Telangana High Court Designates 22 Lawyers as Senior Advocates; Designation Takes Effect From September 16
The Telangana High Court has designated 22 advocates as Senior Advocates following a Full Court meeting held on September 16, 2026. The High Court’s official website has listed Notification No. 24 of 2026, dated September 19, concerning the designation.
The designation has been made under Section 16(2) of the Advocates Act, 1961, read with Guidelines 5(viii), 5(x) and 8 of the Telangana High Court’s guidelines governing designation of advocates as Senior Advocates. The notification records that the decision was taken by the Chief Justice and Judges in the Full Court meeting.
The new Senior Advocates are Mantri Rama Rao, A. K. Jaya Prakash Rao, M. Rajender Reddy, Yerabati Rama Rao, Manmohan Dundu, Kalpana Ekbote, A. Prabhakar Rao, Y. Ratnakar, K. Raghavacharyulu, J. V. Prasad, and E. Uma Maheshwar Rao.
The list further includes Srinivas Velagapudi, Dr. Juttukonda Vijayalaxmi, Chetluru Srinivas, Palle Nageswar Rao, V. V. S. N. Raju, P. S. Rajasekhar, Ramesh Vishwanathula Vishwanath, Thomas George, Chikkudu Prabhakar Babu, P. Vishnuvardhana Reddy and Vivek @ Vivek Jain.
Among those designated is Palle Nageswar Rao, the Public Prosecutor of the Telangana High Court. The designation has been made with effect from September 16, 2026, according to the High Court notification.
The process comes against the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s evolving framework for designation of Senior Advocates. The Supreme Court issued fresh guidelines in February 2026 following its earlier directions in Jitender @ Kalla v. State (NCT of Delhi) concerning the procedure and criteria for designation.
Under Section 16 of the Advocates Act, advocates are classified into two classes—Senior Advocates and other advocates. The designation of a lawyer as a Senior Advocate carries a distinct professional status and is governed by the statutory framework as well as the applicable court guidelines.
The Telangana High Court had conducted interviews for advocates seeking senior designation in August 2026. Its official website records that interviews were scheduled on August 17, 19 and 20 before the Permanent Committee for designation of Senior Advocates.
The latest Full Court decision represents the culmination of that designation process. With the notification now issued, all 22 advocates formally hold the Senior Advocate designation from September 16, 2026.
The development adds 22 names to the senior bar of the Telangana High Court and reflects the court’s latest exercise of its authority under the Advocates Act and its prescribed designation guidelines.
