It’s almost impressive how confidently you spout half-baked nonsense masquerading as fact. You throw around names like HN Salve and Mukul Rohatgi as if that somehow proves your point. Do you even understand how statistics work? You are citing the absolute 0.01% and then pretending that’s representative of litigation as a whole. Salve’s income is about as relevant to the average litigator as Mukesh Ambani’s is to your neighborhood shopkeeper. But sure, keep deluding yourself that one senior counsel’s tax filings from 2011 somehow form a credible basis for career advice in 2025.

The funniest part is how desperately you try to flex with these overblown billing figures. You are so eager to sound like you’re in the know that you didn’t stop to ask whether the average litigator in any High Court is even remotely close to that income bracket. Spoiler: they aren’t. For every designated senior arguing in Court 1, there are hundreds slogging through 10,000-rupee adjournment matters with no guarantee of payment, no insurance, no paid leave, and no career stability. But let me guess you don’t see those people. Or you pretend they don’t exist, because acknowledging them would shatter your little illusion that litigation is the one true path to glory.

Your contempt for corporate law is laughable, especially coming from someone who clearly has zero understanding of what the job entails. No, corporate lawyers aren’t “glorified clerks.” They’re the ones drafting, negotiating, and structuring billion-dollar transactions that keep entire industries running. They don’t spend their days chasing clients for appearance fees or praying that a junior gets thrown a few briefs at the end of the month. They have global exposure, intellectual complexity, and yes—far more financial stability than the average litigator can dream of until year 10, if ever. But you wouldn’t know, because your idea of comparison is built entirely on billing myths and anecdotal bragging rights.

And then there’s the rich irony of you calling yourself a nepo kid who’s joining a senior’s chamber—while lecturing others about grit and success. Do you hear yourself? You are the very product of the privilege you're pretending doesn’t matter. Of course you can afford to wait it out in litigation for five years, you have the safety net. That doesn’t make you a warrior. It makes you sheltered. You're standing on a platform someone else built and yelling at people who took the elevator because they didn’t have the time or money to wait on your slow-moving staircase.

Your whole rant reeks of insecurity, not insight. You are not defending litigation you’re trying to justify your own path by tearing down everyone else’s. You know why? Because deep down, you’re unsure. If you were really convinced of your choices, you wouldn’t need to screech about how corporate lawyers are clerks and how you’re destined to “make it big.” You’d let your work speak. But you can’t. So you compensate with hollow bravado, exaggerated billing numbers, and a tired superiority complex.

At the end of the day, the only real difference between a litigator and a corporate lawyer is delivery - one argues it out loud, the other writes it down. That’s it. Don’t confuse articulation with superior intellect. Just because a litigator knows how to sound convincing in a courtroom doesn’t mean they understand the law better than someone who structures billion-dollar transactions, navigates regulatory minefields, or drafts airtight agreements that hold up in international arbitration. A voice in court doesn’t make you the custodian of legal wisdom. it just means you are good at performance. And performance isn’t law.

So here's the truth: litigation is not better than corporate, and corporate is not better than litigation. They are different paths, suited to different skill sets, personalities, and goals. Your problem is that you think your choice is the only one that matters. That level of arrogance doesn’t make you a serious professional, it makes you a cautionary tale. Keep pretending you’re better than everyone else. The rest of us will keep building careers without having to scream into the void to feel validated.

You clearly have some long-standing beef with corporate law. it shows up in almost every post you make.

First, yes, corporate law isn’t perfect. The hours are tough. Early-stage work can feel repetitive. You don’t build personal brand equity as fast as a litigator might.

And fulfillment may lag in the first few years. So fair criticism? Sure.

But calling corporate lawyers “clerks” just shows how little you actually understand the depth of what they do. You tell me can you handle this?

1. Draft a shareholders' agreement that balances drag, tag, ROFR, and anti-dilution all within SEBI and FEMA constraints?

2. File an FC-GPR on the FIRMS portal within the RBI’s Master Direction on Reporting under FEMA 395?

3. Advise on the upstream and downstream investment rules under FEMA 20(R) and explain when pricing guidelines apply and when they don’t?

4. Structure a transaction that complies with Schedule I (foreign investment), Schedule IX (convertible notes), or Schedule VI (rights issues)?

5. Navigate the SEBI (PIT) Regulations, handle insider trading risk assessments, and balance it with the SAST takeover norms?

6. Or even draft a compounding application under FEMA, citing the correct AP (DIR Series) Circulars and RBI compounding manual?

Because this is daily work for corporate lawyers.
This is not “clerical.” It’s real legal strategy involving risk, regulation, and millions of dollars on the line.

Second why are you so obsessed with corporate law?

If litigation is so fulfilling and lucrative, why do you keep dragging corporate lawyers into every rant?

You sound less like a confident litigator and more like someone who’s still trying to convince himself he made the right choice. Secure litigators, real ones, who are doing well,don’t spend their time putting down other practice areas. They’re too busy working and winning.

Third whether you like it or not, corporate lawyers earn more on average.

7–10 PQE corporate lawyers at Tier-1 firms: ₹70L to ₹1.2Cr.
Salaried partners: ₹1Cr to ₹2.5Cr.
Equity partners: ₹4Cr to ₹10Cr+.
In-house GCs: ₹80L to ₹2Cr+ with stock options, ESOPs, and weekends off.

Compare that with litigators: Most spend the first 5–7 years earning less than a first-year law firm associate.
A few make it big. Most don't. And even designated seniors get their clients through — surprise — corporate law firms. You think your Senior is flooded with SC briefs because of random walk-ins? No. It’s the same firms and corporate clients you are mocking that bring them the matters in the first place.

My friend, litigators and corporate lawyers exist in different ecosystems. Both are difficult. Both require brains, grit, and consistency. But if you need to drag down another profession just to validate your own it says more about your self-doubt than about the field you are attacking. Maybe you are just bitter that you are a nepo kid watching a first-year law firm associate out-earn you. Keep obsessing over Salve and Rohatgi with this attitude — you are never getting anywhere close.

You have any proof of the same? Well, I do. Some law reports of HN Salve show he was earning close to 100cr a year in 2011 or so. By law reports i mean he challenged it before the income tax tribunal or something. That's 15 years ago. Mukul Rohatgi, and a few other seniors like Sibal charge 16.5L to 20L a hearing. A retired Madras HC judge who practices in the SC - I've seen his billing too, 3cr a month. For the first two, aram se it would be over 100cr a year. The latter? 30cr a year. atleast.

Sure, these are the top tier A-grade lawyers. Now, tell me, which of the top tier A grade law firm partners, even the ones who have their names on the wall, earn so much? They'll be earning no more than 50% of it.

Sure, you'd say these are the cream of the cream. But go, see any lawyer who's doing well in any HC[that's my criteria, since at the principal seat of most HCs, most mid-top tier law firms would be there], who's say, 15-20 years in practice. The worst of them would be charging what? 15-20k an appearance? Desginated would be charging say 40-80k an appearance? With even 4 appearances a day, which is reasonable, that'd be 50k-2L a day, not including conference fees/opinions/outstation matters/arbitration etc. 5 days a week, that's 2.5L a week to 10L. A month? That's 10L to 40L a month. Given 10 months, its 1Cr to 4cr. How much would their equivalents in a law firm earn at that stage? 1cr? Perhaps, but hardly, and very rare. Add to that - the partners won't have their names on the wall, and their fee growth trajectory won't be as high as that of a litigation lawyer. There you go. Real facts.

You corporate people do nothing but clerical job. You guys are glorified clerks who do nothing but document reviews and a desk job. Now let's talk about nepo. Yes, i am one. But guess what? I'm joining a first gen's chamber, who made it big. Guess what? All his batchmates made it big in litigation, all non-nepos. Not even a rich family background. I'm joining him. And guess what these poeple have in common? The same opinion as me.

Get it thru your head - corporate work is useless in terms of satisfaction, and much later, in terms of money. You wanna be a glorified clerk, go ahead. No one's stopping you. Anyone, in law, who has some family background, and can afford to have their family sustain themselves for 3-5 years, should get into litigation. They'll make it big surely. Please don't go around misinforming people.

The life is dry but 20 years into practice, you can easily earn 5-6 crores a year. If you're a rainmaker, then double that figure. Despite the work being mind numbing, it gives you money for doing a job which is easier than other similar high paying professions. Luxury cars, vacations, living in 2-3L a month rented apartments in Bombay, designer clothes, fancy restaurants are some of the things that can be accessed only through a lawfirm career.

We are entering the phase when Gen X is taking over the top leadership of firms and Gen Y all join them in another decade.

But sadly Gen X and Gen Y have continued the toxicity of boomers. Both these generations also look down on Gen Z and make sarcastic comments about us.

Traditionally, solicitors have drafted conveyancing and transaction documents. If you wish to learn how each word in a drafted document matters, solicitor articleship is about the only way to learn. No organisation or law school teaches conveyancing properly, hence you see badly drafted property contracts across India. That's also why Bombay's property transaction documents are considered the gold standard in India. Similar expertise extends to other agreements, but new age firms prefer American style contract drafts in M&A etc is another story for another time.

Also, most solicitor also do litigation apart from transactions. If you want a unique blend of training in litigation and drafting training (particularly in property transactions and litigation), Bombay solicitor training is the best way to go.

Two pillars of BILS solicitor exams are Company Law and Conveyancing. I doubt there is anything out there that tests knowledge of these two aspects in such depth and rigour. No wonder most solicitors are either advising or sitting on the boards of top companies in India. For example, an old school firm's top partner was on the board of Reliance until he passed away.

You will see that Bombay legal culture is very similar to English law culture in everything. It's a par excellence option given Bombay economic primacy and its famed meritocracy across sectors. Note that CAM, SAM and AZB all are Bombay rooted firms and their leaders have had either solicitor or counsel training.

Good luck to everyone.

Advocate's Act. They banned the other class of attorneys. That's why. Before, the Cal HC used to conduct the same exam as the BILS conducts. Only reason BILS got away w it was becasue the Bom HC gave the duty of conducting the exam to BILS. So, it was a private exam conducted by a private body. the calcutta ILS atleast could have continued with it.n

The two cases are not comparable. The Karnataka HC accepted the arguments of NLSIU that it is a national institution comparable to the IITs and IIMs, as the BCI set it up and the CJI is Chancellor. The court accepted NLSIU’s argument that other members of the CLAT Consortium are state institutions.

The ratio decidendi still stands until overruled by the SC.

Dismissed in two lines with no reference to Karnataka HC's decision rejecting such reservation in the NLSIU case. What now??

https://www.barandbench.com/news/litigation/supreme-court-upholds-25-domicile-reservation-at-national-law-university-jodhpur

I've followed the standard recommended routine, i.e.

- Cold email law firm partners.

- Ask alums for help.

- Ask for assessment internships in case their firm isn't currently hiring.

None of the above has worked out for me. My profile is admittedly not stellar but I do have publications, some editorial experience, moot awards, a good college background and so on.

I'm at my wit's end.

True. The wider student community got hollowed out by NKC admin with active support from faculty, including former Noojies. A powerful SJA, esp one that has a mind of its own is a nightmare for both admin and faculty; being an ex Noojie doesn't necessarily mean they bleed our colour. Same applies for the much touted alumni. And this shouldn't be held against them. That's life. Positions, viewpoints etc change. Any support from these contested quarters should always be vetted and deployed with careful consideration.

But we are here right now. And it is our skin in the game. Even if we are only interested to get a fancy piece of paper, that paper must retain value till we recover the investment made and not just in terms of the monies spent. Maybe small change for more than a few. But certain core things go beyond the usual divides and petty ones like BA and BSc.

SJA is merely an admin created channel to "deal" with students. The student community isn't obligated to continue with SJA if it only advances individual interests of the SJA brass. Labour unions mostly fail because they are often sold out by their own leadership.

one understands that legally india is shit scared of trilegal so it censors and deletes all negative comments and instead is quick to approve of comments even of helpless interns coerced to glorify mediocre people but I fail to understand why even this is censored. do not worry, RN doesnt care too hoots about LI

LOL NO. VERY few of them. Miniscule percentage. You'll find seniors who earns lakhs per day and barely pay their juniors 30K and what's more - there is no yearly spike or anything.

The good paymasters are Neeraj Kishan Kaul, Shadan Farasat, Ritin Rai, Gopal Sankaranarayanan, Rebecca John and Dayan Krishnan.

I'm a fresher looking for good mentors who teach and have sufficient work where I can learn and grow my PE/VC/ and M&A career. Please let me know of any partners working in this vertical - who are hiring or open to an assessment internship.

Been on the lookout for 9 months now. Please help me out.

Hi guys,
I am a 2025 grad from a private college in Tamilnadu. So, to give some context, through my internahips I gained interest in IP law and started interning specifically with IP law firms through out my law school. My internships experiences have been with a few (read 2) lit oriented firms in the beginning, after which I went on to intern with 3 IP boutique law firmsand one with commercial litigation team of T2 firm. I enjoyed the work as an intern and even got offers from 3 places that I interned with, which I ended up not taking since I landed up with an Assessment Internship with Surana with the IP practice team (and since the T2 firm ended up saying no vacancy even though my mentor recomended). It has been 2 months through the assessment, and I have realised that I do not want to do IP prosecution at all.
So, while going through other options I felt like I have some Real estate related knowledge through my internhips (title due diligence and drafing & vetting some contracts). I feel so bad that I just kept myself only to IP in lawschool and should have done some corp internship.
I have tried applying multiple places and all I've been getting back is no vacany.
So, if any of y'all have any leads on any firm in chennai where you guys would recommend me to apply for an Assessment/internhsip which can be potentially converted if I stay for long and do satisfactory work. Area: Real estate.
I swear it would be super helpful if you guys could help me through this, cause I've hit a all time low mentally.
Btw, I don't mind doing corp too, just that I have got zero exp at all, so my chances of getting hired idk is prolly weak i feel.
Thanks!!!

Pretty normal and a sign that you should leave and find a nicer job.

Late 2021, fresh off Covid, a bunch of us college folks went on a trip. A classmate who'd just made RP was two drinks down when her teams ring tone went off. She was laughing when the call came in but immediately had a panic attack and it took the rest of us to calm her down. She left the industry a few months later.

It's a toxic job and you're not at fault. Heal yourself.