The Punjab and Haryana High Court upheld a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal award to the family of a deceased advocate, holding that experience at the bar is a legitimate basis for estimating income even without documentary proof. The court relied on the Supreme Court's July 1, 2026 ruling in Rashmirekha Tripathy, which distinguishes self-employed professionals from salaried persons, allowing courts to reasonably estimate earnings based on professional standing and years of practice.

This ruling sits at the intersection of tort law compensation and constitutional property rights under Article 21 (right to life, which includes livelihood) and Article 300A (right to property). The core legal principle is that just compensation in motor accident claims cannot be denied merely because a self-employed professional lacks salary slips or income-tax returns. Courts must apply a 'reasonable estimate' standard for professionals like advocates, doctors, or architects whose income is inherently variable and often undocumented.

The Rashmirekha Tripathy precedent (SC, July 1, 2026) creates a formal doctrinal distinction between two classes: salaried employees (whose income is verifiable through payslips and Form 16) and self-employed professionals (whose income must be inferred from circumstantial evidence — years of practice, reputation, type of clientele, court appearances). For the second class, experience at the bar becomes evidence of earning capacity.

For CLAT PG purposes, this engages the 'fair hearing and reasoned determination' principle under natural justice — a tribunal cannot arbitrarily discount income without applying a rational methodology. It also engages the principle that deprivation of compensation for loss of life and livelihood must meet the proportionality standard embedded in Articles 21 and 300A. The examiner can use this passage to test whether a student can identify which class of claimant gets which evidentiary standard, and whether denial of compensation without reasoned methodology violates any fundamental right.