Abstract

A landmark judgment by the Hon'ble Apex Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers vs. D.K. Gandhi (2024) has illuminated the medicolegal dilemmas faced by health care providers under the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). This paper critically examines the judiciary's interpretation that professions, including medical and legal, are excluded from the scope of the CPA 2019. The legal analysis with critical eyes and juristic approach, reveals that the Act, intended to safeguard consumers from unfair trade practices, does not encompass the services rendered by professionals whose work is grounded in specialized knowledge and skill. The judgment underscores the necessity for judicial interpretation in clarifying legislative intent, emphasizing that professionals should not be categorized alongside traders and businessmen. This exclusion reflects a deliberate legislative choice, aiming to distinguish the unique nature of professional services from commercial transactions. The paper further explores the implications of this ruling for health care providers, advocating for a procedural strategy to raise preliminary objections against complaints filed under the CPA 2019. Ultimately, this judgment serves as a definitive guide, reinforcing the specialized regulatory frameworks governing professional conduct and ensuring that medical professionals are rightly excluded from the consumer protection ambit.

• 1.   “To be, or not to be” is a speech given by Prince Hamlet in the so-called “nunnery scene” of William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1).
• 2.   Hon’ble Supreme Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers Through Its ... vs D.K. Gandhi, Ps National Institute of ... on 14 May, 2024.
• 3.   Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
• 4.   Singh, JS. Commentary on Consumer Protection Act, 2019. Lexman Publishers, 2024. Define Consumer, p24.
• 5.   Black’s Law Dictionary, 6th edition, 1990, West Publishing Co. U.S.A.
• 6.   profession | Etymology of profession by etymonline. Link last accessed on 6th Aug, 2024 : https://www.etymonline.com/word/profession.
• 7.   Hon’ble Supreme Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers Through Its ... vs D.K. Gandhi Ps National Institute of ... on 14 May, 2024.
• 8.   IMA vs VP Shantha 1995.
• 9.   Article 141 of the Indian Constitution.
• 10.   Hon’ble Bombay High Court in Medicos Legal Action Group vs Union of India on October 25, 2021.
• 11.   Hon’ble Supreme Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers Through Its ... vs D.K. Gandhi Ps National Institute of ... on 14 May, 2024.
• 12.   Article 141 of the Indian Constitution.
• 13.   Hon’ble Supreme Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers Through Its ... vs D.K. Gandhi Ps National Institute of ... on 14 May, 2024.
• 14.   Kabra, SG. Statutory Interpretation of Consumer Protection Act 2019: Professions, Legal And Medical, Are Not and Cannot Be Included in The Act (legalserviceindia.com) https://www. legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-16611- statutory-interpretation-of-consumer-protectionact-2019-professions-legal-and-medical-are-notand-cannot-be-included-in-the-act.html.
• 15.   Hon’ble Supreme Court in Bar of Indian Lawyers Through Its ... vs D.K. Gandhi Ps National Institute of ... on 14 May, 2024.
• 16.   Hon’ble Bombay High Court in Medicos Legal Action Group vs Union of India on October 25, 2021.
• 17.   National Medical Commission (NMC) Act, 2019.
• 18.   Section 106 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
• 19.   EBC’s Commentary on Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Eastern Book Company, 2024. Interpreting Section 106(2), p55.
• 20.   Universal’s Criminal Manual. Lexis Nexis. 2024. Comparative Charts of BNS & IPC.
• 21.   Manual of Parliamentary Procedures in the Government of India. Manual 2018 (9.18.4).
• 22.   Microsoft CoPilot. Accessed 2024-08-03. Prompt: ‘Summarize the Recently Updated Laws on Criminal Negligence and Medical Professionals.‘ Generated using https://copilot.microsoft.com/.
• 23.   Nayyar, YV. Medical Negligence & Medical Evidence. Lexman publishers, Delhi. 2024. Section 304 A of IPC, p405.
• 24.   Gaur, KD. Criminal Manual. Whitesmann, 2023. New Criminal Major Laws.
• 25.   Handbook for Investigating Officers: New Bharatiya Criminal laws, 2024. Issued by Director General of Police, Chandigarh.
• 26.   Sudhakar, K. Commentary on Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Asia Law House, 2024.
• 27.   Kannan, K. Medicine and Law, Oxford University Press, 2013.
• 28.   Koley, T. Medical negligence and the Law in India: Duties, Responsibilities, Rights. Oxford University Press. 2010.
• 29.   Singh, J. Medical Negligence & Compensation, 4th ed. Bharat Law Publications, 2018.
• 30.   Tiwari, S. Medicolegal Problems and Solutions: A Doctor’s & Practitioner’s Guide. CBS Publishers. 2024.
• 31.   Singh, VP. Legal Issues in Medical Practice: Medicolegal Guidelines for Safe Practice. 2nd Ed. Jaypee Publishers. 2020.
• 32.   Prakash, Anjana. Concise Commentary on The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. LexisNexis, 2024.
• 33.   Deswal, V. Taxmann’s Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 | Law & Practice. Taxmann Publications, 2024.
• 34.   Best Practice Guidelines: Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Standards for Developing Trustworthy Clinical Practice Guide. Current Best Practices and Proposed Standards for Development of Trustworthy CPGs. In: Clinical Practice Guidelines We Can Trust, Graham R, Mancher M, Miller Wolman D (Eds), National Academies Press, Washington DC 2011.
• 35.   Users’ guides to the Medical Literature. VIII. How to use clinical practice guidelines. B. what are the recommendations and will they help you in caring for your patients? The Evidence-Based Medicine Working Group. Wilson MC, Hayward RS, Tunis SR, Bass EB, Guyatt G. JAMA. 1995;274(20):1630.
• 36.   Peterson PN, Rumsfeld JS. The evolving story of guidelines and health care: does being NICE help? Ann Intern Med 2011; 155:269.
• 37.   Ransohoff DF, Pignone M, Sox HC. How to decide whether a clinical practice guideline is trustworthy. JAMA 2013; 309:139.
• 38.   Brook RH. Practice guidelines: to be or not to be. Lancet 1996; 348:1005.

Data Sharing Statement

Funding