Last week's Bombay High Court judgment has sharpened the divide between those Indian law firms that want to keep foreign law firms out and those that want to let them in. Cyril Shroff, Managing Partner, Amarchand Mangaldas says, “The domestic law firms, which are not strong enough to face the competition and collapse, will be bought out for ridiculously low values.” Zia Mody, Managing Partner, AZB & PartnersI says, “I am not as opposed as my friend Cyril is!”
I'm curious to know what the situation currently is. Post the AMSS split into CAM and SAM, does Cyril still oppose the entry of foreign law firms? Are firms like his lobbying with the Modi govt?
Cyril Shroff does not care for smaller firms.I doubt he cares for any other firms, much less the smaller law firms. He's just using that argument because he does not want the competition but does not want to say it directly.I do like Zia Modys confidence.Liberalisation was good for India.Now its necessary for the legal industry also.
Don't allow the foreign firms in coz they will eat up the smaller firms.Solution - Allow me and only me to be the shark here to eat up the smaller firms, and then let my firm rule the legal industry while continuing to treat lawyers at my firm with no respect.
And this comes up now because?? Its not like the Bar Council has said yes to allowing phoren firms practice in India. The better question is... Why is the BCI opposed? If they dont, it they allow then others WILL fall in line. Whether Lala, Mummy, Alloo or Laloo or even motu chotu (if they still are relevant).
Domestic law firms will only seek to gain from phoren ones. No one will be able to come in on their own..case in point- Classis/ Clyde
The question of being bought out at a low value doesnt arise because the seller still has to agree.
If a law firm owner is confident of his business and reputation there is no reason to sell.
But of course Crill is not known to be a very honest speaker. So instead of saying "We are opposed to liberalization because it will bring in professionally run firms with less emphasis on impressing Bandana with their sycophancy or polishing his shoes, due to which all talent will run. Meanwhile work output will not be the toilet-paper opinions that I hatch all day so in the end clients will migrate too."
After all, if talent was equal would a GC still prefer Crill over an A&O India ??
If foreign law firms are allowed,it will end the slave work culture here.Lala shops will have to stop treating lawyers like labour.Achhe din kab ayenge?
Cyril will always oppose competition of all sorts.Hes not going to be able to compete with foreign law firms at all when he's having a hard time in competing with a firm like AZB.
Is there anything that can be done or any petitions that can be filed to amend the advocates act and allow foreign presence in the Indian Legal Industry?
Most companies in India will not want to work with foreign law firms, to save on legal bills and because India law firms can do fixing and corruption with Clifford Chance can't. Only MNC subsidiaries and a few classy people like Ratan Tata, Azim Premji and Adi Godrej will want to work with foreign law firms.
Adani and Ambani would be so amused by the comments of common citizens who have no access to the corridors of power in Lutyens, Delhi and vastly overestimate their influence especially now when the country is led by an all powerful man.
All-powerful man who is not brave enough to hold a proper press conference and stutters when it comes to naming China since year before last. Who has no idea how to handle a nationwide medical crisis. Who is busy building his tasteless mansion while letting a bulk of the population and the young to fend for themselves. Who despite having no verified educational qualification has the temerity to tell school students how to give exams.
Ever heard of the big 4 and what they did to the CA profession ? CAs draw a decent amount only because of the big 4 firms; the indian ones are still reluctant and despise the big 4.
In my opinion, the same should apply to the top legal firms in the country opposing law firms. It's high time we institutionalised the indian legal sector. Too many matters placed in the hands of very few, who end up creating all sorts of barriers.
It is high time that we stop few family owned firms to run (down) the legal industry.Far too much control vested and being misused and the futures of employees ruined.The legal industry ought not to be run in this manner.
India's nouveaux riche class like Cyril are hypocrites. Foreign capital is great but only as long as us i.e. the workers, unkay tukdo pay pulay i.e. work for peanuts.
They'd no problem with closing our economy after the Raj, hence our industries slowly becoming moribund, us missing the train on the post-war export boom, thus losing out to our backward contemporaries the now famous Asian tigers and our Sterling balances being spent. This economic illiteracy had unanimous bipartisan support.
Then when we were by God's grace, forced to open up, they we whined to Westerners to open up their markets but insisted that the same not apply to India. FDI was opposed tooth and nail well into the 2010s by the people in power now: https://archive.is/Y8UiN
Same for pharma. Billions have been earnt by 2 bit pharma barons, yet we mostly just export generics and cheap medicines in large volumes. Now of course they wanted the IP which in theory sounds great right?
The vast majority of Indians don't even have access to basic drugs. Those who do manage to scrap together their life savings end falling BPL. Hey who cares? Atleast we can send WhatsApp forwards about us manufacturing vaccines, as we now turn into net importers.
We have some of the worst duties in general on goods, including capital goods that we don't even manufacture like graphic cards and other similar electronic goods:
Of course these ill bred thugs will play the vicitm card. They don't give a damn about anyone, or anything. Concepts like society and duty are alien to them.
Harish Salve has strongly supported foreign law firm entry. He is much closer to Modi than Cyril is. I wish he suggests this to Modi when they meet next. I think Manan Mishra is a major obstacle.
I stand with Cyril Shroff. We are too fixated with foreign companies and should learn to love our own Indian companies. Nirav Modi proved that an Indian can also head a world class jewellery brand with shops in London and New York. Vijay Mallya and Subroto Roy proved that that Indians can also own F1 teams. Pan Bahar got Pierce Brosnan to model for them. Let's take pride in our home-grown Kohinoor diamonds. Aatma Nirbhar Bharat.
"Pehchan Kamyabi Ki" sounds like a perfect motto for CAM. I can literally picture that being displayed on a board outside the CAM office, alongside chillies and lemons to ward off bad luck and a swastika.
That's one ugly photo and ad of Pierce Brisbane.And that is also the real state of the legal industry because we allow a bunch of lalajis to control the legal sector.
Foreign firms will bring much more class and quality to the work output, will take away his clients easily and he will have a hard time retaining and recruiting talent.He won't get to monopolise government committees because these guys can bring much more reform to corporate governance.No one will want to "serve the family" because they will prefer to work at an actual law firm than a family kingdom.Hes obviously going to oppose foreign law firm entry.
Cyril Shroff will lobby to allow foreign law firms on trial basis for one year.Thsts because it will be easier for him to tgen coordinate with Watchell.Once the Adani scandal dies down, he will want the foreign law firm to go back.
Oh,the delicious irony.A man that lobbies against allowing foreign firms in India for years now weeps because he's out there hiring a much needed foreign law firm in the Adani scandal
Watchell has all of one office and I doubt their second would be in Noida/Lower Parel for 'a year' to liase with Cyril bhai or Adani. I get it, Cyril sucks and dissing on him is cathartic but kuch toh soch lar likha karo.
Quote: I'm curious to know what the situation currently is. Post the AMSS split into CAM and SAM, does Cyril still oppose the entry of foreign law firms? Are firms like his lobbying with the Modi govt?
http://www.nishithdesai.com/fileadmin/user_upload/pdfs/No_Foreigners_Please!.pdf
Domestic law firms will only seek to gain from phoren ones. No one will be able to come in on their own..case in point- Classis/ Clyde
If a law firm owner is confident of his business and reputation there is no reason to sell.
But of course Crill is not known to be a very honest speaker. So instead of saying "We are opposed to liberalization because it will bring in professionally run firms with less emphasis on impressing Bandana with their sycophancy or polishing his shoes, due to which all talent will run. Meanwhile work output will not be the toilet-paper opinions that I hatch all day so in the end clients will migrate too."
After all, if talent was equal would a GC still prefer Crill over an A&O India ??
In my opinion, the same should apply to the top legal firms in the country opposing law firms. It's high time we institutionalised the indian legal sector. Too many matters placed in the hands of very few, who end up creating all sorts of barriers.
They'd no problem with closing our economy after the Raj, hence our industries slowly becoming moribund, us missing the train on the post-war export boom, thus losing out to our backward contemporaries the now famous Asian tigers and our Sterling balances being spent. This economic illiteracy had unanimous bipartisan support.
Then when we were by God's grace, forced to open up, they we whined to Westerners to open up their markets but insisted that the same not apply to India. FDI was opposed tooth and nail well into the 2010s by the people in power now: https://archive.is/Y8UiN
Same for pharma. Billions have been earnt by 2 bit pharma barons, yet we mostly just export generics and cheap medicines in large volumes. Now of course they wanted the IP which in theory sounds great right?
Except Indians have worse death rates due to bad healthcare per 1 lac than our neighbours including Pakistan. See, "Table S5. Country results table" beginning from pp 9 in the Supplementary Material: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-67361831668-4/fulltext
The vast majority of Indians don't even have access to basic drugs. Those who do manage to scrap together their life savings end falling BPL. Hey who cares? Atleast we can send WhatsApp forwards about us manufacturing vaccines, as we now turn into net importers.
See: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/8/5/e018020
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0973703019872360
https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indias-161736-new-coronavirus-infections-are-worlds-highest-2021-04-13/
We have some of the worst duties in general on goods, including capital goods that we don't even manufacture like graphic cards and other similar electronic goods:
https://www.exportgenius.in/india-import-duty/tech
https://www.meity.gov.in/esdm/tariff
https://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/the-ineffectiveness-of-raising-tariffs-120092300052_1.html
Of course these ill bred thugs will play the vicitm card. They don't give a damn about anyone, or anything. Concepts like society and duty are alien to them.
https://www.legallyindia.com/law-firms/harish-salve-entry-of-foreign-lawyers-will-make-indian-lawyers-better-only-some-domestic-firms-oppose-20150425-5869