India has one of the largest legal profession set-ups in the world, fittingly sitting alongside the world’s largest democracy. Which means disruption, doubts, and delays caused by Covid-19 were exacerbated in this market more than most others. Hiring activity remained busy throughout, however, and it will be fascinating to see whether such activity continues in a more stable economy.
The pandemic is also throwing up new areas of work as companies grapple with supply chain complications, revisit contractual obligations that cannot be met, exercise force majeure clauses and come to grips with derailed deals. Legal advisers and their clients, like others, are adapting to this rapidly changing environment and its accompanying challenges – working from home, pushing transactions across the finish line, and attending virtual court hearings.
India’s central government has announced a series of relaxations and stimulus packages to help vulnerable sections of the population and ease the burden felt by India Inc. However, since May, the government has devolved power to the states and union territories, which are free to impose whatever restrictions they believe are necessary in order to flatten the curve and reduce the spread of the virus. Indian and international companies with a presence across India are struggling as a result to decide the way forward, as one state could ease restrictions while another introduces new limitations to tackle the crisis. Indian businesses and their legal advisers are finding ways to cope – familiarizing themselves with new regulations, reducing overheads, reprioritizing business goals, and thinking innovatively about possible strategies to survive the pandemic and all the uncertainty it brings.
Recent Senior Moves in India – 2020 (In-house)
Name |
Moved from |
Moved to |
Tejal Patil |
GE - Group GC South Asia |
Oyo - India/ South Asia Legal Head |
Parveen Mahtani |
Tata Housing - Head Legal & Compliance |
Mahindra Lifespaces - Chief Legal Officer |
Vinayak Mishra |
Algo Legal - Partner |
Lightspeed India - SEA Legal Chief |
Aditya Bhardwaj |
IDFC - Vice President of Legal |
Link Legal - Partner |
Alice George |
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas - Partner |
Essar Ports - General Counsel |
John Thaliath |
GE Research - Senior Counsel |
GE - Group GC South Asia |
Devdas Baliga |
GSK - EVP Legal, India Subcontinent |
Bayer - Country Group Head Legal |
Varsha Choudhary Jain |
GSK - General Manager - Legal |
Unilever - Head Legal, Nutrition |
Ishita Kapur |
Diageo - VP Legal |
Roundglass - GC |
Shruti Zota |
Talwar Thakore & Associates - Partner |
GSK Pharma - General Counsel, EVP Legal |
Ami Parikh |
AZB - Partner |
Experian India - Head Legal & Compliance |
Sapan Gupta |
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas - Partner |
ArcelorMittal Group - General Counsel |
Vedant Shukla |
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas - Partner |
Aditya Birla Group - Head Global M&A, Legal |
Raju Dodti |
L&T Finance - GC |
L&T Finance - CEO |
Contributor: Mudita Valakati (Senior Researcher, Hughes-Castell)