New Delhi, Oct. 15 -- The Delhi High Court on Wednesday held that the professional office of a lawyer cannot be classified as a "commercial activity" under the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) Act.

Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, while quashing a 22-year-old criminal complaint against an advocate, observed that running a lawyer's office from a residential basement does not amount to misuse of premises or change of land use.

The court noted that "the activity of running an office by a lawyer is not a commercial activity," emphasising that the legal profession is "a vocation dependent upon individual qualification and intellectual skill" and distinct from trade or business involving profit and loss.

The case stemmed from an NDMC complain...