The law and commerce ministries, including law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, met with a number of stakeholders of the Indian legal profession today, paving the way for the first stage of allowing foreign law firms to set up shop in India.
At the meeting, the government told the Bar Council of India (BCI) to prepare draft amendments within four weeks to allow lawyers to advertise and market themselves, in order to allay concerns of some promoters domestic law firms that they would be unable to compete with foreign firms.
According to several people present at the meeting, the commerce ministry secretary told the assembled lawyers in a meeting lasting several hours that prime minister Narendra Modi wanted foreign law firms to enter India as a top priority and that Indian lawyers were competent enough and ready to face the competition, which would considerably grow the legal services sector.
The first stage would be allowing foreign law firms to set up shop in special economic zones (SEZs) such as the Gujarat Financial Tech City (GIFT), where they could advise domestic and foreign clients on non-Indian laws as well as represent clients in arbitrations.
Furthermore, the ministry told the BCI to prepare draft amendments to the Advocates Act and BCI Rules within four weeks, with an eye on a so-called leveling of the playing field of Indian law firms vis-a-vis foreign ones.
The BCI’s proposed amendments should allow Indian law firms to advertise and market their services, including the setting up of proper websites.
After allowing foreign firms into SEZs, the government would consider the second phase and what exact shape that should take.
Stakeholders
The Society of Indian Law Firms (Silf) lobby group was represented by Lalit Bhasin and lawyers from several member firms, such as Cyril and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, AZB & Partners, Luthra & Luthra, J Sagar Associates (JSA) and others.
The Indian National Bar Association (INBA) was headed by secretary Kaviraj Singh.
After the commerce ministry made its pitch for around 20 minutes, Bhasin made arguments again for an entry of foreign law firms in stages, and that the government should neither allow foreign law firms to practice Indian law nor hire Indian lawyers.
Other members of the Silf delegations, such as Luthra & Luthra senior partner Mohit Saraf, mostly concurred with Bhasin’s point.
However, TechLegis founding partner Salman Waris appearing as part of the INBA delegation, said that foreign firms in any case already employed Indian lawyers, working in places such as New York or Singapore and that such restriction from employing Indian lawyers for when they set up within India would be arbitrary.
Kaviraj Singh also emphasised that foreign law firms should be allowed to hire Indian lawyers if setting up in India.
Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad added that some regulation of Indian and foreign law firms was required, however. The currently most popular idea in previous discussions was that the BCI should regulate both. Currently, the BCI only regulates individual advocates but not law firms.
The ministries gave lawyers two weeks to submit their comments and suggestions for the proposed way forward.
The last to speak at the meeting was BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra, who said that the BCI had already made submissions to the ministry and would recommend further steps, though he claimed his hands were also somewhat tied by the demands of local bar associations and state bar councils.
We have reached out to Bhasin for comment.
The BCI was represented by BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra.
The Bar Association of India was represented by president-elect Prashant Kumar, who told Bar & Bench today: “We want to have a phased liberalisation of profession like the approach adopted in Singapore. Foreign lawyers should be only allowed to advise on their own laws and there should also be restriction on employing Indian lawyers on them. In the second phase by the time Indian legal profession has the benefit of change in regulations here, the other steps in terms of allowing foreign law firms to employ Indian lawyers can be allowed.”
Comments
I urge Legally India to air other voices. Maybe if you had done so before this would not have happened.
Just because senior lawyers of the present day got less money when they started out is no reason that the new generation must be trapped to get money less than what they deserve.
Sir - with all due respect - the fresh graduates need to pay their bills. They are not your bonded labour. Do you even understand how expensive life is in a big city like Mumbai, Delhi or Bangalore? I sure hope that graduates from top colleges are not falling prey to pay-masters like you.
Let us decide
- new practice areas
- culture of training young lawyers
- increased salaries (which is important for the fact that majority of Indian lawyers are either under employed or unemployed)
- India might become hub for large international transactions and arbitration,
Over all it's good for young lawyers. Please think long term perspective and without biases. Foreign law firms are good for India !
On another note, looks like this time it is for real. I have been hearing rumours around the managing partners getting into an overdrive mode to face the oncoming Independence Day for Indian lawyers..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L59ytlU4G6E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eULGbOTALPc
why are you opposing and denying the students a job with dignity. Even lawyers with law firm supporting you are in favour of allowing foreign law firms.
How you people can be so self centred and against the national interest. Lalit you are (...), anti national and (...) with no (...) . (...)
had some very good points, e.g imbalance in work allocation, orders from foreign MPs, independence issues, too much focus on systems processes which indian GCs don't want at this stage
Does any so called association, representing lawyers, have the balls to call a referendum of registered Indian lawyers on this point?
Seriously, who are they truly representing? High time that Indian law firms accept the foregone conclusion, tidy up their homes and up their game rather than block entry of foreign law firms in such veiled and not-so-subtle ways!
Ostriches, aren't we??
Someone needs to get the word out in the media that young lawyers and law student support liberalisation and it will lead to more jobs.