Relax. He will be in this position for another 3 years or so (till September 25, 2029) which is when his second term ends. At best, the NLSIU Executive Council (EC) might give him an extension for a few months to complete the ongoing construction projects or if the selection process for the next Vice-Chancellor gets dragged for some reason. The real question is who will (or should) succeed him in 2029? While the NLSIU Alumni Association may want another alumnus (such as Prof. Arun Kumar Thiruvengadam, Prof. Mrinal Satish or Prof. N.S. Nigam), there will likely be intense lobbying for this position as the NLSIU Executive Council (EC) has representation from Supreme Court Judges, Bar Council of India (BCI), Government of Karnataka and the NLSIU Faculty. Each of these constituencies tends to push and pull in different directions when it comes to the appointment of the Vice-Chancellor.

There are no corruption charges against him. Only some wild accusations made by clueless students on social media who do not understand how University finances work. There is legitimate criticism against the scale and speed of his expansion plan and the consequent problems such as overcrowding in the hostels. To be fair to the University, they have expanded the off-campus housing options and students from the postgraduate programmes and older batches should see that as the norm for the next 2-3 years. The construction of new hostels in the 7 acre plot (next to Ambedkar School of Economics) is the immediate challenge and he is doing the rounds with government officials and private donors to raise funds. It is evident as day-light that the ongoing redevelopment of the Academic Blocks (OAB and NAB) will take another year or so.

On the Rhodes Scholarships, I have personally interacted with both of the students from NLSIU who have secured them in 2025 and 2026 respectively. They have won the scholarship because of their authenticity, academic excellence and motivation. Let us not insult these bright young people by claiming that Sudhir 'lobbied' for them. In fact, the 2026 Rhodes Scholar was at the forefront of the recent student protests about hostel issues.

On academic standards, current NLSIU students can crib and complain as much as they like. The fact is that NLSIU now has the best possible faculty composition under Indian conditions. They still have to learn how to co-ordinate better for multi-section teaching and give more time to the students outside the classroom. Even Sudhir's worst critics accept that he has done a remarkable job with faculty hiring. The trick was simple. Hold selections for faculty positions every year and select people based on teaching requirements. On this count, the work done over the last 7 years (and counting) will outlast his two terms as NLSIU Vice-Chancellor.

I wanted to understand the scope of LegalTech within Indian law firms, particularly in Tier-1 firms that have digital innovation or legal innovation teams. How do these teams typically function, and what kind of work do they handle?

Also, would it be advisable to combine a LegalTech focus with a TMT practice, similar to the model followed by teams such as Nikhil Narendran's at Trilegal? Do you see long-term growth and opportunities in this intersection of technology law and legal innovation?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Try the GNLU course on the capital markets and securities law, if you perform well you might secure an internship with a top tier firm in the capital markets practice and even if you are not able to secure an internship, you will be able to network with like minded individuals

Hey,

Can you please drop a good list of law firms with Corporate and Commercial Teams in Pune- such firms which accept freshers without any Corporate internships and offer exposure to good work! I'm looking to begin work in corporate and have strong academic records, just that i lack Corporate law firm internships. I have mailed the top firms but have not received a response. Please consider this post as a call for help and if you could drop responsive email id of such firms/H.R, I would be more than grateful!

I remember reading a political/spy thriller book jointly written by Hillary Clinton and the Canadian author Louise Penny, in which the present-day (from the book's perspective) U.S. Secretary of State and her closest aid go to interview the Secretary of State's boss's predecessor as President of the U.S., a Trump-like character. Someone says in that interview, "I am only here for the sex". The Secretary of State thinks, "God, if you're listening, take me now!".

That's what I thought when I read this comment: "God, if you're listening, take me now". Even the country from which we basically borrowed our advocate regulation system, England, does not have this stupid policy you're suggesting in place. While the trainee barristers there are doing their work-based training, known as pupillage, they get paid by their seniors - that's one of the reasons chambers are so cautious about hiring international students, because they are afraid that the int'l student will do pupillage, make their pupil supervisor sacrifice part of a year's income and then go back. So even if a half-dying, godforsaken country like Britain does not do this shit (at least for a while), why should we?

Wanted to know if there are any employment and compliance in house counsels on this blog, and if anyone would kindly share any known good recruiters/firms that are specialised in hiring for this role?

I'm a 2+ PQE in house counsel in the employment team at an MNC. I don't see many postings about this role in other companies and am unsure how to go forward in finding my next job. Any advise would be welcome.

from wht I cud get to knw, it's only 1 vacancy that is in GC team which is original, rest not sure. GC team bcoz one of my frnds at a4 level is quitting. He was suppsd to bcum a SA this year. He is a smart guy who had a very good job b4 this and was goin to be SA easily by now. I ▮▮▮but I am not sure abt the pay so cannot cnfrm right now.

Yeah why not officially give a statement via the Supreme Court website that non privileged people should not enter litigation and that it should be reserved for the elites only.

It's statements like these which has made exploitation in the legal profession an unquestionable norm.

I’ve done a course with them before and it was overall worth it. It had a decent mix of concepts and practical material. If you’re specifically looking at RERA and DD, it could be relevant depending on what you want to learn.

The intern-made content criticism doesn’t really tell you much by itself. A lot of platforms involve interns in content creation. However, at the end only the good quality ones are published.

Given the limited figures of your expenses, i think you are better off with renting in the city right now. Use the saved up money to buy an empty plot land near smaller city or your hometown. let that value appreciate for some years and then use that amount to buy a proper flat if you really want.

First of all, let be clear. This is not an NRI quota, it's a quota for Indian nationals and residents who can't make it to the merit list. Pretty much all of them are GC. So you have a chunk of GC students coming through and adding to the GCs who already dominate the merit list and EWS list. So the opportunity for SC/ST/OBC students shrinks. Also, OBC students are excluded from the OBC quota if they fall under creamy layer. So you have the following categories of students who are falling behind:

1. Non-EWS OBCs who don't clear the merit list or NRI list (they don't qualify for OBC reservation because of the creamy layer rule)

2. Non-EWS SC/STs who don't clear the merit list or NRI list of SC/ST list

In other words, a non-EWS GC is sneaking in through NRI quota, but a non-EWS SC/ST/OBC can't get in if he/she can't clear the NRI quota cut-off. But an non-EWS SC/ST/OBC is likely to have attended good school, speak English well etc. They will definitely do well with a GNLU or NUJS degree. You are hindering their ambitions. Now if you have 50% SC/ST/OBC reservation in the NRI list with a lower cut-off , that allows them a way into NLUs and solves the problem. Also improves diversity within NLUs.

I not able to find good internships in Bengaluru, most of the firms are said to be in Bengaluru. Also, when I search for firms dealing with these areas its mostly showing tier 1 firms who mostly dont accept the application within the same day or they dont even reply unless you have any connection as i am from private university not NLU.

I've always found this argument stupid. Existence of one flawed system does not justify the existence of another. We all know that the NRI Sponsored quota is a glorified management quota (none of them are actual NRIs).

Caste quotas at least claim to correct historical injustice and have a rational nexus. What injustice are you trying to correct here???

Them having high GPAs does not change the fact that their admission is based on a systemic loophole that the Supreme Court, on several counts, has branded as "unconstitutional".

For all you know the student who missed NALSAR by 1 rank might have been the next Rhodes Scholar; how are these rich brats more deserving?

Tired and fed up of the constant BS that you guys spew to defend this crap. This forum is obsessed with justifying mediocrity.

Could anyone here suggest in house places for lawyers, interested in IP Law, with core departments such as trademark prosecution in Bangalore. Would really be helpful if anyone could guide on the pay scale, and any fine places for beginners who had no in house experience in the past, and places that are likely to invite freshers or persons with 1PQE>. Any suggestions for any list of company/ organisation, or other thoughts on it? or any other place down south. How about Ahmedabad?

Guess who's at the bottom the rank list at nliu lol. Whining baby doesn't understand the meaning of "exceptional circumstances" because of which placements dipped for the last batch. Go check the previous placement records of nliu then laugh at your comment of "tier 1.5/2"

Yes! I did it 8 years ago and a better path unfolded after I took the first move of exiting that nonsense world! I am more experienced now, happier, more connected to work. Maybe less money in savings that others who stayed on, but I earn more than I need, and most importantly, I get to spend it on a good life. Quit it and move on. After a small holiday, the only advice I have for you is to make a proper plan and then start working on that. Remember that hope is not a plan. And when in doubt invest in upskilling.

All the best! We only live in the moments of change!

Respectfully OP, you sound extremely entitled and privileged. You say that there is a risk of alienating the people we have mailed, but if the partners are not even opening the mails and seeing the name of the sender, how would they be alienated? By your own logic there is literally no risk. Furthermore, you first say that internships are assessed on merit, and after that you conveniently say that the ratio is higher for people with connections. We all know that the ratio is higher for people with connections. 90% of internships at the biggest firms are secured through connections rather than merit. I am not blaming you for the way this works, but it is very disingenuous to be complaining about receiving spam and attempting to frame yourself as a victim.

Before Sudhir and even during his tenure, students from other law schools have got Rhodes too. NLSIU's reputation hasn't been built by Sudhir at all. It was already built by the time he had taken over. He has done several things, some bad for the institution, others good. But by no means is he the Messiah. I don't believe the allegations of corruption though.

For good or for worse, it would be a very different institution without Sudhir.

1. There would still be batches of 80 in BALLB. The program would not have expanded. New programs like LLB (3 year) and BA (Hons) wouldn't have started.

2. There wouldn't be hiring of so many faculties and so many faculties would not have migrated from different institutions to NLSIU.

3. The campus redesign and reconstruction wouldn't have happened.

4. There would be a lot of money still being swindled in different forms. That has been stopped to a large extent. We also wouldn't have JSW grants or Luthra Grant that we recieved.

The batchsize of 80, with very few faculty would ensure its a close knit institution. Academic rigour would be much lesser.

do not listen to folks who are saying find a backup, the longer you stay the more harmful it would be for yourself. Understand your job although important is just one aspect of your life. Even if there is no backup you can easily find another job, heck even if you have difficulties in finding it’s absolutely fine considering you are young this eve ln might give you space to thing something else than switching again and remaining stuck in this rut forever.

So true, Classes are fewer in number compared to other responsibilities, and it seems to be more about publications and building rapport outside rather than supporting the faculty, something I found a bit unusual. As a new faculty member, it felt quite challenging and, at times, almost like a form of torture from the seniors. I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. Wishing all the best to those working there!

Saw the managing partner post a few openings last week. While that should ideally mean that they're expanding, I've learnt that it's instead because of their attrition. What was supposed to build into a top tier boutique firm has been reduced to a 10 member team in all as per their own website.

Given their state of affairs, are they planning to bump up their pay this time? Last I check on this platform, it was running at ~20-25% lower than t-1s at all levels. They aspired to be competing with Trilegal at some point. But to draw such talent, is the pay really as competitive?

Also, are the supposed openings actually true or is it just a farce to show they are hiring? What's the work hours like lately especially at mid level? Does the pay differ across teams? Bonus? Want to understand if it's lucrative enough for someone looking for an exit from a well-paying big 6 job to apply here. Could someone with a clearer picture about the place please help? Thank you.

Shubhankar Dam is not an academic comparable with Sudhir. He is FAR BETTER than Sudhir. Please compare the quality of publications by both of them. However, Shubhankar will never be VC because he is completely outspoken and completely honest. He does not network or suck up to people. He does not seek fame or fortune, he only wants academic recognition.

There's tons of similar threads on reddit and other places, but curious to get a sense of the oldies (30+) on here about your thoughts on buying a flat in Mumbai (or Bangalore/Delhi). Is it worth it? When did you buy and for how much?

I have saved up about 1Cr for the flat but the destination still seems far away. You don't find anything good (1200 sq ft) for less than 6cr nowadays and for couples where both are not earning partner salaries I have no idea how people are affording 4-5lakh EMIs, especially with a child in int school and annual holidays. Am I just better off renting my 3bhk for 1.7L instead?

Let's exchange notes.

What keeps India’s hereditary elites perennially relevant is not some extraordinary reservoir of talent, but the sort of unquestioning reverence embodied in messages like yours. People such as yourself are not innocent bystanders to nepotism; you are its indispensable accomplices. You confer distinction where none has been demonstrably earned, and then wonder why mediocrity wrapped in pedigree continues to flourish.

Let us separate fact from fantasy.

I have no difficulty conceding that:

A. He seems a perfectly agreeable chap .. a chip off the old block, perhaps.

B. He can articulate a reasonably coherent argument in fluent English.

Fine. But civilisation has never regarded basic competence and good manners as qualifications for greatness.

What he manifestly is not, however, is:

A. A leading Indian jurist.

B. A distinguished or internationally renowned figure in arbitration.

These are not titles to be bestowed out of filial affection or social deference. They are earned through an exceptional body of work, landmark cases, scholarly influence, and international recognition. So by all means, produce the facts, the figures, the accolades, the jurisprudential contributions. Where are they?

Or are we once again expected to mistake a surname for substance?

One of the more depressing features of Indian public life is this almost feudal instinct to prostrate oneself before inherited prestige. Merit is assumed, excellence imputed, eminence proclaimed .. all because the right genes and the right dinner invitations are involved. That may satisfy the courtiers. It does not constitute evidence.

Becoming a barrister or solicitor in the United Kingdom, even armed with a Cambridge degree and all the attendant prestige it confers, does not, by any stretch of the imagination, place one on the same plane as a truly accomplished and renowned Senior Advocate. To suggest otherwise is not merely an error of judgment; it is to diminish and trivialise a designation whose stature has been earned through decades of distinction, not bestowed by academic branding or foreign qualification.

As for your rather careless invocation of the term “chapri”, one is entitled to ask precisely what, or whom, you had in mind. The category remains conveniently nebulous. Are you referring to JGLS? To the Faculty of Law, GLC or ILS? To NLS and the other NLUs? Or perhaps to Nirma, LPU, Amity and their ilk? The ambiguity is striking. If you intend to cast aspersions, have the courage and intellectual honesty to do so plainly. Come clean. Vagueness is often the refuge of those unwilling to defend the implications of their own words.

You really want to know about people getting jobs in the nation whose working population are cancelling or moving to online mode previously-arranged meetings because they are gonna experience 38 Degrees C weather in a few days? I am there right now, writing from London as I have received five requests to postpone or meet folks online. (Mind, I am not one to talk, as I live there full time.) Don't waste your time on a nation whose people have lost their sense of national character. They are no longer the nation whose representatives ruled the earth for 200 years. They are the nation who are finally experiencing what the rest of us experience and are letting people with greater tenacity walk over their faces.

ur concern is fair; however, the cutoffs going down by 50-100 ranks is the least of anyone's concern. The opinion of CLAT aspirants on NLU rankings is of no real value and does not affect anything; what matters is the opinion of the bar/firms and partners/ and NIRF to some extent, all of which still place NUJS ahead of NLUJ/GNLU/NLIU. In any case, there is no serious difference in merit between most students below AIR 500 in CLAT, just some who got more lucky on D-Day.

I'm a working professional and a mom to 3 year old in Chennai (shift 4pm to 2am, WFH 3 days in a week), 27 years old, B.Com CS graduate, interested in doing CS Executive and eventually a 3-year LLB. Looking for offline coaching with flexible morning timings (post 9:30 AM). Has anyone done both CS and LLB simultaneously or sequentially? Which Chennai institutes offer genuinely flexible morning batches for CS Executive?

SAM looks better on your profile and will get you more exposure. If getting hired is your sole intent, then there isn't a straight answer. TTA is known to offer PPOs based off a single internship. SAM, on the other hand, will force you to call-back, and has a more competitive process. Plus SAM will have a bigger pool of meritorious interns, so you will have to outperform them too. Although the team there is bigger too, and has more hirings. Evaluate your profile, your team's structure, and your purpose out of the internship. Objectively, still, SAM would appear a better shot (unless you are one of those 2/3 week referral interns).

There are institutes like NLIU which have lost a lot of their legacy because of an incompetent admin and VC. Then there's GNLU, which has been climbing solely on the admin's back. There's also NUJS, who despite having a terrible fate with VCs has managed to hold its post, credit to its students. But NLSIU seems to blessed with both - sharpest students in the country, and a VC that, at least to an outsider, appears the most competent as well. An alma, scholar, lobbyist- he's been there with everything.

There's a lot of hate that NLS receives, both from it's own students because of how hectic life is there, and from outsiders, largely due to their envy. The former generally pin it on Sudhir, who also saw protests against him recently (questionable if they fixed anything). But it makes one wonder if NLS would hold on to the tag of the best law school in the country if not for him.

Do NLS grads think they would be better off without him? Why, or why not? We've also heard he's had corruption charges against him- are any of it substantial? What about Rhodes, which ONLY NLS students are able to bag because of his lobbying? Or the funds that keep pouring in because of his contacts? Is there any possibility he'd leave or be thrown out in the near future, or is he here to stay for another couple of decades?

Just my personal opinion: I'm not sure if any of the proper T1 names would be willing to dilute their already established identity and market reputation. The marginal gain for Indus on the other hand was greater as it was not as established as CAM / SAM / KCO / Tri etc they didn't mind a little dilution of their own brand given edge credibility gained due to association with the CMS brand. Whereas, the larger T1 firms don't need to do that to gain credibility, so there is no really compelling reason for them enter into such arrangements.

long term in-house career is good if you do not plan to shift to law firms or are likely to move outside India. last 2 editions hired 10-15 folks each. trivandrum is a down side but considering the pay is low, it's your best shot to live in a cheaper city, than bangalore. make sure you make a move right when you complete 2 years.

I have 4 years of tier I law firm experience (general corporate/mergers & acquisitions) and then joined in-house for 1 year and eventually quit and decided to move back to law firms. I have been actively looking for law firm opportunities for the last 4 months, yet I haven't received a single interview call. I have tried applying through different headhunters to various firms as well as through personal contacts I have made in laws firms previously and yet nothing. A couple of times I was given interview dates, couple of partners showed interest but then it was either postponed or I never heard back from them (not rejecting, just silence). I don't know what is happening.

It's fine – the people commenting are bitter. This is a red herring. The issue was autonomy at the top. The issue of gender was propped up as a cudgel against those seeking more freedom. Trilegal has a healthy number of women lawyers now, even in the competition team with two female partners. Ignore snide remarks.

Nowhere other than in delhi do the chambers pay juniors. I have never understood this concept of paying juniors by the chamber senior. It kills their growth. This delhi system needs to be done away with. The traditional bombay-calcutta-madras system is way better for growth. Juniors should not be paid by their chamber seniors but rather by clients

Ranting here on Legally India because how long can one keep venting to friends?

I am a 2026 graduate from a good university and have been trying my best to secure a job for the past year.

I sat for a pre-placement offer interview around 4–5 months ago and was rejected. I interviewed for an in-house position through college and was rejected there as well. I sent countless cold emails, managed to land an interview with a Tier-2 law firm, and got rejected again. The frustrating part is that the interview actually went really well.

At this point, I genuinely do not know what else to do. Every rejection makes me feel like I am disappointing myself, my family, and everyone who believed in me. I keep trying different approaches, but nothing seems to be working.

Is anyone else in the same boat? More importantly, which corporate law firms are actually hiring Associate 0s right now?

Any leads, advice, or even shared experiences would be appreciated because I am honestly feeling quite lost.

This isn't a marketing post but what's the deal with this platform? Saw a lot of people on LinkedIn with unknown universities and no internships getting a direct T-1 internships and placements in Transactions and Cap Marks teams just after being associated with this platform. I just want to know how?

Saw someone mention that a student who got a dayz offer had a strong recommendation from the partner/team they interned under.

How exactly does this work? If you've interned with a particular team, received very positive feedback from them, but did not receive a PPO (hiring freeze) is there still a possibility of being hired by that same team through dayz recruitment or will you end up getting hired by a different team?

Hey! Wanted to know what the general/average packages Disputes freshers can expect are – (SAM, CAM, Khaitan, Indus, Keystone, JSA, Trilegal, AZB, S&R, Argus) and allied firms but preferably these. Generally, if one can tell me what an avg package is and what a reasonable growth rate is, that would be helpful!

How do T-1 or T-2 law firm partners do this grind month after month, year after year, with no respite? Money yes, but having the nervous system on fight or flight mode constantly has immeasurable detrimental impacts on health. Also for those who have kids and who 'pretend' to be 'involved' parents, how really? Seeing your kid 1 hour per weekday?

In other words, will this help in attracting future students, or in boosting reputation among employers and the public (perhaps affecting NIRF perception score)? Or will people be sceptical and ask what about the other students? How about giving full figures?

Should other NLUs follow and indulge in such marketing too?