit sworn by 
the applicant and such other documents as may be prescribed. 
 (3) The eligibility of an indigent person for legal aid shall be determined in 
the prescribed manner. 
(4) If the Agency is satisfied that th e applicant is an indigent person and 
fulfils the requirements of the law, it shall provide him the legal aid; otherwise, the 
Agency shall reject the application. 
                                                           
7Added by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XX XIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.3 (a). 
8Added by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.3 (b). 
 
 (5) A person aggrieved against the order passed under subsection (4) may 
submit an appeal, w ithin seven days from the communication of the order to him, to 
such authority as may be prescribed.  
 (6) The Agency, after affording an opportunity of hearing, may recall the 
provision of legal aid at any stage of the case, for reasons of misstatement, 
misrepresentation or fraud.  
 (7) The provision of legal aid to a person under the Act is without prejudice 
to the powers of a court available to it under any law for the time being in force.  
10. Panel of Advocates.- (1) The Agency shall, for each financial year, accredit a 
panel of Advocates in the prescribed manner in each district or, if necessary, in any 
tehsil for provision of legal aid. 
 (2) The Agency shall initiate the process of accreditation of the Advocates 
for the next financial year maximum in the first week of April of that year. 
(3) Notwithstanding the conclusion of a financial year, the panel of 
Advocates accredited for the outgoing financial year shall continue to serve till such 
time that the new panel for that financial year is notified. 
(4) The Agency may, in the prescribed manner, classify the accredited 
Advocates for purposes of providing legal aid to different classes of persons or 
courts or both. 
(5) The Agency shall not, at any one time, allocate the cases of legal aid to 
an Advocate on the panel in excess of the number prescribed. 
 (6) The Agency shall monitor and evaluate the quality of legal aid provided 
by each accredited Advocate. 
(7) An accredited Advocate shall maintain a proper record of the cases 
entrusted to him and shall pro vide information to the Agency at such time and in 
such manner as may be prescribed. 
11. Code of Conduct .- (1) The Government, on the recommendations of the 
Agency, may prescribe a Code of Conduct for accredited Advocates. 
(2) The Agency may suspend or, su bject to hearing, cancel the 
accreditation when he is found guilty of breach of that Code.  
12. Payment.– The Director General shall promptly make payment of such 
professional fee, after deduction of the applicable taxes, to an Advocate engaged for 
legal aid as may be prescribed or approved by the Government. 
13. Unauthorized disclosure.– (1) Except for purposes of this Act and subject to 
law, the Director General and no employee of the Agency shall disclose any 
information relating to an indigent person to any unauthorized person. 
 (2) Any unauthorized disclosure of information shall be construed as 
„misconduct‟ within the meaning of the Punjab Employees Efficiency, Discipline and 
Accountability Act 2006 (XII of 2006) and shall be dealt with accordingly. 
14. Information to indigent persons .– A court or, as the case may be,  
9
[Tribunal, Deputy Commissioner,]  an investigating officer, a prosecutor or a prison 
officer shall, on coming to know that an indigent person remains undefended by an 
Advocate, shall inform him that he may apply to the Agency for legal aid. 
15. Annual report.– (1) The Director General shall, by 30th September each year, 
submit the annual performance report of the Agency enumerating all the activities 
performed by it during the previous fina ncial year, its successes and failures, the 
social impact of free legal aid and its future plans and targets. 
 (2) The Director General shall submit the report to the Government which 
may, in its discretion, lay the report before Provincial Assembly of the Punjab. 
16. Furnishing false information .– A person who intentionally makes a false 
declaration or swears a false affidavit in support of his application for legal aid shall 
be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend t o 
six months but which shall not be less than seven days.  
17. Cognizance of offence .– (1) An offence under the Act shall not be 
cognizable. 
(2) No court shall take cognizance of an offence under the Act, except on 
a complaint in writing made by the Direct or General or any person authorized by him 
for the purpose. 
18. Delegation of powers .– The Director General may delegate any of his 
powers, except the powers delegated to him, to any employee of the Agency. 
19. Rules.– The Government may, by notification i n the official Gazette, make 
rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act. 
20. Removal of difficulties.– If any difficulty arises in giving effect to or applying 
the provisions of the Act, the Government may, within two years from the 
commencement of the  Act, make such order, not inconsistent with the Act or the 
rules, as may be necessary for removal of such difficulty.  
                                                           
9Inserted by the  Punjab Legal Aid (Amendment) Act 2026 (XXXIX of 2026), and  was published in the Punjab Ga zette 
(Extraordinary), dated: 14 May 2026, pp.6087-6088, s.4.