Law firms

FoxMandal Little and French international firm Gide Loyrette Nouel won the government's mandate to take Manganese Ore (India) Ltd (MOIL) to its initial public offering (IPO) by putting in the lowest bid-price yet compared to recent disinvestments.

J Sagar Associates (JSA) has won a Bombay High Court order for its long-standing client MCX Stock Exchange, which ordered the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), which was represented by Mumbai law firm K Ashar & Co, to make a decision on whether to allow MCX to become a full-fledged stock exchange.

Bhasin & Co won a favourable verdict for its longstanding clients Apollo Hospitals that absolved the hospital company of any criminal liability for the individual negligent act of its doctor because mens rea or guilty intention cannot be ascribed to a company which is only a juristic person.

Amarchand Mangaldas' Delhi office and Dorsey & Whitney have won the bid on the Hindustan Copper divestment while Khaitan & Co bagged the underwriter's mandate.

Amarchand also won the role for the underwriters on the mammoth Coal India stake sale with Ashurst as international counsel while Luthra had won the tender to advise the company.

Trilegal is awaiting a response from the Bar Council of India (BCI) on whether the firm is allowed to convert to a limited liability partnership (LLP) under the Advocates Act, as start-up Vidhii Partners vowed to convert to LLP in two months and Luthra & Luthra, Nishith Desai Associates, IndusLaw and at least eight other firms have reserved respective LLP names.

Amarchand, Luthra & Luthra, Khaitan & Co and Trilegal have all ramped up their basic starter pay above Rs 10 lakhs, with offered packages including bonuses now running up to Rs 15 lakh at the top end.

The government appears to have scrapped plans to move the Chennai writ petition against 31 foreign law firms to the Supreme Court, as law firms Dua Associates and Kachwaha & Partners alongside a raft of senior counsel appeared for nine US firms, Slaughter and May, the LPO Integreon, and two Australian firms.

The petitioner's plea for an injunction against the foreign firms was stayed for two weeks until the government and foreign firms could formulate responses.

Luthra & Luthra jointly topped Legally India's quarterly IPO league tables for the first time alongside Amarchand Mangaldas over the first quarter of the 2010-11 financial year with five mandates each while AZB & Partners slotted into third place.

Platinum Partners Mumbai office has hired a senior lawyer from White & Case in Singapore to bulk up its second layer of corporate fee-earners in the young office.

Kochhar & Co has entered into two best-friend alliances with law firms in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the firm said in a press release.

Two offices of AZB & Partners acted on opposite sides of a Chinese Wall for private equity investor Matrix India and gold loan company Muthoot Finance in a 4 per cent investment totalling Rs 157 crore with Luthra & Luthra advising second investor Baring Private Equity Partners India.