I think your high ideals will be very difficult to achieve, because the number of people asking about PhD on LI and the quality of many of those questions is so bad (like this one) that I am beginning to suspect that at least some people view it as another chance to put off the inevitable - finding a job within the legal field itself, or making the big decision that law really isn't for them.

you can check out the master in corp law at Cambridge, its a new degree and costs much more than LLM/BCL but if you want to stay in the industry its quite good, has a couple of indian candidates each year, you may want to check out their profiles on LinkedIn or connect with them for more info

Absolutely pathetic. Idk if it's the job market or it's the BO 26 at SLSP, but the firms don't seem interested at all lol.
We don't have any particular day like Day 0, we just getting "recruitment opportunity" mails from the placement cell and then we have to apply via the gform and face the GD and interview rounds. Trilegal came. They took ONE student. Yup, that's it. Just one. Seems like that strong alumni base at Trilegal isn't enough for SLSP lol. LKS came, hired 3 people for only one practice area (if you preferred any other area, you're not considered. idek why they gave us the diff practice areas' options if they weren't even looking. sab luck based hai kya?) AZB took 4 people, all non-litigation. Litigation se nahi lena tha toh why even give it as an option bro?? Argus came and took 2 students only. Mind you, this is a batch of around 400-450 students. Granted, not everyone sits for placements, but there's at least 250-300 people desperate to get placed. Also, there was a firm that came forward with a CTC of 3LPA in Mumbai. like?? what happened to the college's standards bro? they'll also end up taking just 1-2 people too, for sure lol.
As far as PPOs go (+ as far as I know), there have been 3 from AZB, 1 from CAM. There's no shortage of T1 internships tho. Sabke paas connections hai, and even the undeserving ones with backlogs and GPAs of 5s and 6s have internships in Khaitan, Tri, SAM, CAM, JSA, etc. Very weird that even the smart kids aren't getting their t1 internships converted into PPOs tho.

Hey -

I've become a partner in a t2 / t3 a couple of years ago. What seemed like the goal for the longest time now seems to be the cause of all stress.

There's constant pressure to get clients, admin burden and constant fear of the team you train leaving (even if treated well since t1s pay a lot more). This despite the fact that I'm getting in decent work for someone at my level.

Just was wondering that is this only me or others are also in the same boat but want to act all cool and unperturbed? I feel this all the time and it's effecting my mental health. Is it a requirement of partnership to not act vulnerable even if you are - even to your own team?

1. Not much scope. DCM is one of the few areas that translates internationally.

2. I live in the UK (and in London specifically), have done for four years. Please don't waste your energy on trying to come here. Not worth the effort, time, money, embarrassment and humiliation, heartache, anything. UK (and London, in particular) are in a state of inexorable decline. Shitty economy, extraordinarily poor public finances, some of the highest tax rates in the world, cost of living going up and up, inflation at an all-time high, health system in state of collapse, extraordinarily hard immigration processes compared to what you get, paradox that those crossing the channel in boats get government-funded hotel accommodation because the government has never had the balls to call them what they are - "illegal immigrants" - extreme on the other side who believe all browns and blacks to be illegals (made worse because of out of control boats situation) (especially hurting because we sacrifice blood, sweat and tears), crime out of control in London (suggest to anyone that you will walk in Tower Hamlets East London at 7pm and they will say that the odds on getting mugged are very high, while stabbings and phone snatchings have shot up at an alarming rate and people engaging in what they call "fare evasion" (trying to jump the ticket barriers on the underground to avoid paying) has gone up to the levels expected in a stereotype formed by a neocolonial mindset of India), shocking levels of spending on the so-called "welfare bill" (social security payments) which rewards frauds instead of genuine cases, with millions of people who don't need it being on it and NEET (not in education, employment or training). When that Oxford-educated civil servant jokes with Sir Humphrey in Yes Minister that "The British worker is fundamentally lazy, wants something for nothing" (or words to that effect), he is totally right. The UK is two extremes: if you, in any capacity, try to enforce hard work or high standards, you get labelled "not inclusive", "racist", "ableist", "sexist" etc. Or, on the other side, you will be seen as the problem by whites who hate browns and blacks in any case, but are equally shocked by the collapse of responsibility and desire for hard work standards in their society and see browns and blacks as the cause for it. There is much better scope for your intellect, take it elsewhere. Not sure from your post whether you are a man or a woman. India is certainly not a fantastic society for women. But the UK is also much less fantastic then you might think. Not worth coming if you think you might have a safer or more dignified life in the UK if you are a woman, ain't necessarily gonna happen.

I am an A2 at a boutique corporate law firm. I started my career at a boutique arbitration and litigation firm, and after litigating for more than a year I decided to switch practice areas for two major reasons:

1. Work pressure was insanely high and it was taking a toll on my health.

2. In the initial years, the pay was meagre, especially for someone from one of the oldest law colleges in Maharashtra (I am sure you can guess which one).

The truth is, in almost all practice areas, for the first seven to eight years you are essentially struggling. Your law degree is only really valuable up until it lands you your first job, after that you are starting from scratch again. The next seven years are about building substance, and only after around your third year you begin to see the benefits (I am still waiting for that time myself). After that, life becomes relatively easier. The money starts flowing in, you get a better hold on the law, and your juniors start doing the grunt work for you

To answer your question, you can expect at least one day off a week. It is not that bad. Boutique firms tend to be slightly better in terms of work life balance, but the trade off is that you compromise on pay, often around twenty five to thirty percent lower than bigger firms.

No, you will not be alienated from your family. That is a personal choice, honestly 🤣. That said, you probably will not be able to take long vacations, and even on your off days you might have to work. I was working the morning my friend was getting married. It is not as dark and gloomy as it might seem, and I hope that by the time you graduate, things in this sector will be much better.

One advantage of corporate law is that you do not have to attend court hearings. Unlike litigation lawyers, you do not have days where you are in court in the morning and then working late into the night for the next day. Your schedule is a little easier in that sense.

One disadvantage, though, is that you are not tied to the court calendar, so you do not automatically get a lighter workload during summer breaks.

That said, after spending a while in corporate law, you always have the option to move in house, where the workload is generally much lighter

You got it wrong since beginning. The correct list is here -

2000: NLSIU>DU> GLC>ILS>Symbiosis Pune> NLIU> NALSAR> BHU

2010: NLSIU>NUJS>NALSAR>NLIU>NLUJ>Symbiosis Pune> HNLU > GNLU

2020: NLSIU>NALSAR>NLUD>NUJS>NLUJ> GNLU> Jindal> Symbiosis > HNLU > RGNUL

2030: NLSIU > NLUD> NALSAR >Jindal > NLUJ> GNLU> NUJS> NLIU > Symbiosis Pune

2040: ???

2050: ???

The thing with both the structures is that they evolve into their own ecosystems over time and when not managed well, can devolve into echo chambers, and the averageness of the structure could make you an average professional. The best structure existed under Seetharaman in his heydays at LKS, a brilliant mix of lawyers and CAs. Nothing has come close to that since then, and that is quite visible from a simple LinkedIn search of professionals who are currently there. And to answer the OPs original question, yes, the rainmakers of the Trade team did leave some years back, and this was reported at https://www.barandbench.com/news/seetharaman-leaves-religious-readings and https://trilegal.com/news-insights/trilegal-strengthens-tax-practice-invites-dhruv-gupta-to-join-the-partnership/

It is no doubt that young bright lawyers want to work with the best trade lawyers that are there in India. Same goes for CAs. Choose wisely. It is a niche field, and if you have made up your mind to work in this area, better learn from the best.

Are you mailing partners for jobs? Damn, I had no idea that it would even work for someone with 0 PQE. Let's hope for the best atp. My Day Z also didn't go as planned. I was expecting an offer from at least 2 firms, but look at me rn. I genuinely want to work with some good law firms, although we now have the options for PSUs and in-house teams.

Got my job as the long term result of cold-emailing a partner (dropped an internship email and eventually got a PPO).

Would suggest that the best way to do this is ask for an assessment internship and work your ass off in that, and hope it converts. Direct applications to join may not always bode well since most T1 firms have strict hiring processes.

In violation of the SC judgment and in view of finding loopholes, the UP Bar Council has meticulously excelled again by imposing an exorbitant fee of INR 20,000 for merely giving the COP to newly enrolled advocates as they could not charge any fee for the registration itself. How right is that? Should there be a PIL?

for Luthra it worked for me. Moreover, I have a mail tracker and partners from T1 firms do check our mails more than once sometimes. If you have any specialized practice area where you are interested and have decent experience( + strong points) , I would suggest you to beautifully and briefly mail partners of that practice area in T1 firms. Most of the times they would ask you to apply through your RCC or internship portal. Then mail the HR and tell them that you recently reached out to the partner, after mailing the HR, politely ask the partner if they think your experience match with their work then they may forward your name to the HR.

Hi, I'm a newbie advocate and was wondering what the best laptop and/or tab will be that's the best suited for litigation.

Apart from the actual specs, I need the lightest option available because I can't lift a lot of weight all day.

- When it comes to Mac, I do not understand the m chip and the difference in versions

- also, would it just be better to get a tab with detachable keyboard than a laptop.

Basically, if you have to go for any one in the very beginning, what would it be?

Heed my warning. Every single lawyer will be replaced by AI in 5 to 10 years, max 15 years. Plan ahead while you can. Remember that if you are general category, own your own home and pay taxes, you are considered privileged in India. The government won’t help you with doles, loan waivers and government job reservation. In any event, the doles won’t be enough to make you maintain your present lifestyle.

Get into share trading, do an MBA, upskill for a new job etc. Or consider migrating abroad.

I am not being alarmist, but practical.

I'm assuming you are from Jindal. Funds practice, as it is quite niche, has above-average opportunities abroad. If you play your cards right, you can easily land a funds role in London. Speak to certain folks who have done this transition (their initials are IK and SA, and they have worked with a law firm starting from K).

If you have been following the news, the Commonwealth Games is struggling to find a host, because the top countries are not interested in it. The only good teams are England, Australia and Canada, and they send only junior athletes for it. Same for Jamaica in running. No wonder, India finishes in the top five in the medals tally.

So it shouldn’t be a problem to win the Commonwealth games bid and India may even be the only bidder. But the issue is whether this will lead to a successful Olympics bid. That’s a different ball game altogether.

Of course, another question is which companies will be winning the thousands of crores worth of infrastructure tenders that will be issued. Will it be the Adani-Ambani Olympics?

https://sports.ndtv.com/othersports/india-officially-submits-bid-to-stage-2030-commonwealth-games-9075449

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

There is still hope. 🐶❤️ Have much faith in the present CJI. A progressive liberal from a marginalised community who empathises with the weak.

https://www.news18.com/india/supreme-court-stray-dog-ruling-cji-br-gavai-says-will-look-into-it-9502404.html

As a law student, what's the best way to choose the right law firm that I should target? Our law schools present so many firms, and companies but unsure how one can determine if a firm is the right fit or an in house role is, or for that matter any other NGO is. And if it is a firm, how do we go about picking the size, the practice area, the location.. so many questions. Like all law students, we send out several applications but I've begun to wonder if am even doing the right thing (yes, its way past my graduation and I still don't have a job so having an existential crisis). Any thoughts would be helpful.

This is a word of caution for anyone going to SAM Delhi for internships. The HR does not have any idea about the different practice areas. They have almost everything under the sun within the broad umbrella of General Corporate. The HR does not understand that real estate, public policy, Labour & Employment are very different from General Corporate. If you ask her to provide an M&A or transaction team, she will say that you can't choose teams within practice areas.

On stipend, they will pay some minuscule 3-4k after 3-4months of the internship and only to interns through the Recruitment Committees. For context, the June interns have not even received an email asking for their bank account details. They will probably send the stipend after we get placed.

The domicile quota should be applied to districts within a state. So those from Jodhpur will have a domicile quota for admissions into NLUJ, and then we will see how students from other districts of Rajasthan support this system. Let's see if the idiots you like still support this system.

Gave an interview recently at a Tier 1 firm in Mumbai. The interview was fairly good overall - the HR round went extremely well and I feel confident about it. The technical round did not go as flawlessly as I had hoped, since I fumbled in a couple of questions, but overall it was pretty good as well. I was told by the HR that I'll hear back within a week or two, however, two weeks have passed and I am yet to hear back. Should I still wait in anticipation, or is it safe to assume that they aren't going ahead with my candidature.

True story. After graduating from a reputed NLU, I completed my LLM from a UK university. I cold-called dozens of law firm owners and in-house counsels. Zero response. Sent CVs through many contacts, no response. It was very humiliating and depressing. Then one day, out of desperation I cold-emailed the owner of a large company, who is on the list of India’s 100 richest people. I actually emailed him on his gmail account. 🤣🤣🤣Believe it or not, he instantly forwarded that email to his PA and asked him to forward it to the legal department. In a matter of minutes, the General Counsel called me on my mobile and the next day I got an offer letter. 😊 Since then, I have done very well in the company and they sent me for training abroad. They are very supportive. I have also met the company owner and he’s an amazing, amazing person!

Wishing you also get lucky!

There are quite a few teams doing – Projects + M&A/PE (such Deepto/Neel - SAM, Avirup - Saraf, KCO, Ajay Shawney – CAM – some of them do M&A/PE in other sectors as well – recall seeing quite a few deal disclosures from Avirup about deals in other sectors), or Projects + Proj. Finance (Piyush Mishra, Karan, Ajay Shawney), or Projects + Regulatory Disputes (HSA, JSA, Ramanuj - CAM) or Projects + Real Estate (such as Arun Kumar/Deepak - JSA, Vaibhav Suri - CAM, Deepak Thakur - LL). There are also few general corporate teams doing major amounts of M&A/PE deals in Projects and Infra sectors (such as Vaibhav Kothari – Trilegal, AZB etc.).

https://www.legallyindia.com/convos/topic/447970-The-State-of-Domicile-Reservations-in-the-state-NLUs-A-Race-to-the-Bottom

Check this one out, and see if there's any response.

About six months ago, during an internship at a very well-known social sector organisation, I met a former HR manager from a Tier 2 law firm. My interaction with them was limited to collecting my internship certificate, but I believe I may have made a positive impression at the time. Would it be advisable to reach out to them now to ask about the process for applying to that firm?

Rather than dogs, we need to curb the human population first. India’s population will hit 1.7 billion in our lifetime. Apart from leading to severe water scarcity and environmental damage, the the majority of such people wil be uneducated, with zero sense of hygiene, civic sense and respect for women.

Since human culling would be considered immoral and unconstitutional, the government should at least stop subsidies and deny jobs to people with more than two children (preferably one child).

An MBA from IIM ABC pays you 26-40 lakhs also an IIM tag is always better than an NLU tag cuz lawyer end up working for these In house MD, CEO or President. LLM doesn't do shit even if it for a year. Do your maths oh wait you suck at that isn't it why you became a lawyer in the first place lol.

Either you're the guy himself or one of his acolytes. That's the reason you're bringing up a half forgotten publication that is the result of a paid colloquium and not really a well-known journal. It is so outdated that it still lists a person dead for 6 years as its current list of editors. Even in there, your research skills are shoddy enough to make the claim that he's the only Indian academic to have published there. People from Jindal have published more than once, so has someone from DU.

Honestly, no. I don’t know of partners at T1 firms who responded to student requests. You need to find a connection to get your resume in front of a partner. NOT HR, as they will only parrot that freshers are hired through campus placement. Find connections through college seniors who became A3 or SA at least. Ask them to connect you to their PA or help you connect with any other friend.

Target a few practice areas, learn basics and impress people in your chats. Don’t just say you’re looking for any job any where.

In your emails as well, ask for a chat and not for a job. Use it as an opportunity to make a connection.

"Labelled immediately"? I disagree. I don't think anyone in my team really knows or cares how long an intern is around for. People only give a shit about a specific intern if they come back with a good work product and you know you can reach out to them the next time you need help. I've sought extensions on behalf of tons of interns who've cared about the work they're putting out and who've been a huge help with urgent filings etc. To younger folks who are applying, good luck. Just do your best and be professional, that's all that any reasonable person expects from interns.

Hi, I am from a good private college and have a PPO from a T1 law firm in investment funds.

My brother lives in London, UK, so I want to join him after 2-3 years. I wanted to know the scope of lateral hiring in investment funds practice area outside India.

Thank you.

Last month I had an interview with the SA of the ELP. Typically I would rate my interview 7/10. Since, there was so many direct provisions asked, I completely agree I should've have gone through the surroundings provisions. It's been more than 2 weeks I haven't heard anything from that. I am super nervous and anxious. what should I do now?? should it take a follow-up for the same? Or should wait for some more time. What should I expect??? Please Help

Hi,

I am from LKS. Pay is indeed 14 (fixed) + bonus.

I don’t know who is being offered 9Lpa. Pay was revised w.e.f July 2024. You seem to be quite stuck at 9lpa for some reason, that was back in 2023. Get your facts straight and stop with the clash of colleges. Grow up.

T-1 NLU, top rank, decent profile. Day Z didn't work for me, now looking for opportunities. Does cold emailing partners even work or is this a futile exercise? Whenever I ask people around, they suggest that I 'directly' reach out to partners. I have been mailing HRs and have received rejections. Mind you I have mailed boutiques and not T-1s, which makes me wonder if should start mailing partners on their emails, applying to their teams directly? Would appreciate any help.

Hi guys, I just wonna say thank you to this platform for guiding me through out the law school. Now that I have graduated and got a job I have decided to give CAT next year (took mba kar le comment seriously XD. I don’t wonna work at firms and in house roles are great but as a lawyer the growth is stagnant when compared with MBA and Tech. So any one out there who can relate to my situation please don’t hesitate go for MBA without any second thoughts cuz law is never gonna change these firms are always gonna be shitty. No amount of pay can justify their shitty work culture and yes post MBA life isn’t gonna be all rainbow and sunshine but any better than law firms if done from a top B school. Thank you, hope for the best.