A0 @ T2 firm. Most partners and senior associates are fairly good. While there’s work pressure at times, toxicity isn’t the norm. However, I absolutely despise most of my fellow associates. They’re nothing but a bunch of rowdy, uncultured men. Most of them gel well together but I can never chime into such a group.

What is the way forward? This is definitely one of the reasons why I’ve been contemplating jumping ship.

You’re right about the inevitability of generational change, but in this case, there is a strong link with politics. Barring a few like Vikramjeet Banerjee, NLSIU alumni are overwhelmingly pro-Congress. In some cases it’s because of ideology, in some cases it’s because they and their parents are beneficiaries of the Congress (children of certain bureaucrats and academics).

JGLS should use a group chat.

And as someone who has worked with SM, it would be unwise and very harsh on someone who has given his heart and soul to MCS.

If anything, it was petty politics and the insecurity of other (will not name names) that led to SM leaving.

Mumbai -

Tanu Banerjee (KCO) - Advertising, M&E

Ranjana Adhikari (SAM) - Gaming

Arun Prabhu (CAM) - IPR, Data, Technology

Aparna Gaur (Trace) - TMT

Anu Tiwari (CAM) - Fintech

Nandan Pendsey (AZB) - IPR, Data, Technology, Life Sciences

Kirti Balasubramaniam (Trilegal) - IPR, Data, Technology, Life Sciences

Ishan Johri (KCO) - M&E, IPR

You need a JRF to get your foot in the door. Today every tom, dick and harry are applying for a PhD without any reason. Just to pass time. So it's better you get a JRF or don't do a PhD without stipend. Even NLUO is better than NLUD since it's provides a 30K stipend to its scholars. NLUD gives it only to the topper of the merit list i.e. one student.

Not worth it. If you can then work for a few years maybe 2, then apply abroad. In the meantime work on the topic you need to research, start publishing and see the criteria for PhD abroad. You don't need to focus on US or UK. You may try at others like Germany, Netherlands, Belgium etc. Having done my masters abroad I can definitely say that doing a PhD abroad is much more appreciated. Drop thinking about doing a PhD from Indian universities.

I think other NLUs missed a trick by blindly aping NLSIU’s left-liberal worldview. This means that their alumni are in direct competition with NLSIU when it comes to receiving favours from the Congress and other opposition parties. Too many people lobbying for the same opportunities. Too many dogs fighting over the same piece of meat. Had any of the other NLUs cultivated the BJP and developed a right-wing ecosystem, their alumni could have formed their own niche, developed their own monopoly.

I've noticed people I was mentoring lying. Liars get careless and end up sending the CV to people who know they didn't actually show up for the internship or didn't actually do the work. I never touched or helped the person again. Luckily for them, they don't work in my exact area so no one asks me about them but you can burn a reputation pretty fast. Much better to be know as the person who did the work and reinvented themself after messing up in law school.

If you're from a bottom-tier college, your grades don't matter because no one trusts their grading anyway. People are looking to see if you are bright and have a good work ethic. That's what you want to be known for.

Hi, I am from BO27 (T1 NLU, top 25 ranks); however, I don't have good internships. I have one T1 internship, and the rest are decent chambers. I have two T1s lined up in the coming months before day zero. I am concerned about Day Zero due to the decreasing number of opportunities available. Do I have a realistic chance in the coming months to convert my internships into a PPO? With only 6 months remaining until Day Zero, what should I do in my T1 Internships to convert them? What should I do in my T1 internships to convert them?

I have studied law at a college outside karnataka. I want to enroll in Karnataka bar council. My home state is Karnataka and I have studied 1 to 12 in Karnataka. Karnataka bar council have made the process very difficult for students who have studied law outside the state.

First, they told that they will not enroll and later agreed to accept the application . They told me get verification letter issued from the college. The university sent them the verification letter. Now it is almost 4 months and they have not done the enrollment. I have went many times to ask them about status but they always tell ki they will decide in few days. A few days back they told ki they will put the details on website but nothing is updated. They told that there are 85 students who have studied out of state and decision to enroll them is pending.

There is november judgement from Karnataka HC which states that Karnataka bar council has to enroll students outside the state.

Further, they have put nlu, Jindal and symbiosis in the online application and only students who have not studied from these institutions and studied outside the state are facing problem in enrollment.

I feel the only way lies to get enroll in other bar council but transferring will lead me to mess where the bci in its meeting has to approve it and I need to get noc.

Can anyone suggest what should I do ?

I was an A2 at a Tier 3 firm but I left work due to health issues. I specialize in SME ipo work. Now I am rejoining the profession and have landed 3 job offers with roughly the same amount of money. All offers are in Delhi.

Which law firm should I join?

Please share insights about the work culture and atmosphere

Prosecution can be decent money and decent work life balance. Branching out, options are limited in house. Litigation is significantly tougher, including due to insane work hours and need for being available at all times. Harder to get into that routine at later stages in life. IP related transactions are good paymasters at T1 but again, hectic deadlines.

Been taken negativity by most people across the bar and bench. Weekends are usually reserved for substantive drafting and reviews and administrative work with some little personal time. Friday nights used to be the best part of the week. Now that matters are likely to be listed for hearing on merits on Saturdays as well, expecting faster burnouts.

Personally know someone who started out as an intern and later got hired in the Delhi office IP team. GPA doesn't matter at all, its about how much your seniors like your work and enthusiasm to learn. Also depends on whether they are looking to hire at a particular time. Take your chances, nothing to lose.

Is it fine to niche in a practice like B&F as early as the 3rd year of law school? How will it impact the trajectory later in the career wrt laterals? Also, consider that I have come to like it from my previous internship experience.

Alt Question: What should be done to strengthen my CV to improve employability in this area of law specifically, as it is one of those subjects which is very sparsely covered in law school.

Hey! So I have interviewed twice with LL and given one written assignment round and now I have gotten a call for another written assignment round. Is this standard? Bec it seems kinda strange. + I wanted reviews of the firm (esp litigation) so that I could make an informed decision if I would be jumping through so many hoops

Firstly, not all his cases are reported, so you don't actually know if he loses "all his cases".

Secondly, most of what get reported are political cases.

Thirdly, he's at a stature where you engage him when you know it's a very uphill battle or a lost cause. And therefore, the fallacy lies here: does he lose all his cases, or does he get cases which have very slim chances of success to begin with?

As someone whose really struggling to find just how to personalize without sounding stupidly overconfident and inflating their actual knowledge - could you tell how to write a 'damn good cover page - for niche practice areas or specialized areas to a firm'. I have a few publications on that front as well if it helps.

Because he calls the political clients and journalists and tells them he will fight their cases and then insists he will start because of his age. From 370 and ED to Sharjil, he does this in every case..doesn't even read. Watch what happens next week in SIR Rejoinder. He hasn't even bothered hearing Dwivedis arguments for a minute over the last 5 hearing dates - GSN, Vrinda, Shadan have all been there. But now he will come running to get headlines

Bangalore is probably India's most welcoming city to outsiders

(if you ignore the unhinged social media ranting by 22 year olds who are suddenly hit with a dual shock of (i) things cost money, and (ii) not everyone speaks Hindi).

In this century alone:

- A Chief Minister has been a Rajput from Rajasthan
- An elected Lok Sabha MP has been a Mizo
- Half the MLAs are Telugu
- The heads of the Chambers of Commerce, BCIC, and the like have been Punjabis and Sindhis

I can go on, but Bangalore's social, sporting, business and cultural ecosystems are all thriving because of people who are "native" to other states.

Put in the hard work, and you'll make it big. Not being local is not an issue, especially in a white collar job.

They are not a international law heavy university. That would be JNU or SAU. NLUD is just like any other NLU when it comes to PhD. The only one that you need to consider is NLS or Jindal. NLS also provide a 50k stipend. Jindal has fellowships of 40-50k as well. I would focus on getting into these two universities as they're much better in prestige and value for research. Jindal also has a collab for research with foreign universities where you will get to go for a semester abroad. Other than JNU, SAU, NLS and Jindal, there is no other law University that is worth the RoI especially for a PhD. Choose wisely.

I currently have a resume very heavy on IDT practice (3 internships, one of them a call-back), I am in my 4th year of law school and want some experience in direct tax. However, the law firms i apply to only take me in for my IDT experience. How do I go about getting one in DT. any help works thank you:)

Let's revive this thread.

Firms: (apart from the T1 / popular ones)

Kachwaha & Partners

Aarna Law
Singularity Legal

Chambers:

Rishab Gupta (Bombay, ex SAM) [a little less senior but arguably the most impressive educational and professional background. I have talked to people who have interned there. Excellent office!]

Vyapak Desai (Bombay, ex NDA)

Nakul Dewan (Delhi) [ Mr. Dewan is a very chill and sweet senior and all associates at his office are extremely sharp people who graduated at the top of their class from the best NLUs and have a Harvard LLM, MIDS, Oxford BCL, etc.]

Gaurav Pachnanda (Delhi)

Gourab Banerji (Delhi)

I do not know about the work culture of the all these places but am sure they have good arbitration work. Others please feel free to add to this list and tell more about the work culture at these places.

It seems to have less to do with who the ruling party is, and more to do with a generational changing of the guard. I think appointments like Mr. Vikramjit Banerjee (NLSIU) and Mr. Raghav Shankar (NALSAR & Oxford) are perfect examples of this trend. As the veterans from the pre-NLU era phase out, they are naturally being replaced by the first generation of NLU alumni now reaching seniority at the Bar.
Be that as it may, I don’t think we will see a monopoly. Of Course NLU alumni are all incredibly bright and competent people. But the NLU tag is a proxy for competence and not the very definition of it. There are brilliant legal minds outside the NLU ecosystem, who would shine in the coming years.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chums-Tiny-Caste-Oxford-Tories/dp/1788167392/ref=sr_1_1?

Politically, just the opposite (in some ways) of what Kuper describes in the above-linked book!!! But from the perspective of how the phenomenon of institutional domination (as in, a particular school or university's alumni dominating in a system) works, almost exactly the same!!! Therefore, in many ways, "Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose"!!! Loving it!!! Excellent vision for the future!!! 👏👏👏

I think it’s a very fair assumption. Look at who all are representing INDIA Alliance governments and politicians in major cases: Gopal Shankarnarayan, Menaka Guruswamy, Aditya Sondhi, Rajshekhar Rao… it’s a practical NLSIU monopoly. Granted that Sibal and AMS are still at the top, but they are getting old. By the time it’s 2034 or 2039, the star NLSIU alumni will still be in their 50s or 60s, while Sibal & Co will be in the last years of their lives, if they are still living. Sibal is already near 80 and AMS near 70.

Even if Modi wins in 2029 there’s no way Modi will be in power beyond 2034 and that is when the INDIA Alliance will have a good chance. There will be also be massive anti incumbency.

I think we have a massive domination of NLSIU alumni looming in the future

As an A0, I was supposed to attend hearings in a matter before the High Court and then report back to the partner, who would update the client. The matter came up once every couple of months. On one occasion (this was pre-COVID), I completely forgot to go for the hearing.

It was only in the evening, when the partner asked me for an update, that I realized what I had done. I could tell he was really upset, but he stayed completely calm. It was really eerie. He just told me that mistakes happen, but going forward, whenever a hearing date was fixed, I should send out a calendar invite. He also said I needed to take more ownership of the work. No shouting, no drama, just a clear conversation. As a stupid A0 i also told him that I would inform the client that it was my mistake. He said, the buck always stops with me. One of my saddest days.

He then called a professional colleague who was arguing the matter, who told him the case had been adjourned anyway. So, no awkward calls with the client thankfully. After that, the partner called me again and said, very calmly but firmly, that this could never happen again.

I’m still genuinely grateful for how he handled that situation. The way he stayed composed and dealt was a great learning in how to handle oneself. A great boss, and an even better human being.

Just saw a law firm well known in the TMT sector posted a linkedin update stating that their A2/A3 was recommended by legal 500 for his "expertise in transactions and corporate structuring in the aviation sector". I mean A2 is an expert, man must be a prodigy. What do you guys think?

I was interning in my first year of law school at a Tier 1 law firm in litigation. One day, the Partner called me into his chamber and asked,

“Are you working on anything right now?” I hesitated and said, “No sir.” So he handed me some work on the Societies Registration Act and a bit of stamp duty stuff. As I was about to leave his chamber, he stopped me and casually asked, “By the way, do you know what a society means?”

Now, I had this terrible habit back then of saying “yes” to everything just to sound smart. So I confidently said, “Yes sir.” And then I explained: “Sir, a society is like… where people live. With parks, roads, buildings…” (Basically I described Gokuldham Society from Taarak Mehta 😭). The Partner just stared at me for two seconds. This man was an Oxford grad.

Then he calmly asked - “Which year of law school are you in?”

I went - “Sir… first.”

He nodded and said,
“Dude, you better brace up.”

I replied,
“Thank you sir.” 😭

And I walked out like I hadn’t just ruined my own career in 30 seconds.

Udit is one of the finest and fairest people you'll ever get to work with. A thorough and true professional, like very few others in the industry. Can't comment much on the rest. Back in the day, Udit used to be accountable (and referential) to Sudhindher. But if the situation has improved for him, and he has more autonomy now, join him blindly if you get the chance. He'll expect quality because he lives up to high standards, but if you show him potential, he'll back you more than any other boss you've ever had.

Hi all, I need some guidance/advice, I have completed by BA.LLB from a tier-2 NLU (Batch of 22'), followed by LLM (23') and then worked for almost 1.5 years (Litigation, Delhi).. I left my jobs a couple of months ago because I do not see the light at the end of the tunnel at all, and I don't want to continue with Litigation as a career option anymore. I have also pursued 1 year PG Diploma from another NLU (23-24') while working. I cleared UGC NET (for PHD) which I gave while working without much preparation, though not JRF. I am mulling over a career in academics, and I am confused as to whether I should try for PHD or attempt UGC NET again and start applying for Asst. Professor Jobs based on the next scorecard (provided I clear it again). In PHD, I was eyeing NLU Delhi, mainly because of how structured and prestigious the college is. I filled the form for AUET which is in May, can someone please guide as to how the faculty is, what is the experience there, what type of research proposal would be preferred etc.? I read that they are Intl. Law heavy but would be grateful for a detailed review please. Thanks in advance.

As an A0, got entrusted with a big ticket consumer dispute. We were the defendants and the plaintiff had been dragging their heels on filing replies, had changed counsels multiple times, and overall a ripe case for imposition of costs. SA told me a day before the hearing to attend it and not return without a costs order. Spent whole day going through the case, researching through the night, sent a research note on costs to SA at around 2 in the morning. During hearing, partner and SA were virtually watching from another court, argued for 20 minutes but the judge was obviously pro-consumer. Absentmindedly, i left the podium just after arguing, as the order was being dictated. Almost halfway across the courtroom, half the lawyers made me publicly realize to go back and wait for the order. The judge was in disbelief as well but luckily brushed it off. Back at the office, got welcomed with a "itni jaldi kahan hai jaane ki?"

what's wrong with Indiankanoon tho? I never share their case copy, always download it form SCC/ Court website. Apart from that IndianKanoon has almost all the court orders and it's very easy to find recent applications of judgements. I make sure to cross check the case status and facts, could you share why does it have a bad reputation for research? Not questioning you, just want to make sure I am not missing out on something that might impact the credibility of my research.

See the growth in AIFs and Family Offices and their AUM. Indian controlled private equity AUM (via fund managers) is barely 5% of the stock market cap. Prominent economies like the have the amount equivalent to 12-25% of their stock market cap managed by PE/VC fund managers. Even if you take 15% as mean, Indian PE/VC has the potential to 3x-5x over the next decade (base line- adjustment to mean).

Also, as the broader risk appetite is shifting, more wealthy families are now allocating a sizeable chunk of their wealth for equity linked instruments.

Such growth in corporate law practices are always a result of an underlying economic phenomenon. Study.