Read 12 comments as:
Filter By
Is there truly a dearth of opportunities for someone that starts out in the IDT lit space?
Absolutely!!
Well the market is very stagnant in terms of litigation in IDT at the moment, this can be attributed because of many factors, including the fact that the GST Appellate Tribunal has not been constituted till date. And job opportunities were always very limited, post Covid the situation has become even worse, as there is virtually no rotation of resources in T-1 firms. My suggestion, if you get a job at LKS or ELP, then only think of venturing into this practice area. Else, stay away, you will be stuck in this practice area for good, I can vouch for that through personal experience. It is like quick sand the more time you spend, the more entangled and trap you get. Think carefully, before entering this space, and my suggestion if you have an option to choose any other practice, then do so, stay away from IDT at all cost.
That's scary
supposing one starts at one of these two firms in Customs, say. not GST. Where does one go from there?
You will be doing customs only. Stuck in that practice and virtually no other firm to switch. In-house opportunities are virtually non existent, and even if any opportunities open up, you’d require at least 5-7 years PQE. If you do GST Advisory, things can be a bit different and opportunities can be explored.
Ah, okay. What about switching to a different practice area? Feasible?
It is difficult if you spend too much time in the practice area. My advice, abort ship and try to search for opportunities as soon as possible. You don’t want to be branded as an IDT lawyer, if you want to switch practice areas. If you spend too much time on the practice area, the only way to get out is to do an LLM from abroad in some other discipline, I know of people who took this route to get out of IDT.
When the GST tribunal gets set up, do you think things would get better?
Not really, things might get better than they are currently. But, I don’t see any exponential growth. It won’t be like every firms will suddenly starts hiring in bulk. On the flip side you really can’t say how the work load will be, once the tribunal is formed. Might be that there can be a sudden surge of work for a limited time, because all the people who have received unfavourable orders will rush to file appeals because of limitation.
Extremely limited opportunities for switching firms. There are just two firms lks and elp. Its an area dominated by chartered accountants as well. Inhouse opportunities are almost ruled out as no one prefers hiring an idt lawyer. Instead, they prefer chartered accountants who can handle all commercial laws.
And compliances man. That is where lawyers lack and that is why they can’t get into any good companies.
Tax itself, as a practice area, is a silo. Those who do tax rarely do anything else. This cramps the mobility of resources in employment, exposure and clientele. On the upside, it is the easiest practice area to go independent and make good bucks. It is however soo much better than competition law or capital markets though, since IDT has scope for original legal thought and advocacy. IDT is especially grueling because of the steep learning curve and the constant influx of case laws and subordinate legislations. Consider your options carefully before you jump into the swift current of IDT.
Completely agree, except the fact that going independent in this practice is not so easy as you think. Just imagine that buck of the work, say around 60-70% is controlled by just one single firm, how difficult will it be to find work, that too independently when the market for this practice area is in a slump. You need to be very well connected to go independent and strive in this practice area.