London-based international Magic Circle law firm Linklaters has elevated banking team managing associate Pathik Gandhi to partner.
He is a 2010 Nalsar Hyderabad graduate, who had joined Linklaters in 2010, straight from college. He was made a managing associate at Linklaters in 2017.
According to his firm profile he “has experience advising on sponsor-backed leveraged structures in the Asian market and works closely with the firm’s India Group”, and had been “seconded to the EMEA leveraged finance team at Citigroup for nine months and has also worked briefly in the firm’s Singapore office”.
Gandhi’s promotion is part of a global round of 35 at the international law firm.
The promotion round at Linklaters was also more diverse than usual: 40% of new partners were women, while 25% of new partners in the UK and US self-identified as being from a “minority ethnic background” (BigLaw partners in those two countries have predominantly been of Anglo-Saxon / White ethnicity).
His firm profile notes: “Pathik was involved in the pilot of the firm’s INspire programme, focused on developing leadership skills among the under-represented diverse talent within the firm.”
NLSIU Bangalore has historically dominated promotions of India-educated lawyers at foreign law firms (in large part due to its age advantage of being the first national law school), in recent years other schools have seen similar numbers.
More recent foreign law firm promotions include:
- Watson Farley promoting ILS Pune’s Dhruv Paul,
- Willkie Farr promoting NUJS Kolkata 2008 grad Rahul Saha,
- Jones Day promoting NLSIU Bangalore 2007 grad Vinay Kurien.
Of course, besides a bit of a network effects advantage in terms of law firm relationships, that stat doesn’t really matter either beyond bragging rights (so please take note, in the comments).
Comments
Well of course they will be. The UK in 1991 was 94% white: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_United_Kingdom_census
And in 2011 was 86% white: https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/uk-population-by-ethnicity/national-and-regional-populations/population-of-england-and-wales/latest
[quote]while 25% of new partners in the UK and US self-identified as being from a “minority ethnic background[/quote]
That means minorities are over represented.
One does find it interesting that here, while the onus is on Magic Circle Firms to be "diverse" the same doesn't criteria isn't extended to Indian firms. Are Indian firms proportionate in their selection of new partners wrt religion (Muslims) or caste given that caste discrimination is now being felt as far as California, thus proving Ambedkar right
Based on facts/data, or your own experience from your batch/university - share your perspective. Its called debate. No topic is off-debate. I hope the liberal ideology/institution you are a part of, still accepts these norms.
On use to "terms" my idea was to be (as one should be) polite. Purpose - to invite comments, even corrections. I do not wish to comment on your language or understanding.
It looks like you are saying that you are being polite by saying backward caste people only want Government jobs but using the term socially and economically backward instead of backward caste.
Not sure what Kian thinks is appropriate for his website but to me it seems like downright offensive and idiotic which needs to be called out. I have no intention of "debating" with you whether your large sample size of empirical data is worthy of EPW publication but to be clear yes, my experience of the people I have come across in a number of law firms and my college shows that there is no general pattern here no matter how hard you look.
This is of course a trollish comment because that's what your nuanced observations deserve.
Right but that would be roughly equivalent to the population considering that after Windrush etc GB was still in 1991 **94% white**. I didn't mention women for a reason.
Curiously the point about Indian law firms is left unaddressed, which is strange since most lawyers here work for Indian firms and the site is called legally India. Is only the West supposed to be diverse?
Regarding 94% white demographics in 1991 Britain, most 'elite' city firms probably had 0% ethnic partners way back then, and they have continued lagging behind since then (there are lots of studies on this in the UK at every level, including in elite universities and so on, though things have been getting better).
Of course it's undeniable that racial discrimination was prevalent. It was a part but other factors were involved too. See this fascinating open access study by Galanter: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09695950902804217
They've been getting better for a while now, unlike Indian firms who never address such issues as you likely said. Although LI can only work with what it has.
This silence would be understandable **if** it weren't for the hypocrisy of our class (yes we're all part of an extremely small class).
It's nauseating to see to the chattering English speaking classes on *both* sides for different reasons (mostly pushing an agenda or doing what's called in Hindi *apnee roti pe daal khich naa* i.e. trying to get yours others be damned) discuss Western racial issues like diversity. The same group, across the aisle and parties is largely silent (barring the the odd platitude) on casteism and religious discrimination. Ironically this is the one issue against which they're united. Thankfully (for some), Ambedkar was prescient. Caste is now a global problem such as in the UK where they tried to ban discrimination only for the Tories to play vote bank politics and abandon the idea (yup it goes both ways).
Katherine Mayo made Gandhiji introspect about views on caste: https://doi.org/10.1080/03068374.2018.1487685
Who'll be the new Mayo?
One of the biggest law firms in India does not observe holidays for non-Hindu religions (Christianity excluded because reasons) and makes them 'optional'.
Law firms are rife with people proudly proclaiming themselves to be Tambrams and therefore more interested in academic pursuits (people who have historically gatekept access to education), referring to people as Baniyas, Gujjus and Marus (and therefore money minded -often by themselves and tongue in cheek) and general UC privileged nonsense. The space is alien and uninviting for bahujans for many reasons.
A partner in the erstwhile largest firm in India proudly proclaimed that being born as a male tamil brahmin was the highest pinnacle of achievement and made one intrinsically better than anyone - and then named a few lower caste people (wrt to him - not dalits, because they are wholly absent from the system) and said this has not prevented him from speaking to such people.
Mind you, he didn't ask my caste, but clearly knew and felt comfortable enough to say such nonsense thinking it was normal to spew such bullsh*t to whoever he assumed was a fellow caste member. Disgusting.
And yes we've committed a taboo it seems by daring to speak the truth about casteism i.e. unlike claims made by English speakers, caste discrimination is alive and kicking in urban areas too. It's more than an urban problem.
Babasaheb was right, "if Indians migrate to other regions on earth, Indian caste would become a world problem"
Main reason is excellent quality of alumni rather than age, since many of the promotions have happened well after other NLUs came into being.