FUNCTIONS

• General Administration
• Legislation
• Legal Advice and Opinion
• Conveyancing
• Translation

General Administration

        The Law Department is a Separate unit with in the Secretariat. Therefore, matters relating to the administration of the department staff, budget, contingencies, furniture, stationery and all other Administrative matters are attended to in the department itself. The Law Department Library and the Records Wing of the Law Department are also the Vital part of the General Administration of this Department.

Legislation

(1)  Main Legislation.

        The function of the Law Department with regard to the preparation of Main legislation is to put in to technical shape the Projects of Legislation of which the policy has been approved by the Government. The drafting of Official Bills and Ordinances is undertaken by the Department in accordance with the instructions of the Department to which the subject matter of the legislation relates. The procedure of Legislation is regulated by relevant provisions of the Constitution of India, the Rules of Business of the Government of Kerala, the Kerala Government Secretariat Office Manual and the Kerala Law Department Manual.

        In addition to routine legislative work; legislative measures to codify and consolidate existing enactments and legislation of a formal character such as repealing and amending Bills etc are also initiated in this Department. Private Member Bills to be introduced in the Legislative Assembly are also dealt with by the Department as part of its legislative business. The Department is also concerned with papers relating to preparation of reports of select committees and Subject committees on Bills. Apart from the above, the legislation wing is also entrusted with initiation of proposals for legislation in regard to personal Laws or any other matter of a general nature not pertaining to any other Departments.

Subordinate Legislation

Whenever any department of the Secretariat proposes:

(i) To issue a statutory rule, notification or order; or

(ii) To sanction under a statutory power the issue of an rules, bye-law, notification or order by a Subordinate authority; or

(iii) To submit to the Central Government any draft, statutory rule, notification or order.

In order to issue them, concerned Department prepares a draft which is forwarded to the Law Department for opinion as well as scrutiny. The draft is examined by the Law Department with reference to its legal validity and form of drafting. In the absence of precedents with regard to the form of drafting, the draft is compared with the corresponding rules or notification framed by the Government of India or by any other State Governments on the same subject and necessary alteration made. Revised drafts are also prepared in appropriate cases by the Law Department.

Publication

The Department publishes annual volumes of the Acts and Ordinances passed each year. Annual volume of the statutory rules and notifications issued by the State Government are also published. Similarly annual volumes are also published of the more important rules and notifications issued by the Central Government which are republished in the State Gazette. Lists containing references to the enactments that are applicable to the State as on 1^st January of every year are also published. The reprinting of individual enactments with amendments incorporated is also undertaken by the Law Department, the State Code containing the enactments in force in the State are also published. The State Code and the Rules Code are periodically revised.

The Publication Wing also maintain folder volumes containing individual Acts and the rules and notifications issued there under as corrected up-to-date. These folder volumes will not be removed from the section on any account and will be available in the sections for reference purposes. Registers containing details regarding the Acts passed, the amendments, if any, to the Acts, the date on which the Acts come into force, the rules and notifications issued under each Act, etc., will be maintained by the Publication wing of the Law Department.

Legal Advice and Opinion

A reference to the Law Department for legal opinion on any specified legal point may be made by any Department of the Secretariat. Such advice may be sought on the following matters.

(a) Interpretation of Statutes, Statutory rules, bye-laws, orders, deeds.

(b) Cases, in which disputes have arisen or are likely to arise between Government and other persons or action in a Court of Law is threatened against Government.

(c) Defamatory attacks on Government Servants.

(d) Cases where sanction of Government has been has been sought for prosecuting Government Servants.

(e) Matters relating to disciplinary proceedings.

(f) Appeals from acquittals and filing of appeals where interests of Government are involved.

(g) Guiding and co-ordinating the work in connection with the prosecution of Government cases and defence of cases filed against Government and Scrutiny of Statement of facts.

(h) Cases where the legal opinion of the Advocate General has to obtained.

(i) Interpretation or judgments, Orders etc of Courts. The Law Department thus function as an advisory department to the Government.

Conveyancing

The conveyancing work of the Department consist of:-
(i)The scrutiny of title deeds;
(ii)Drafting and scrutiny of the deeds of conveyance;
(iii)Offering legal advice to other Department of the Secretariat on stamp duty, registration, etc.

Translation

The State Acts and Ordinances are translated in to Malayalam by the Translation Section of the Law Department. Acts and Ordinances are also translated in to Tamil and Kannada when such translations are found necessary. Translation of rules and notifications which have statutorily to be translated into regional languages is also attended to by the Translation Section. The Translation Section also attends to – translation of documents in to English whenever such translation is found necessary. All other Miscellaneous work at Government level is attended to by this section.

OTHER FUNCTIONS

(a) Administration of The Kerala Court Fees and Suits Valuation Act; The Notaries Act; and The Personal Laws.

(b) Matters relating to the appointment etc. of Advocate General, Government Pleaders, Standing Counsels in the Supreme Court, Administrator General & Official Trustees and Staff;

(c) Administration of the Kerala Official Language (Legislative) Commission (O.L (L)C);

(d) Administration of Kerala State Legal Services Authority, Kerala State Human Rights Commission and Advocate Clerks Welfare Fund;

(e) Appointment and re-appointment of notaries, verification of annual Returns of notaries, preparation of yearly notaries list, disciplinary action against notaries etc. For more details Visit www.keralalawsect.org