Manan Lahoty, the Mumbai-based head of L&L Partners’ capital markets practice, is due to leave the firm and join IndusLaw with a team of four other capital markets partners, we have reliably learned.
He is understood to be joining Indus with fellow cap markets partners Abhiroop Lahiri, Manshoor Nazki, Ravi Dubey and Vishal Yaduvanshi.
Lahoty had maintained and continued building L&L’s capital markets practice into one of the top tier practices in India, with his team regularly advising on the most prestigious IPOs.
The mass migration - one of the largest between law firms in recent years - will be a blow for L&L, whose capital markets practice had been a jewel in its crown; partner Geeta Dhania is remaining with the firm.
For Indus, meanwhile, the move will give it access to the main vertical it had been missing to begin competing in the top tier, particularly as many of its once-start-up clients may be eyeing IPOs after many rounds of fundraising.
We have reached out Lahoty and L&L for comment.
Lahoty had been in the Delhi office of Luthra, as it was formerly called, since 2006, having joined Shearman & Sterling from 2007 to 2009 abroad.
He returned to India in 2009 to head up its Mumbai capital markets practice, with former partner Madhurima Mukherjee heading up the practice in Delhi. He was promoted to partner later in 2009.
Lahoty made partner at Luthra in 2009.
He was a member of the firm’s executive committee since 2015.
The 2001 Cardiff University LLB with a bachelor’s in commerce from Shri Ram College of Commerce had begun his career at Lexindia in 2001 before moving to what-was-then Amarchand Mangaldas in 2002, where he had been part of Mukherjee’s team.
Mukherjee had joined AZB in 2014.
Update 4 August 2019, 23:00: L&L managing and senior partner Rajiv Luthra and Mohit Saraf commented in a statement:
We learnt about their departure from media enquiries that day.
Since none of them had informed us informally or formally, we had to ascertain facts before reacting to your request for comment. While it is indeed unfortunate to lose them, capital markets will continue to be a strong area of focus for the Firm. We are in the process of making senior level hires, to bolster the practice area.
In the meantime Mohit and me, will be working very closely and spend sufficient time and attention with the capital markets team to bring us back on even keel, so that in years to come we have a better and highly profitable capital market practice.
It has always been our objective as a Firm to continue growing, as witnessed by our recent efforts to shore up different practice areas of the Firm. We are sure that we shall continue on this path of growth and excellence in the years to come. We wish them the best for their future.
Comments
All the best to Manan and Team.
Nail on coffin for Luthra. This is bound to happen when you don’t value your relevant rain making guys.
luthra will reboot.
That's what happens when you give power to the worthless... The worthy abandon the sinking ship.
Great guy. Good catch by Indus.
Hell was also supposed to have broken loose after Madhurima’s exit but did anything happen?
Mohit Saraf is an excellent mentor, manager and a human being, and will ensure that the firm wouldn’t even realise ML’s absence.
Anonymous comments main bhi itna dar.
He drinks a Lager drink, he drinks a Cider drink
He sings the songs that remind him of the good times
He sings the songs that remind him of the best times
Oh Larry Boy, Larry Boy, Larry Boy
you are correct
Is the blue-eyed boy next?
All the best Folks!!!
I can and I do subscribe to both the rhetoric and emphasis put out here about the team as a whole leaving and this creating a chasm that won’t be filled easily. However I cannot agree on the hyperbole over the financial contribution solely because of one reason only - I happen to know the numbers and the departed would also not find a lot to argue on that basis.
Counting out his money,
The queen was in the parlor
Eating bread and honey,
The maid was in the garden
Hanging out the clothes.
Along came a blackbird
And snipped off her nose.
Over the years he naturally graduated towards a more leadership role and played a big role in building the mumbai office (and also the capital markets practice). One of the few ppl at luthra who can work with diverse ppl and differing opinions, and be a unifying force.
It’s really sad to see when ppl like Manan leave. He wouldn’t have left without trying to work things out internally. Sad that luthra management could not retain him.
Ppl on the comments section who are conjecturing what will happen to Manan and team at Indus, that’s really not the point. The bigger point is he left because he didn’t want to continue at luthra any more.
Ppl who are saying it doesn’t matter if he left. U need to have worked with Manan to know what an asset he is. I am sure the firm will survive but you can’t also belittle the big dent he would have left behind. Ppl like Manan are irreplaceable. [...]
Lastly ppl solely bashing Mohit for all exits. Ppl remember the management on the corporate side consists of two ppl, and it’s very unfair to constantly blame one person. Don’t want to say more on a public forum,
But I hope the point is made.
The partners whatsapp group is a clear joke. C-grade hires post nonsense – about meditation, random pep talk and no one says a word why because that will upset MS’ confirmation bias of having hired “rockstars” who soon turn out to be worthless pieces of pebbles and not even “rocks”. He has done it earlier and has done it again. These C grade hires are then allocated good associates from other teams. Basically, the partner who trained them is deprived of their resources. Serves them right that Cap Mkts didn’t leave any man (quite literally) behind.
The level of insecurity is such that they do not promote partners who have independent work, but want each partner to be dependent on them. There is no marketing budget for any partner- all BD and all media interaction is done by one man! He will even go an comment on the death of businessman.
There is no accountability. MS went and took more space in Mumbai - did he consult the L or even the EC? No. Why should he; they believe they are owners of a shop. There is no accountability. As per attendance sheet, MS and L have not taken a day of leave! They are on offsite! They are at their farms, hillside homes and yet it is all Offfsite. Other partners or associates are not allowed to work from home. Why?? There is no accountability when they delay bonuses, increments. MS says increment is decided by him based on more than 6-9 months of performance of the year for which the increment is due! So FY 2019-20, he is not releasing any increments. That's why the CM team (they had an EC member in Manan and he knew the inside juice).
Appraisals are a joke someone here said 3X and so on. But achieving target will not assure you all that is promised to you; why? because you are not the inside coterie of MS, or he feels threatened by you/ the blue -eyed boys and girls and licence raj team (team with a visiting dog) have gone and planted stories about you. There have been several instances where partners have achieved and exceeded the target and yet MS and L have not released their bonuses. Everything about the firm looks and feels like a local shop run by two partners MS and L and one of them (L) just not interested at all!
What issues, you ask? Let me tell you boss.
It is impossible to get bonus in this place. With the nice spread out of bonus, increment etc etc its impossible to ever leave that place. The second you quit, goodbye to your bonus. Is it wrong of them to wait for bonuses for the work they’ve done over the past year? Do you know what happens to associates who are on notice period when bonus is declared?
Point to be noted here is bonus for FY 19 came in AUGUST.
Oh no maybe you want us to wait until our increments come in October? And then arrears are paid to us for the last few months? But oh wait then might as well one more quarter and get team bonus. And then one more quarter for personal bonus.
The comments above say that associates are being paid 1.6x in the new place. While these numbers arent true, its not hard to make the increment look higher because these associates dont even know what their salary is for the current fiscal. A0s and A1s are getting paid the same cause where is increment bhai?
Easy to have principles when its not your money on the line.
It’s part cash flow management and part retention strategy.
Being a “partner” in an Indian law firm (unless it is your own and you have “founder” status), is honestly like living in a fools paradise.
it makes everyone look silly.
having said that it is probably true.
The team is pretty much wiped out at mid and senior levels (except for the new joinees). L&L will have to make some key hires if it wishes to continue as a full service law firm.
https://nybookeditors.com/2016/05/whats-the-difference-between-copyediting-and-proofreading/
But yeah, this is the age of propaganda afterall.
Vishal is a star with an astute knowledge. All the best to the team for leaving that godforsaken place.
This is what privilege does to these students. Saddening.
A meditation session was indeed organised, but no associate was forced or coerced to attend the same. Goes without saying, nobody was scolded for his/her absence.
A genuine advice to people on EC of the firm, please introspect the frequency of people resigning especially junior associates (A0 - A3 level) the firm. There is a massive issue with the people who're there and the way they treat the juniors and interns also. Recently in a leading law school (one which is known to go to Luthra) students have become really apprehensive about the environment and rudeness of the people of the firm and have been asking their RCC to not bind them with luthra offers.
The firm has a lot of potential to grow and perhaps it would've grown much much better had these people been controlling their behavior in the first place which would not have lead to good people resigning. The management must employ measures to address the issues faced by the associates in each team and the responsibility of this may also be given to partners of the teams. These issues can relate to work, behavior, restricctions, delay in salary, discrimination, safety.
Such a high attrition speaks volumes of the place! EC people, if you're reading this or any partner, its for your own benefit that a strong redressal mechanism for associates and interns is employed by the firm otherwise there will be no end to this high attrition rate at all levels and this also creates an issue of stability in the firm. once this issue is solved i m sure the firm will be a much better place to work..
This is what privilege does to these students. Saddening.
This is the main reason of all the problems it looks like. A few miffed individuals having localised issues with specific people paint it as a systemic issue. This in turn causes the perception of those who are not aware to be influenced. No other firm has out an out excellent environment or even close to it. There are good teams and bad teams which make the entire place. There are good people within the team and bad people within the team which make the entire team. How you have spun your personal experience with a few individuals to be a general issue across the firm shows how narrow sighted your approach is. People are treated like shit everywhere, that's how the world works and that is the unfortunate reality that we all work in, whether it's this firm or the others. Your angst may be genuine but unless you are a great leader who has taken the pains to understand the concern of each individual of each team and intern, your generalising the issue is completely ridiculous. But I guess, your hatred is too strong to let you understand the point I'm trying to make as you have taken such great pains to highlight the issues all associates and interns are still facing at this firm when you are already an Ex. If you truly care so much and what you are saying is not solely based on your frustration, anger and bruised ego, you wouldn't have taken such great pains to try and prove a point.
Your comment is so typical of a frustrated e-warrior whose only way of getting some action is social media.
A word of advice, please get out of the world you have created in your head and avoid making statements about things which you may not understand fully and most of all avoid imposing your perspective as the general perspective.
I urge you to be a bit selfish and mind your own business.
Thanks for your time.
Sethji to leaving partners be like "sahi khel gaye ba**ho".
be analytical
I understand your latest stance but come on yaar, itna drama is happening that itll be good for your page only to be the first to reveal!
[sorry, will be published soon!]