In an interview to UK legal magazine Legal Week, headlined as “Amarchand sizes up options for first international base as India’s unlevel playing field continues to frustrate”, Amarchand Mangaldas Delhi managing partner Shardul Shroff said that the firm was thinking about opening an office abroad.

He told Legal Week:

“Singapore [is the strongest contender] because its links with India are quite strong… Singapore enables clients to service the whole of the ASEAN market… But it could be Hong Kong, London, Dubai or New York – it depends on what 2016 looks like. It also depends where clients need us…

“It would have to be an office of significance, not just a representative office where you receive the mail… We want to do it properly. We also don’t want to disturb our international relationships with global law firms – we want to preserve these. But equally we want to provide Indian expertise that is relevant to the international market. We want to be present in markets where the local Indian situation becomes relevant; approaching the clients on their doorstep rather than expecting them to come to India…

“There are firms that have gone to China or Singapore but their offices are small and not significant enough to make a statement on behalf of Indian lawyers.”

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