Judicial appointments from law firms (and from NLSIU Bangalore) are beginning to come thick and fast these days (relatively speaking), no doubt reflecting the growing maturity of both in India’s legal system.

On 25 March 2019, Suraj Govindaraj, partner at Bangalore-based Anup S Shah Law Firm, has been recommended for elevation to the Karnataka high court, according to the Supreme Court collegium’s notification.

He heads dispute resolution and intellectual property (IP) rights at the law firm.

The 1995 NLS graduate had been with the firm’s founder Anup Shah since 1997, and had joined AZB & Partners when the firms merged in Bangalore in 2009 (and remained with Shah when the two firms separated again in 2010).

His appointment from the law firm ranks follows Dua Associates Chennai partner Senthil Kumar Ramamoorthy, who was appointed to the Madras high court last month.

However, he is not the first from NLSIU Bangalore (or any national law school) to be laterally appointed to the bench. That distinction would go to 1996 alum Shekhar Bobby Saraf, who got the nod for the Calcutta high court in 2017.

We have reached out to Govindaraj for comment.

Shah confirmed his appointment, but declined to comment at this time.