Super Lawyer

Author: SuperLawyerTeam

  • “From Knitting, Kitchen, and Kids to Serial Entrepreneur: My Journey from Family Tradition to Entrepreneurial Success.” – Dr. Shweta Singh, a Serial Entrepreneur and Founder of Ennoble IP.

    “From Knitting, Kitchen, and Kids to Serial Entrepreneur: My Journey from Family Tradition to Entrepreneurial Success.” – Dr. Shweta Singh, a Serial Entrepreneur and Founder of Ennoble IP.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Your work in the intellectual property law space is highly specialized. What initially sparked your interest in IP law?

    This is a very interesting question for me. I’ve been asked this many times, and I always say that actually, my personality is such that I get bored easily with things. Things, not people—okay? So, if I am doing something continuously and it feels monotonous, I get bored. Since my childhood, it has been a dream of mine to do something of my own, possibly due to my background or family conditions—a very orthodox family. But I wanted to do something interesting that always excites me.

    It should always give me a kick to do better and better, until I achieve the best, right? So, that’s how I developed my journey. I would say my interest in IP law was sparked during my graduation days when I was actually searching for what I should do.

    And I encountered a book by B.D. Singh with a chapter on patents, and this chapter opened my eyes to the fascinating world of innovation and technology. As I delved deeper, I realized that working in this field means being exposed to new ideas and groundbreaking technologies every day.

    It felt like being on the front line of innovation. Now that you are involved in IP, you will realize why I chose it. What truly drove me to start my journey in IP was that it became not just my passion but my attitude. IP became more than just a field of study for me; it became a part of who I am. I believe I am at my best when I’m working in this space, and this confidence gave me the drive to turn my passion into a business.

    More than working with corporates and universities, I realized that there’s a huge gap in the support provided to universities, startups, and SMEs. When I entered the field of IP, I started catering to these needs. For me, it’s not just about protecting ideas but also empowering innovators and helping them realize the full potential of their creativity.

    During early stages of your career, while you spent four years working as an IP consultant, basically in patent research and analytics, what kind of experience was it that influenced your career trajectory? And what were the key insights that you would prefer to share?

    During the early stages of my career, I spent not four but six years working as an IP professional, focusing on patent research and analytics in both corporate and academic environments.

    I worked in the corporate sector and with Amity University, which was the only university where I worked as an employee. This experience was instrumental in shaping my career trajectory and deepening my understanding of IP from multiple perspectives. I learned how IP is handled in the corporate and business sectors and how it is managed in academia.

    In the corporate sector, I learned business strategies around IP that help companies stay ahead in competitive markets. Large corporations file patents not just to protect their inventions but to monetize them. This taught me how patents drive innovation and secure market advantages.

    In contrast, my time with Amity University exposed me to the academic approach to IP: how research translates into intellectual property and the challenges faced by institutions in managing and leveraging their innovation effectively.

    The biggest lesson I learned during this time was the immense potential of IP to create tangible value—whether for multinational corporations, universities, or startups. It also made me realize the importance of bridging the gap between innovators and the IP process, which ultimately inspired me to start my own venture.

    I also remember a pivotal experience in Singapore, where I attended a conference through WIPO. During the conference, someone remarked that India and China are “jugaad” countries that copy products and lack awareness about protecting intellectual property.

    This comment struck a nerve. It motivated me to return to India, leave my job, and create something that could address this issue. I conducted 75 free workshops for SMEs and universities in 2013 to spread awareness about why IP is important. It wasn’t just about filing; it was about understanding what you are losing by not protecting your ideas.

    You actually are the first-generation serial woman entrepreneur. Can you take us through that journey, through that experience that actually led you to start Ennoble IP and how do you see that this is impacting society at large and majorly women entrepreneurs?

    Let’s not define entrepreneurship by gender. I used to think of myself as a woman entrepreneur, but over time, I realized entrepreneurship transcends gender.

    Yes, as a woman, 20-40% of the challenges we face may be gender-specific. But the rest are the same for all entrepreneurs. I come from a small town in Eastern UP, and I belong to a traditional Rajput family. The mindset in my family was that women were destined for the “3 Ks”—knitting, kitchen, and kids.

    However, my parents, particularly my mother, were rebellious. My mother was determined to ensure that my sisters and I became financially independent. She always emphasized that financial independence is the key to freedom—freedom to make decisions without asking a father, husband, or boss for money.

    My journey as a first-generation entrepreneur has been both challenging and rewarding. During my university days, I discovered my passion for IP and realized I could work with innovators to protect groundbreaking ideas. After gaining industry experience in corporate and academic settings, I saw a significant gap in IP services for startups, universities, and SMEs.

    Starting Ennoble IP was my way of addressing these gaps, but it was also a journey of self-discovery. Each experience taught me resilience, adaptability, and the importance of staying true to my vision.

    So, he makes the decisions on how the house will run. We live in a joint family, and to this day, we still have a joint family. My uncle guided my father, and my grandfather also guided him, saying, “You have a daughter; save money and give her basic education if you want.” But my mother and father were very rebellious—both of them, I would say.

    The first step was taken by my mother, but yes, my father joined hands with her. My mother declared, “I have daughters, but that doesn’t stop me from building their careers or making them financially independent.” And my mother was determined throughout, until we realized the importance of financial independence.

    She taught us that financial independence is the freedom you actually require in your life. Otherwise, you will always have to ask. If you don’t have a brother, you’ll always turn to your father, saying, ‘I want this; give me this money.’ Then you’ll turn to your husband, saying, ‘I want this; give me your money.’ Finally, you’ll turn to your male bosses, asking for a raise.

    So, she asked, “Why don’t you create your own financial freedom so you don’t have to ask anyone?” She even gave her example: “See, if I have to make any decision, I have to ask your father. If I had been earning, I would have sat with him to discuss whether we should invest or not. Instead of asking, ‘I want this—will you help me buy that?’ I would have had the confidence to contribute equally.”

    So, she talked about financial freedom and confidence until the three of us realized how essential they are. My father supported me—I would say he was always the strongest backbone for us, alongside my mother.

    Now, coming to being a first-generation entrepreneur: my journey has been both challenging and incredibly rewarding. I always say, “Be proud of yourself,” and I am very proud of whatever I have achieved.

    Growing up, I didn’t have—as I mentioned—a family business or entrepreneurial legacy to guide me. But I always had a strong drive, inspired by my mother, to create something meaningful.

    The key moment that set me on this path was during my university days when I discovered my passion for IP. The idea that I could work with innovators, support them, and help protect groundbreaking ideas fascinated me immensely.

    After gaining industry experience—both in corporate and academic settings—I saw a significant gap, as I mentioned, in how IP services were being delivered to startups, universities, and SMEs.

    While large corporations had access to world-class IP support systems, smaller entities were often left struggling to navigate the complexities of intellectual property. That was something I wanted to change. That realization was the kick I needed to get started.

    I wanted to be independent, and my independence inspired my sisters, who said, “Yes, we will work.” But I was determined: “No, I don’t want to limit myself to one job. I want to build a business.” At that time, I was young and naïve, but as you grow, wisdom comes. I was still a child back then, thinking, “I will start a business where my daddy’s friends will come and say, ‘Please employ my child.’”

    And these relatives will come and say, “Please help me with the job also.” I was of that mindset, but I was totally wrong. So, for the young people who are watching this, this should not be the driving force for you. I was scared. I was scared, but with the vision, with the wisdom that comes with age and experience, I am not working today for myself.
    I’m working for almost 260 people who are working with me right now. Together, we are working towards that vision. So, entrepreneurship, I would say, is a very beautiful thing if you actually enjoy this journey. Starting Ennoble IP was my way of bridging the gap—not only in the industry but also in my thought process.

    I wanted to create a platform that not only provides IP services but also empowers innovators by making it more accessible, more understandable, and more strategically strong, where they get the support they need. Along the way, the three challenges I faced were, first, learning to navigate the business world without prior experience, second, building a trusted network, and third, establishing credibility as a first-generation entrepreneur.

    Now, coming to your question—yes, I faced challenges being a woman. As I mentioned, it’s only 20–40%, not more than that. The rest of the problems are the same. Trust is the major issue. At the time when I started, I was very thin and looked much younger than my age. This made people reluctant to trust me.

    Once, I was sitting with a vice-chancellor of a university, and after a talk, he said, “Madam, I thought that as the chief guest, you must be very old. Will you be able to handle this workshop and the university’s work? You are just a woman, madam. This university is very big.”

    In my mind, I was thinking, ‘Where have you come from? You have so many female faculty members, yet you doubt me?’ But I said politely, “Sir, I’ll need your help. If you help me, I will be able to manage.” This was me satisfying the male ego.

    After my talk, he said, “You are like chota packet bada dhamaka.” I responded, “No, sir, you are wrong. I may be small or big—I don’t know—but I am definitely a dhamaka.” Then I added, “Never underestimate women because if we can handle a kitchen and kids, we can handle anything.”

    I continued, “If a woman can bring life into this world, she can do anything.” He was silent, but now, we are good friends. I respect him a lot, and he often says, ‘Shweta, you changed my mindset.’ After that, he gave his daughter the wings she wanted.

    What I want to emphasize is that each experience has taught me resilience, adaptability, and, most importantly, staying true to my vision. This is very important. I often say resilience has built me because it’s like fighting against odd situations every time.

    As a woman, we face challenges, but as an entrepreneur, we face even more. It’s resilience that helps us persevere. People these days on Instagram talk about manifestation, right? I didn’t know this word back then, but now I realize that all this while, I was manifesting.

    From my childhood, I manifested something, and I believe in it. My favorite song is Chaand Taare Tod Lau. That song is about manifestation—and look at the actor! It’s all in your mind. You just have to believe.

    These characteristics and skills, no one is born with. You develop them through experience. I was very naïve when I started meeting investors. I didn’t want to raise money for my startup, but I have an NPO where I support women.

    I believe in giving back to society. Through that NPO, we support women. It’s not for profit. I have only invested my own money so far. We do not work for CSR funds because the women we support are doing fantastically well.

    When I started in 2012 or 2013, there wasn’t much exposure. In meetings with investors, they would say, “She may get married soon and plan a family.” I got furious during some of those interviews and said, “Sir, that boy will also plan for a family. He will also have a child.”

    Just because we, as women, go through this process doesn’t mean we are weak. It’s a mutual responsibility. But I have seen a change in the ecosystem now. We have become fearless.

    I had to learn and develop these skills, but this new generation—Gen Z—is already born with this fearless expression and thought process, which is commendable and really cool.

    When we three sisters discuss, we always say that if our mom had received a proper education, she would have been the CEO of a company. My dad has a slow decision-making process. My mom, on the other hand, is quick with decisions.

    But I would again emphasize—until the father supports the mother, she cannot do anything. My father is not a risk-taker, but I inherited that ability from my mother. The values and empathy, however, I got from my father.

    Intellectual properties have often been considered very complex and intimidating for startups. How did you handle those particular challenges whenever you faced those young innovators and startups?

    China is still leading the world in terms of patents. And I believe that we must strive to surpass China because population-wise, we are stronger. First, we are intellectually very sound when it comes to technology. So, I’m a very proud Indian. Actually, I say this often: I travel to a lot of countries, and when I come back, I love inhaling this polluted air. I genuinely love India, despite its challenges. However, India still has a long way to go.

    The scenario has changed. Earlier, there was no awareness. People didn’t know about IP, so they weren’t filing patents. Now, there is awareness. But still, many startups do not file. Why? Because they don’t give priority to IP.

    They think it’s something that can be addressed at a later stage. They ask, ‘Why invest the money now?’ They don’t realize that investing in IP strategies is the key to driving their business forward. They are unaware of the story of Google. They don’t want to know. They just see that Google has become Google—not through business strategy alone, but through its IP strategy.

    Apple is Apple because of its IP strategy. So, this is something I would like to emphasize before starting my answer.

    Coming back to your question, IP law does seem daunting for startups and young innovators, especially when they are more focused on developing their products or services than navigating the legal complexities.

    Some key challenges they face—and this is based entirely on my 10–12 years of experience—are:

    1. Lack of awareness: As I mentioned, many startups are unaware of the importance of intellectual property or the steps required to protect their innovations. IP strategy should be an integral part of the business strategy from the very beginning. They often underestimate how crucial it is to secure patents, trademarks, copyrights, or, if it’s a product, the design, right at the early stages.
    2. Limited resources: Startups, being small businesses, typically operate on tight budgets. This makes it difficult for them to prioritize IP amidst other pressing needs like product development or marketing. They end up investing more in product development and marketing rather than prioritizing IP.
    3. Global complexity: For startups looking to expand internationally, understanding and complying with IP laws across different jurisdictions can be overwhelming.
    4. Timing and strategy: Filing for IP protection too late or without a clear strategy can make startups vulnerable to infringement, competition, or even losing their innovations.

    At Ennoble IP, we address these challenges directly. We have designed our services specifically to tackle these four challenges. We start by educating startups and SMEs about intellectual property and how it can serve as a powerful business asset. We offer tailored solutions that are not only cost-effective but also of the same quality as corporate-grade services, and they align with the startup’s stage of growth.

    For example, we help startups conduct patent searches, explain why it is done, file applications, and ensure that their IP strategy aligns with their business goals. We also do not force startups to file a patent if it is unnecessary. Right? There are different IPs, and you already know this because you are in the same business line. Sometimes, a patent may not even be required—for example, in the music industry, where copyright is often sufficient. So, we create strategies accordingly. We also assist with global filings and provide strategic advice on leveraging IP portfolios for funding, partnerships, and market positioning.

    Our goal is to make the IP process as seamless as possible for startups and SMEs so that they can focus on what they do best: innovating. We always say, “You handle your product and marketing strategy, and we’ll handle your IP strategy.” Marketing also requires IP. Many firms don’t realize that their marketing materials and overall marketing strategy should involve IP considerations.

    Ultimately, IP should not be viewed as a hurdle but as an opportunity for smart businesses—startups and SMEs—to strengthen their competitive edge. As I mentioned, I am passionate about helping in these areas. 

    Given the scenario today, there is a rise of new technologies, there is a growing need for IP protection in the kind of fields where AI is getting involved. How do you see the intersection of IP laws and IP per se with this kind of disruptive tech, which is going to shape the future of innovation in a very different manner specially in the Indian environment and ecosystem?

    I would say that the intersection of IP law and emerging technologies is becoming increasingly crucial in shaping the future of innovation. Technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, quantum computing, and biotechnology are evolving rapidly, pushing the boundaries of traditional intellectual property frameworks. This presents both challenges and opportunities. One key challenge is the pace at which technology is advancing, often outpacing the conventional IP systems designed for traditional inventions.

    For instance, questions around the patentability of AI-generated inventions or the ownership of decentralized blockchain solutions are sparking new debates in legal and regulatory spaces. On the other hand, this intersection drives a deeper understanding of the strategic importance of IP. Companies and innovators are recognizing that a robust IP strategy is not just about protecting ideas but also about creating a competitive edge in a technology-driven market.

    Here, you don’t just need an IP strategy; you also need good market research. IP portfolios are becoming integral to attracting investments, forming strategic partnerships, and determining valuations during mergers and acquisitions. A classic example, albeit not recent, is Nokia, Microsoft, and BlackBerry. These cases illustrate how an IP portfolio can protect an entire company.

    At Ennoble IP, we are at the forefront of this intersection. We work with innovators to navigate this complexity, whether it involves filing patents for AI algorithms, protecting proprietary aspects of blockchain applications, or managing IP risks in cross-border collaborations. Our role is not just to protect innovations but also to help innovators leverage their IP to unlock new opportunities.

    Looking ahead, I believe IP law will continue to evolve to address the unique challenges posed by emerging technologies. For instance, there will be greater emphasis on global harmonization of IP laws to address the borderless nature of technology. More collaboration will also emerge between legal, technical, and policy experts to ensure that IP frameworks foster innovation without stifling it.

    The future of innovation will rely heavily on how effectively we align IP protection with the needs of new technologies. By staying ahead of trends and proactively addressing challenges, we can ensure that the innovation ecosystem remains vibrant and sustainable. IP, market research, and business intelligence must work collaboratively. For instance, in the case of AI and blockchain, where new advancements emerge daily, a robust strategy is essential.

    With my UAE office, I have seen how blockchain startups are leveraging IP strategies effectively despite varying jurisdictional rules. This diversity creates challenges, but India is becoming a goldmine for IP service providers. With huge investments in R&D flowing into India, we are at the cusp of something big.

    And believe me, my dad always told me, and this was my dad’s wisdom, people can take away your wealth and other materialistic things; they can take away everything, but two things nobody can rob you of are your knowledge and character. So, always work on those things. Today, I’m not scared, even if I lose everything, because I know I have expertise, and I have knowledge. I can earn again. Since I’m not scared, I always take risks. Knowledge is a very important tool in today’s world.

    Fifth is to create your own opportunities. If you find a door closed, don’t hesitate to build your own. As a first-generation entrepreneur, I didn’t inherit a business, right? I built one from scratch. It’s about being resourceful and proactive in creating pathways where none exist. Let me give you an example: I started a business in a very crowded space. IP is a very crowded space. But I didn’t hesitate to enter because I came up with an innovative model, collaborating with universities, startups, and small businesses.

    Now, the sixth point I would like to mention is to advocate for others. As women, we have a unique opportunity to lift each other up, whether through mentorship, collaboration, or simply sharing stories. Supporting other women can create a ripple effect of empowerment.

    For example, I often refer to the movie Jai Ho. If you’ve seen Salman Khan’s movie, you’ll recall the chain they create. I don’t remember all the details now, but the concept stuck with me. If one woman holds the hand of another and uplifts her, this chain can actually bring about change.

    Because, speaking from my own experience, I got more support from men than women. I didn’t receive much support from women, and that’s why I started my mission through WIF, my NPO, which supports women. Helping others in this way is one of the most meaningful things you can do in life.

    Lastly, the seventh point: embrace resilience. For me, resilience has been key. There will be setbacks, but resilience will carry you through. Every obstacle you overcome adds to your strength and experience, making you better equipped for the next challenge.

    What kind of advice would you give to others, specially women entrepreneurs as we see a lot of technology biases are also there. How do you see that one can navigate through those kinds of obstacles, especially in IP.?

    To all women entrepreneurs, I would say this: don’t let anyone define your potential. Dream big, be ambitious, and proudly say, “I am ambitious.” Don’t feel shy about wanting to make money—it’s okay to say, “I want to make money.” You must aim to build a business that not only fulfills your passion but also generates wealth. And don’t hesitate to seek help when needed.

    So, dream big, be ambitious, work relentlessly, and lead with purpose. Remember, your success is not just your own; it is an inspiration for others who are watching and believing they can do it too.

    Get in touch with Dr. Shweta Singh-

  • “The Legal profession demands hard work, dedication, perseverance, and a great deal of patience. While it is undoubtedly challenging, it is equally fascinating and rewarding.” – Yoothica Pallavi, Advocate on Record at Supreme Court of India.

    “The Legal profession demands hard work, dedication, perseverance, and a great deal of patience. While it is undoubtedly challenging, it is equally fascinating and rewarding.” – Yoothica Pallavi, Advocate on Record at Supreme Court of India.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Coming from a science background, was pursuing law a deliberate decision for  you? How did you prepare to gain admission to Chanakya National Law University,  Patna? 

    This question brings back a wave of nostalgia, and I find it hard to decide where  to begin—it’s quite a story. I belong to a generation where most students were drawn  towards either medicine or engineering. After completing my 12th in 2007, I, too, took  a gap year to prepare for engineering entrance exams. In 2008, I had secured admission  to an engineering college through my AIEEE rank. 

    However, my father, an IITian himself, always had a keen interest in law that ultimately  inspired me to consider law as a profession. 2008 was also, if I recall correctly, the  inaugural year of the CLAT examination. At his encouragement, I decided to take the  exam, and soon after, I found myself admitted to CNLU, Patna—without having spent  even a single day in an engineering classroom. 

    My father often says, “Law is nothing but science,” and it wasn’t long after stepping  into this noble profession that I realized how true this is. Law is fundamentally rooted  in logic and reason. Looking back, I am grateful for the redirection and for discovering  a field where I truly belong. 

    You have significant experience in education law and have represented clients in  cases such as the NEET UG Test 2024 case. What do you believe are the most pressing  legal challenges currently faced by students and educational institutions in India? 

    Talking in legal context, students are among the most vulnerable segments of  society, and it deeply concerns me when they are forced to seek relief through the courts.  I have had the privilege of representing and seeking relief for several students who, after  completing their MBBS degrees from foreign universities, were denied eligibility  certificates by the National Medical Commission (NMC). This certificate is essential  for appearing in the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE), which is a  prerequisite for practicing medicine in India. Unfortunately, in some cases, the NMC  denies these certificates due to non-fulfilment of specific conditions. 

    The situation is particularly distressing for students who, after investing more than five  years to earn their MBBS degrees, find themselves unable to practice in India due to  technicalities. These students are left with no choice but to approach the courts. 

    Similarly, I have encountered cases where students are denied admission or faced issues  related to unfair examinations, such as those arising in NEET-UG 2024. For instance, I  had the opportunity to represent tribal students from Meghalaya in the NEET-UG 2024 dispute.

    On the other hand, educational institutions also face significant challenges, particularly  regarding recognition from regulatory bodies like the University Grants Commission  (UGC) or the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). One particularly  intriguing case I am currently handling involves a dispute over granting recognition for  a dual-mode university (for running conventional and open courses both) to a university  with “Open” in its name. 

    In addition to these issues, there are numerous disputes concerning fee regulation,  inadequate infrastructure, reservations, and other systemic challenges within the  education sector. These matters highlight the pressing need for robust policies and a  student-centered approach to ensure that education serves its intended purpose  effectively. 

    In your early years of practice, you worked with various advocates and law firms,  handling diverse areas such as Constitutional Law, Civil Law, Arbitration Law, and the  Law of Limitation. How did these experiences shape your approach to litigation, and  what key lessons did you take away from them? 

    When I joined law school, one thing I was certain about was my desire to practice  in courts. I never had any second thoughts about it. However, when I initially entered  the profession, adapting to court life was quite challenging. During those early years, I  was exclusively practicing in the Delhi High Court as I was working under the guidance  of Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Mini Pushkarna, who was then Standing Counsel for Municipal  Corporation of Delhi. I was fortunate enough to have regular appearances before the  High Court on a daily basis and that gave me confidence and encouragement to handle  the matters in Court even in adverse situations. I have many anecdotes also which I would never forget. 

    However, contrary to what it may seem to beginners, litigation is not solely about  appearing in court and presenting arguments. It encompasses much more. The process,  from drafting a case to getting it listed before the court, is a journey in itself. Litigation  also involves various registry-related tasks, which are crucial for any lawyer to learn  and understand. In my experience, I firmly believe that a lawyer first has to become a  clerk to grasp the basics of the profession and its importance one would realise after  beginning her/his own practice. It didn’t take long for me to realize the immense  physical and mental effort required in this field. 

    Another vital lesson I learned over time—though I underestimated its significance in  the beginning—is the importance of client handling. As lawyers, we are not only  officers of the court but also advocates for our clients’ interests. Effective client  management is a core skill for building a successful legal practice. A lawyer must  understand client’s needs, build trust, communicate effectively, and provide advice  within ethical boundaries. 

    Currently, at Indus Law Associates, you handle litigation and arbitration before the  Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, the Delhi High Court, the Meghalaya High Court and  various District Courts. Can you share one of the most challenging cases you’ve  encountered, and how did you approach your preparation for it? 

    While working in my current office, I have had the opportunity to handle a variety  of cases across different forums. Among the most notable were two cases involving  students who were denied eligibility certificates after completing their MBBS degrees  in Ukraine. Securing favourable orders in these matters was particularly challenging. 

    Primarily practicing in civil litigation, I faced a unique challenge while handling a  criminal case in the District Court. This bail matter involved allegations of forgery and required navigating proceedings from the Magistrate Court to the District and Sessions  Court. The case provided me with valuable insights into the fundamentals of criminal  law. Additionally, it offered the rare experience of visiting Tihar Jail for a client meeting,  which further broadened my professional exposure. 

    I am also handling election petition before the Hon’ble High Court of Meghalaya, which  has been a challenging and enriching experience. This case has allowed me to explore  a new area of law, delving into its intricacies and technicalities, thereby by broadening  my experience.  

    Could you explain your experience in arbitration, particularly your role in  representing clients such as the Meghalaya Urban Development Authority? How do you  ensure effective representation in arbitration as compared to traditional litigation? 

    Arbitration and litigation are fundamentally different methods of dispute resolution. Arbitration offers an efficient and flexible approach, making it particularly  suitable for commercial disputes. In contrast, litigation is generally preferred for cases  requiring public scrutiny due to its broader scope. 

    For a lawyer, excelling in arbitration demands a deep understanding of the field’s  complexities, especially the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. While the Act may appear  concise, it raises numerous intricate legal questions. Arbitration is often more complex  than litigation, requiring extensive time, effort, and meticulous attention to  documentation and record-keeping, which are critical to the process. 

    Evidence is pivotal in arbitration proceedings, making cross-examination one of the  most essential advocacy skills for arbitration lawyers. 

    Representing government clients in arbitration adds another layer of responsibility.  Cases involving government entities, such as MUDA, necessitate a careful balance  between safeguarding public interest and protecting public funds. These matters often 

    involve substantial sums of money and require adherence to public policy  considerations, given their sensitive nature. 

    Arbitration indeed, is challenging but also interesting.  

    What do you find most fulfilling about your practice as an Advocate on Record,  and what motivates you to continue pursuing this challenging and demanding  profession? 

    Becoming an Advocate on Record (AoR) in the Supreme Court was a significant  milestone in my legal career, something I had always aspired to achieve. The journey  to earning this title was not without its challenges, particularly as I became an AoR in  2020 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. It was a time of rapid digital  transformation in the judiciary, and adapting to the newly introduced procedures was  initially challenging. However, this digital shift proved to be a great relief and a stepping  stone toward a more efficient system. 

    A common misconception about AoRs is that they function merely as filing agents for  the Supreme Court. While it is true that an AoR must be well-versed in the Court’s  procedural rules, I soon realized that their role goes far beyond filing documents. Early  in my practice, there was an expectation that my involvement would be limited to  lending my name and signature. Fortunately, with the guidance of my seniors, I quickly  understood the deeper purpose and responsibility of an AoR. 

    AoRs are not just intermediaries; they are the “face of the case” before the Hon’ble  Supreme Court. This role demands accountability, and a deep understanding of the  matter being presented. The Supreme Court itself has recently underscored the critical  responsibilities of AoRs, issuing strict guidelines to ensure that cases are filed and  presented with the utmost diligence and professionalism. 

    Beyond the procedural responsibilities, the designation of “AoR” brings a sense of  professional recognition and respect. It is both a privilege and a significant  responsibility. The journey as an AoR is undoubtedly challenging, but it is also  immensely rewarding, offering the opportunity to make significant contributions in  delivery of justice at the highest level. 

    Considering the demanding nature of your legal career, how do you manage to  balance your professional duties with personal commitments? 

    Litigation is undoubtedly a demanding profession, requiring unwavering dedication and the ability to work under constant deadlines. As a lawyer, the work never  truly ends—court hours are followed by preparation for the next day’s cases, client  meetings, drafting, and various other responsibilities.

    For me, balancing this rigorous professional life with personal commitments, especially  as a mother, presents new challenges every day. Maintaining a work-life balance is  crucial, but I won’t deny that there are moments of panic and stress. 

    However, I firmly believe that in both personal and professional spheres, no one can do  it all alone. Teamwork plays a vital role in navigating challenges and achieving success.  I am incredibly fortunate to have a strong support system—both in my personal life and  in my professional circle. Their encouragement, collaboration, and assistance enable me to meet the demands of my profession while fulfilling my responsibilities at home.  Without their support, it would have been nearly impossible to strike this balance and  carry out my duties effectively. 

    What advice would you give to young lawyers looking to follow a similar career  path in litigation and arbitration? 

    This profession demands hard work, dedication, perseverance, and a great deal of  patience. While it is undoubtedly challenging, it is equally fascinating and rewarding.  Be willing to learn from failures and adapt to the demands of each case. Never  compromise on integrity and ethics.  

    Keeping oneself updated with legal developments and regularly reading and analysing  judgments is indispensable. It is one of the critical skills necessary for excelling in  litigation, enabling lawyers to stay informed, craft stronger arguments, and navigate the  evolving legal landscape effectively. 

    On a lighter note, this profession also gives the benefit of the summer and winter  vacations. These small breaks offer lawyers a well-deserved opportunity to relax,  unwind, recharge, and prepare for the challenges ahead. 

    Get in touch with Yoothica Pallavi-

  • “I strive to demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and diligence in all my work, and believe that young lawyers learn a lot by observing how we handle both successes and challenges.” – Dr. Selwyn D’costa, Partner at AM Legal Associates.

    “I strive to demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and diligence in all my work, and believe that young lawyers learn a lot by observing how we handle both successes and challenges.” – Dr. Selwyn D’costa, Partner at AM Legal Associates.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Can you share how you started your legal career, and what motivated you to pursue this legal field? Please allow us to walk through your journey.

    My legal career was motivated by the influence of my father, who was a practicing lawyer before the Hon’ble High Court. His work and dedication inspired me to follow a similar path. I started my legal career at Crawford Bayley & Co. as a litigating lawyer, practicing before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court and the Mumbai City Civil Court. During my time in litigation, I was particularly drawn to the aspect of legal research, which sparked a new interest in me. This led me to decide to pursue a deeper focus in research, prompting me to embark on my doctorate degree. In the first year of my doctoral studies, I took a complete break from practice to focus on clearing my pre-PhD examination and finalizing my thesis topic and synopsis. During this phase, as I delved deeper into research, I became increasingly fascinated by Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), which eventually became the central focus of my Ph.D. thesis topic. This newfound interest in IPR motivated me to explore this field professionally. In 2017, I joined Krishna & Saurastri Associates LLP in their Pune office as a Junior Associate in the trademark team. I had the privilege of working under the mentorship of Adv. Anand Mahurkar, who was not only the head of the Pune office but also a partner at the firm. His guidance shaped much of my professional growth. After almost two years with Krishna & Saurastri, I moved on to AM Legal Associates as an Associate Advocate, seeking further opportunities for professional development. After three rewarding years with AM Legal, I was honored to be elevated to Partner in November 2022. This progression reflects the invaluable experiences and mentorship I have received throughout my journey, and I am grateful for the opportunities that have shaped my career in the legal field.

    You began your career in litigation and contract drafting before moving to IPR in 2017. How did this transition influence your perspective on legal practice, and what unique insights have you gained from your earlier roles?

    The transition from litigation and contract drafting to Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in 2017 was both a natural evolution and a transformative shift in my legal career. My earlier experiences in litigation and contract drafting provided me with a solid foundation in the practical aspects of law. In litigation, I developed a keen understanding of legal strategy, client management, and the importance of thorough legal research. These skills were invaluable when it came to analysing cases and building arguments. Contract drafting, on the other hand, taught me the critical importance of precision in language and attention to detail, which are crucial in the drafting and enforcement of contracts. When I moved into the IPR field in 2017, under the mentorship of Adv. Anand Mahurkar at Krishna & Saurastri Associates LLP, my perspective on legal practice expanded significantly. IPR, including but not limited to trademarks, copyrights, patents and designs, is a highly specialized area that blends legal knowledge with an understanding of business strategy, innovation, and market dynamics. This field is inherently dynamic, constantly evolving due to technological advancements and changes in international law, which made my work in IPR feel more forward-thinking. The transition gave me unique insights into the intersection of legal practice with commercial interests. I learned how intellectual property is not only about protecting the rights but also about safeguarding brand value and market positioning. Moreover, working in IPR helped me appreciate the importance of proactive legal measures, such as registrations and enforcement actions, versus the reactive nature of litigation. My earlier roles, particularly in litigation, have equipped me with a deeper understanding of how legal protections can be tested and challenged in courts. This experience has been particularly useful in my IPR practice, as I approach IP disputes with a practical mindset, always considering how theories will hold up in a legal battle. In short, my transition to IPR has broadened my legal horizons, allowing me to appreciate the diverse applications of law while the skills gained from my earlier experiences continue to inform my approach to legal practice in this evolving field.

    With your vast experience in handling contentious and non-contentious matters, can you share a few memorable cases that taught you significant lessons about IP law?

    Throughout my career, I’ve had the privilege of working on a variety of contentious and non-contentious IP matters that have significantly shaped my understanding of IP law. A few memorable cases stand out, each providing me with valuable lessons that continue to influence my practice today.

    1. Trademark Infringement and Passing Off Case: One particularly memorable case involved a trademark infringement and passing off dispute, where we represented a well-known brand in the real estate industry. The defendant had adopted a confusingly similar mark, which led to a real risk of consumer deception wherein consumers had rendered the services of the Defendant thinking those belong to my cline. What made this case particularly significant was the challenge of proving the likelihood of confusion in a crowded market. The key lesson here was the importance of facts and research with regards to the judicial precedents which in turn helped me securing a favourable injunction order in favour of my client restraining the Defendants from using my clients registered trademark till the final the disposal of suit;
    2. Non-Contentious Trademark Registration: On the non-contentious side, I worked on a trademark registration for a major brand. While this may seem like a routine matter, it taught me an invaluable lesson about proactive legal protection. The brand was already in market, but they had not secured registration which was worrisome for the management. This is where my firm was briefed, and the matter was listed for Show Cause hearing for the 3rd time. I appeared for the Show Cause Hearing and argued that the subject mark is a part of an already registered trademark and thus the Subject Mark shall be accepted as the same is associated with my client and the said mark was Accepted which as on date stands registered. This process reinforced the importance of pre-emptive action in IP law—registering trademarks early on, conducting thorough clearance searches, and understanding potential risks before market entry. It highlighted that securing intellectual property rights upfront can save significant resources and avoid future litigation; and
    3. Copyright and Digital Content Protection: A more recent case involved protecting digital content for an individual. The case required swift action to take down infringing content from various international platforms. The lesson from this case was about the importance of timely enforcement in the digital age. The fast pace of the digital world means that IP owners must be vigilant and ready to act at a moment’s notice to protect their rights. Additionally, the case reinforced how quickly IP infringement can spread across the internet, and how critical it is to stay up-to-date with evolving digital rights management tools and online platforms.

    All of these cases aught me important lessons about the dynamic nature of IP law, making me more adaptable and better equipped to handle the complexities of both contentious and non-contentious IP matters.

    You’ve worked across different organizations and mentored juniors along the way. How do you approach mentoring young lawyers in your firm, and what do you emphasize most in their professional development?

    Mentoring my juniors and fellow juniors who are not directly involved with my firm as always been a rewarding aspect of my career, and I approach it with a focus on both professional development and personal growth as taught by my mentor. My first focus when mentoring junior lawyers is ensuring they have a good grasp of legal fundamentals. I encourage them to understand the core principles of law and how to apply them in real-world scenarios. While knowledge of statutes and case law is important, it’s the practical application of that knowledge that truly matters. I emphasize the importance of attention to detail, especially when drafting documents or filing trademark applications or drafting responses or analysing legal issues, as even small errors can have significant consequences in legal practice. I also place emphasis on understanding the client’s perspective and I always encourage my mentees to think beyond the letter of the law and consider how our advice impacts a client’s business or personal interests. I believe that developing a client-centric mindset is crucial in fostering strong relationships and providing high-quality service. Lastly, I believe that the most effective mentorship happens through leading by example. I strive to demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and diligence in all my work, and I believe that young lawyers learn a lot by observing how we handle both successes and challenges. I encourage them to approach each task with the same level of commitment and care, regardless of its size.

    Ultimately, my goal as a mentor is to empower young lawyers, providing them with the tools and confidence they need to grow into skilled, independent professionals who can contribute meaningfully to the firm and the legal community at large.

    Your Ph.D. focused on digital copyright. How do you think digital platforms and the rise of user-generated content have reshaped copyright enforcement, and what challenges do you foresee in this area? 

    Firstly, the rise of digital platforms and user-generated content has dramatically reshaped the landscape of copyright enforcement. As digital content becomes more accessible and easily shared across platforms like social media, streaming services, and content-sharing websites, the challenges related to copyright protection and enforcement have multiplied. One of the most significant changes has been the increased volume of content that is uploaded and shared daily. With millions of videos, images, and text being posted by users globally, it becomes increasingly difficult for copyright holders to track and enforce their rights, and this has made it essential for copyright owners to rely on more automated tools (such as content recognition systems) and platform-specific reporting mechanisms to identify and take down infringing material. Secondly, the growth of user-generated content (UGC) has led to new challenges, particularly when users remix or modify existing copyrighted works. Market leader platforms are filled with content that may incorporate copyrighted music, videos, or images. While these platforms have made strides in facilitating copyright enforcement, this has often resulted in debates around fair use and fair dealing exceptions and therefore I feel that this has created a legal grey area that copyright holders must navigate, balancing the protection of their rights while not stifling creativity and freedom of expression. Thirdly, the most important factor is the growing scrutiny on the role of platforms themselves in copyright infringement. These platforms increasingly monetize user-generated content, there is a growing call for platforms to take a more active role in monitoring and preventing infringement. The challenge here lies in balancing the responsibility of platforms to curb infringement with the free speech rights of users.

    To conclude, the intersection of digital platforms, user-generated content, and copyright enforcement presents a complex and dynamic challenge. As a result, ongoing innovation in both legal strategy and technology will be crucial in shaping the future of digital copyright protection in India.

    Success in legal practice is not always about winning cases. Can you share an example where success for a client was achieved through strategic negotiation or an innovative legal solution rather than a courtroom victory?

    I completely second you on this. In a classic case where my client had adopted a brand name which contained a well-known trademark wherein, I had advised my client to not include the well-known mark as part of the proposed brand. However, my client was ready to accept the risk and went ahead with the filing of the application. The application was examined and subsequently Accepted and Advertised in the Journal. The proprietor of the well-known trademark filed opposition against my client’s application, and we communicated the same to our client. Our client asked for our opinion was to how do we tackle this as our client wasn’t well equipped monetarily to stand against the proprietor of the well-known trademark that is where I advised my client that we shall initiate dialogue with the registered trademark owner stating that we shall delete the device which was in question and our clients agreed to the same. Pursuant to our clients’ instructions, we initiated the dialogue stating that we shall delete the device and proposed to amicable settle the matter.  The other side agreed to our proposal, and we filed a request for amendment to delete the device from our client’s trademark. This case taught me that strategic negotiation and creative solutions can often be more effective than litigation, especially in matters where brand value, business relationships, and long-term goals and finance are at stake. It reinforced the importance of thinking outside the box, being attuned to the client’s needs, and finding the best path forward by way of negations, even if it doesn’t involve a courtroom victory.

    Startups often face challenges in protecting their intellectual property with limited resources. What advice do you have for new businesses looking to secure their IP while balancing growth and innovation?  

    While advising startups on protecting their intellectual property (IP) while balancing growth and innovation, I always emphasize the importance of being proactive, strategic, and resource efficient. Startups often operate with limited resources, so it’s crucial to focus on the most valuable aspects of their IP and protect them in a way that aligns with their business goals. Here’s the advice I typically offer viz., identify and prioritize core IP assets, file for registration of the identified IP, enter into appropriate agreements with partners, investors, contractors, or even potential employees, push and enforce your rights and keep good records. While protecting IP might seem daunting for startups with limited resources, taking proactive, strategic steps can go a long way in safeguarding their innovations and setting them up for future growth. It’s about focusing on the most valuable IP assets, taking advantage of protection methods, and using strategic legal solutions that align with the business’s goals. By taking these steps early on, startups can ensure that they have the foundation for both innovation and long-term success, all while minimizing risks associated with IP infringement

    In your opinion, how can Intellectual Property laws be better leveraged to protect cultural heritage and traditional knowledge, especially in a diverse country like India?

    Intellectual Property laws can be better leveraged to protect cultural heritage and traditional knowledge (TK) in India by adopting a multifaceted approach viz., recognizing collective ownership, creating a Dedicated Legal Framework, Strengthening Documentation and Databases, Geographical Indications (GI), Customary Laws Integration, Benefit-Sharing Mechanisms, by spreading and creating awareness, International Collaboration, Preventing Misappropriation and Cultural Sensitivity in IP Laws. All implementing these factors, India can better safeguard its rich cultural diversity and traditional wisdom while promoting their sustainable use.

    With such a demanding and dynamic career in Intellectual Property Rights, how do you unwind and recharge? Are there any hobbies or activities you enjoy outside of the legal field that help you maintain balance?  

    Maintaining balance in a demanding career like Intellectual Property Rights requires intentional effort. The main factors that help me unwind and recharge are listening to music, playing Xbox, travel with family, get together and hang out with friends, reading blogs on IP and last a most favourite going on long rides with my wife. Such hobbies not only provide relaxation but often inspire fresh perspectives, essential in a dynamic career like IPR.

    What advice would you give to young lawyers entering the field of Intellectual Property Rights? Are there any specific skills or knowledge areas they should focus on? 

    According to me I would recommend the following to young lawyers entering the field of IPR viz., develop a strong foundation by strengthening the basics during your law school by understating basic concepts of IP law, build good analytical and research skills by reading blogs on IP, keep up a track the on current and more recent judicial precedents with regards to IP, stay updated about the global IP trends, explore drafting and take lessons on negotiations by engaging into internships, try to gain practical knowledge during your internships, learn to navigate national and global IP databases, stay updated with recent technology and industry trends, network with professionals through LinkedIn, focus on soft skills, and last but not the least continue to learn. By honing these skills and remaining adaptable, young lawyers can excel in this dynamic and rewarding field.

    Get in touch with Dr. Selwyn D’costa-

  • “The ability to adapt, learn, and deliver tailored solutions will set you apart in the dynamic world of International Legal Practice.” – Somya Priyadarshini, Senior Associate at NHB Legal, Dubai.

    “The ability to adapt, learn, and deliver tailored solutions will set you apart in the dynamic world of International Legal Practice.” – Somya Priyadarshini, Senior Associate at NHB Legal, Dubai.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    With almost a decade of experience in various areas of the law, looking back, was law a planned career path for you? And, what inspired you to specialise in International Commercial Arbitration from University of Miami?

    Coming from a family with a strong academic tradition and a father who practiced law, pursuing a career in law felt like a natural progression. However, my true passion for the field developed during law school, particularly through my involvement in the Legal Aid Clinic, where I worked on resolving real-world disputes for underprivileged communities. This experience sparked my interest in dispute resolution, especially arbitration, as a means of achieving efficient and fair outcomes.

    Specializing in International Commercial Arbitration at the University of Miami was driven by my aspiration to gain a global perspective. Miami’s reputation as a hub for international arbitration and its proximity to Latin America offered the ideal setting to study cross-border disputes. The program’s focus on both theoretical and practical aspects of arbitration, coupled with mentorship from globally renowned faculty, solidified my decision to specialize in this dynamic area of law.

    From your early days at Siegfried Rivera to your current role at NHB Legal, what are the key experiences that have shaped your approach to arbitration and dispute resolution?

    My journey began at Siegfried Rivera, where I gained exposure to construction law and arbitration under AAA rules, particularly involving complex commercial and construction disputes. Working in a U.S. legal framework sharpened my understanding of structured case preparation, meticulous research, and the strategic use of evidence.

    At NHB Legal, I have been involved in high-stakes multi-jurisdictional disputes under various institutional frameworks IVF, DIAC and ICC. I have also represented clients in industries as diverse as construction to precious metals trading; this has further refined my ability to temper technical legal analysis with an appreciation of the client’s commercial interests. All of these experiences have uniquely influenced my approach to arbitration, with a focus on ensuring adaptable, client-based solutions that are sensitive to the various cultural differences between them.

    Having spent your early years working alongside a Senior Advocate, what were the most valuable lessons you learned during that time, and what motivated you to transition into international arbitration and cross-border legal practice?

    In India, I was fortunate to work with a Senior Advocate who specializes in high-value disputes for government undertakings and private parties — litigations and arbitrations, developing my skills accordingly. That gave me a good sense of how to prepare, be precise in drafting and advocate your case orally. During these formative years, I also learned how to negotiate and navigate procedural intricacies, ensuring that every case was approached strategically.

    The motivation to transition into international arbitration stemmed from my desire to expand my horizons and engage with diverse legal frameworks. Cross-border disputes present unique challenges that require a blend of legal acumen, cultural awareness, and commercial pragmatism. This transition allowed me to bridge the gap between different legal systems, making my practice truly global.

    Can you walk us through your professional journey as a lawyer, highlighting key milestones in both India and the U.S. being a dual qualified lawyer? How have your cross-border experiences influenced your legal philosophy and approach to advising clients in complex transactions?

    My journey began in India, where I worked on domestic arbitration and litigation matters, often involving government undertakings and large corporate clients. A key milestone was securing significant arbitral awards in cases involving infrastructure and construction disputes. These experiences laid a strong foundation in arbitration and procedural law.

    Transitioning to the U.S., I gained exposure to construction law and commercial arbitration, particularly under AAA and UNCITRAL rules. Drafting motions, advising on contracts, and assisting in arbitrations for high-value disputes were integral to my role. As a dual-qualified lawyer, my cross-border experiences have profoundly influenced my legal philosophy. They taught me the importance of adaptability, cultural awareness, and precision when dealing with complex, multi-jurisdictional matters. When advising clients, I ensure that my strategies are aligned not only with the legal framework but also with the client’s business objectives and cultural context.

    How have your previous roles in both the US and India influenced your approach to handling disputes in the Middle East, particularly when dealing with regional legal frameworks like DIFC and DIAC?

    In India, I developed a strong foundation in procedural rigor and arbitration law, while my U.S. experience introduced me to sophisticated commercial arbitration practices. These roles equipped me with a unique perspective, allowing me to adapt to the hybrid legal systems of the Middle East, such as DIFC and DIAC.

    When handling disputes in this region, I leverage my ability to synthesize principles from common law and civil law systems, tailoring my approach to suit the jurisdictional and cultural nuances. This adaptability ensures effective representation in a complex and evolving legal environment.

    Handling ad-hoc arbitrations and working with clients across the globe, how do you keep up with emerging trends and changes in international arbitration law, and how do you incorporate this into your practice?

    Staying current with trends in international arbitration requires constant learning and engagement. I actively participate in forums like the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) and attend global conferences to stay updated on developments such as third-party funding, technology integration, and procedural efficiency in arbitration.

    In practice, I incorporate these insights by adapting strategies to reflect emerging trends. For instance, I ensure clients are aware of cost-effective procedural options, the implications of technological advancements in evidence presentation, and jurisdiction-specific updates. This proactive approach allows me to deliver solutions that are innovative and aligned with global standards.

    How do you balance the demands of a high-pressure, multi-jurisdictional practice with maintaining work-life balance?

    Balancing a demanding practice requires a structured approach to time management and delegation. I prioritize tasks based on urgency and impact while ensuring clear communication with my team. Personal well-being is equally important, and I make it a point to disconnect from work during family time and engage in mindfulness practices.

    This balance not only sustains my productivity but also ensures I approach each case with clarity and focus. It’s about maintaining harmony between professional excellence and personal fulfilment.

    Having handled several high-stakes arbitrations, what do you consider your biggest professional challenge to date, and how did you overcome it?

    One of the most challenging cases I’ve handled involved a high-stakes international arbitration concerning a large-scale construction project. The dispute centered on technical claims involving structural defects, delays, and significant financial losses. The arbitration was seated in London, governed by a mix of common and civil law principles, and involved parties, witnesses, and experts from multiple jurisdictions. What stood out in this case and is common to most international arbitrations was the added complexity of navigating diverse perspectives among the parties involved. The counsel teams, witnesses, and tribunal members came from various legal traditions, cultural backgrounds, and generations, each bringing their unique approach to the case. These differences impacted everything, from procedural expectations to how evidence was perceived, and arguments were evaluated.

    To overcome these challenges, I focused on collaboration and adaptability. I worked closely with technical experts to present the evidence in a way that was both legally sound and easily understood by the tribunal. I also ensured our legal strategy was flexible, adjusting arguments and advocacy styles to resonate with the tribunal’s preferences while maintaining consistency in the case’s overall narrative. Recognizing the importance of bridging cultural and generational gaps, I approached the proceedings with openness and respect for differing viewpoints, fostering an environment where constructive dialogue could thrive.

    These kinds of issues are not unique to this case but are a hallmark of international arbitration. Each arbitration comes with its own set of unique challenges, shaped by the diversity of the individuals and systems involved. Successfully navigating these challenges has reinforced my belief that international arbitration requires not only legal and technical acumen but also an ability to adapt to the human elements of the process. This balance is essential to delivering results in complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes.

    In your experience, what common pitfalls do contractors and developers often face in construction contracts, and how do you mitigate these issues during the contract negotiation phase?

    Contractors and developers often face several pitfalls in construction contracts, primarily due to lack of clear documentation. Ambiguities around the scope of work, variations, and payment terms can lead to disputes. Unclear dispute resolution clauses are also common, making it difficult to address conflicts efficiently. Additionally, inadequate risk allocation and unclear deadlines or penalties can cause misunderstandings, especially in projects with complex timelines or unforeseen risks.

    To mitigate these issues, I focus on ensuring precise documentation of all terms, including scope, timelines, and payment schedules. I also stress the importance of clear dispute resolution mechanisms, typically favouring arbitration for its efficiency. Additionally, I ensure proper risk allocation and emphasize the need for consistent documentation of any changes throughout the project. By addressing these issues upfront, we reduce the risk of future disputes and ensure smoother project delivery.

    Given your broad experience across different legal domains, what advice would you give to young legal professionals who aspire to have international practice as you?

    Aspiring international lawyers should build a strong foundation in core legal principles while seeking exposure to diverse legal systems. Developing cultural awareness and language skills is equally important. Networking through global platforms and engaging with mentors in the field can open doors to international opportunities.

    Most importantly, approach every case with diligence, empathy, curiosity and a global perspective, understanding the unique needs of clients in cross-border contexts. The ability to adapt, learn, and deliver tailored solutions will set you apart in the dynamic world of international legal practice.

    Get in touch with Somya Priyadarshini-

  • “Find you drive in what you love to practice as a lawyer. Pave new paths, create detours, or merge with other knowledge banks, as long as you steer yourself to your destination.” – Prashanth Ram, Managing Partner at 5ive Legal LLP.

    “Find you drive in what you love to practice as a lawyer. Pave new paths, create detours, or merge with other knowledge banks, as long as you steer yourself to your destination.” – Prashanth Ram, Managing Partner at 5ive Legal LLP.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    After receiving your B. Com Degree, what motivated you to pursue a Law Degree at Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University in Chennai?

    I am a second generation lawyer, with my father Mr. Ramachandrudu (Retd IOB Legal Advisor and Deputy Secy. to Banking Ombudsman) hailing from Chennai and an ardent steward from Adv. K.K. Venugopal Offices in Chennai where other stalwarts like Hon. Former Minister Mr. Chidambaram, Late Mr. R. Mohan (Former Addl. Solicitor General of India), so it was inevitable that I was subconsciously tuned from the very beginning to what was expected from a logical, pragmatic solution provider and as a crisis handler. Business Studies culminated interest to further Commercial and Corporate laws in India.

    You went on to pursue your LLM from University of Manchester, United Kingdom where you specialised in International Business Law. Can you share with us your experiences and your motivation to pursue this specialisation?

    To have a global business acumen, one has to extensively study how different legal environments can impose on businesses. My agenda was to study business law with a mindset of how justice can be delivered for cross border work apart from what is practiced domestically. When laws encompass boundaries, certain denominators are preset – It is important to ascertain them while traversing the dynamism that circumstances create when businesses are perceived and run globally.

    You briefly worked with a law firm before moving to the Corporates and then back to founding a law firm. What motivated your transition and could you share your experience working in both cultures?

    Honestly, that is what the external world will see, when you see a profile like mine. I started with a law firm, to choose what kind of company or sector that I wished to see myself for the future, after spending some time, I realised I was interested in Cross border contracts, IT contracts and FEMA. When I realised that when money was coming into India, majority had to be invested in real estate as there was a boom around 2008. By end of 2010, I had equipped myself to handle various subjects in International law, along with FEMA and Real Estate. From manning a 10-member team to a team of 100 and also leading legal departments for 15 years across India, I realised with the connect and bandwidth, the natural progression was to lead a team with my own firm, in my case it was more of a rebranding from my father’s sole practitioner firm.

    You have headed various legal departments of different big companies before starting your independent practice in 2015. What were the initial challenges that you faced while running your practice and how has your experience in the corporate world shaped your practice?

    Advocates largely come from a sole practioner/ promoter/ senior practitioner driven set ups, which means they come unorganised yet they are effective in their own ways to perform a desired task. Corporate experience comes in handy, when we quantify the quality work that is executed, meaning, – adhering to process, setting policies, having TAT’s, Setting the flow of reporting structure, Ensuring Good communication and also to a large extent find time to work as a team and progress to a collective growth and vision. Heading Legal departments gives you an expertise to handle different stakeholders in ahigh paced setup by meeting their already high expectations. Being Agile and flexible at the same time can accommodate one’s decision-making power in a dynamic environment.

    As the Managing Director and Principal Attorney of M/s. 5IVE LEGAL, you have experience representing clients in various intellectual property matters, including domain name disputes. What are the key challenges that international entities encounter when dealing with domain disputes in India?

    Half the Work is done at the application stage itself. By having a robust application with best precedence and details will ensure your applications are successful. Secondly, when we appear for a dispute, the weightage given more to the research and that sort of research that does not necessarily extend to legal books or precedence alone but reaching and dipping into practical real-world implications. To be honest, common sense alone can half your battles in any court room. We should remember we are not creating anything but delivering what is already created, so we should not lose focus on issues that are primarily important. One main challenge for entities globally is the hesitation to challenge as they are unaware of the cost or timely outcome. They are also blindsided by the procedures involved. Domain disputes and cybersquatting to a large extent has had their disputes resolved by various forums by treating them largely to a Trade Mark that has been existing.

    You have extensive experience in Private Equity Financing and advising clients on investment-related matters. How do you stay updated with the evolving trends in private equity, investment law, and regulations?

    These PE or Debt Transactions revolve around various stakeholders in a transaction such as a Banker, Loan Provider, Investment Banker, TPA, Tax advisors, Authorities such as RBI/SEBI etc, and clients who are either mortgagors, debenture issuers or purchasers. I might have missed some, these entities ensure we are up to date with what’s happening, so is our language while dealing with such transactions. We treat every deal individually and hence generalisation is a misconception when dealing with such transactions.

    We understand that your firm has merged with another large full-service law firm, what does this mean for the future?

    The recent merger with AKM and Associates LLP, (A Six-decade old long firm) – “AKM 5ive Legal” stands as a testament to my vision for the firm—a vision that blends deep legal expertise with forward-thinking solutions. By leveraging the combined resources and expertise of both firms, this merger aims to consolidate its position as one of the top tier corporate law firms in Chennai by addressing a broad spectrum of corporate legal needs while upholding a strong commitment to ethics, excellence, and strategic vision. We have embraced technology as a means of improving service delivery, ensuring that our clients receive innovative, future-ready legal support. This transformation is a reflection of my broader belief in the power of adaptability and continuous learning.

    With your expertise and experience, what advice would you give to the younger generation who wish to excel in the field of law?

    My advice to young lawyers is to find you drive in what you love to practice as a lawyer in this very road that many have travelled. Now your journey may not be like others, so you can pave new paths, create detours, or merge with other knowledge banks, as long as you steer yourself to your destination.

    Get in touch with Prashanth Ram-

  • “Stay focused, work hard, and build discipline as a core habit. Success comes from commitment, perseverance, and consistently applying these principles in both practice and life.” – Tariq Ahmed, Co-Founder of Ahmadi Law Offices.

    “Stay focused, work hard, and build discipline as a core habit. Success comes from commitment, perseverance, and consistently applying these principles in both practice and life.” – Tariq Ahmed, Co-Founder of Ahmadi Law Offices.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Your legal career spans a wide range of practice areas. What inspired you to pursue law as a profession, and what led you to specialize in Corporate Law at NLU Jodhpur?

    My journey into law was deeply influenced by my early childhood experiences. Growing up in a household where my father, both a law graduate and government officer, instilled a profound respect for the legal system, I developed a natural gravitation toward the profession. His influence, combined with my inherent desire to pursue justice, solidified my decision to study law during my school years.

    During my time at Aligarh Muslim University, I was fortunate to learn from distinguished law professors who shaped my understanding of legal principles. 

    A particularly transformative experience was my exposure to Nehru studies, which opened my eyes to the crucial relationship between economics and law. This course helped me understand how even minor policy oversights could significantly impact market dynamics and national growth. A pivotal moment in my academic journey was my introduction to Eric Posner’s groundbreaking work on law and economics. His analytical framework and insights into how legal rules affect economic outcomes resonated deeply with me and ultimately shaped the trajectory of my legal career. Looking back, I see how this exposure laid the intellectual foundation for my current approach to my practice.

    These experiences naturally led me to pursue a specialization in Corporate Law at National Law University, Jodhpur. The robust curriculum in the course, with its strong emphasis on foreign trade and corporate governance, perfectly aligned with my growing interest in the legal framework that emerged in the wake of India’s transformative 1991 liberalization policies. This has proven invaluable in my practice, enabling me to better serve clients navigating the complexities of modern corporate law.

    Having worked alongside senior advocates like Mr. Irshad Ahmed and Mr. A. Samad, what were some key lessons or insights you gained during your early practice that have shaped your approach to law?

    My early legal career began under the mentorship of a senior law officer of Uttar Pradesh, which provided an excellent foundation in legal practice. While those initial years were enriching, I soon recognized that staying within my comfort zone would not serve my professional growth. This realization prompted me to pursue a more challenging path in economic offenses and white-collar crimes.

    A defining moment in my career was the opportunity to work with Mr. Abdul Samad, whose visual impairment never hindered his exceptional legal acumen. His mastery over money laundering laws, indirect taxation, customs, DRI, and financial fraud matters was remarkable, which I had the privilege to observe and imbibe first-hand. What truly set him apart was his meticulous attention to detail and unwavering professional discipline. Under his guidance, I had the privilege of working on diverse cases across India, from Guwahati to Bengaluru, including complex corporate matters and cases under COFEPOSA. 

    After spending nearly six years working as an associate with senior lawyers, what motivated you to start your own practice? What were some of the initial hurdles you encountered in that transition?

    After two enriching years with Mr. Samad, I began to recognize that independent practice would allow me to fully embrace the challenges and responsibilities of the legal profession. The timing proved fortuitous – as the market began recovering from the second wave of COVID-19, my elder brother, Mr. Shariq Ahmed, and I established Ahmadi Law Offices, which is a registered Advocate on Record Firm based in Delhi.

    While we faced the typical challenges that first-generation lawyers encounter, our journey was thankfully smooth, thanks to our strong foundation and support system. My brother’s unwavering faith in divine justice and constant encouragement were instrumental in our success. I must also acknowledge the invaluable guidance of Ms. Vibha Datt Makhija, Senior Advocate, whose mentorship has been crucial in our professional development.

    As stated earlier, our background had equipped us with the mental fortitude necessary to overcome professional obstacles, and this resilience has been key to our firm’s growth. Looking back, what might have seemed like hurdles were actually stepping stones that helped shape our practice into what it is today.

    With over a decade of experience, you’ve regularly dealt with complex Money Laundering and FEMA matters. Could you share details of one particularly challenging case, and how you approached its preparation?

    White collar crimes and economic offences particularly those involving Money Laundering and FEMA, represent some of the most challenging areas of legal practice. The sensitive nature of these cases, combined with constantly evolving jurisprudence, demands exceptional attention to detail and precision in deploying the appropriate legal strategy.

    In my experience handling these matters, I have learned that no two cases are identical, as each presents its unique set of complexities and challenges. The stakes are invariably high, and the margin for error is effectively non-existent.

    For me, each case is a child I nurtured, requiring careful preparation, from researching relevant precedents to crafting precise legal arguments. While every case has been uniquely challenging, success consistently depends on meticulous planning and effective presentation. The key lies not only in understanding the law but also in anticipating its application to each distinctive situation.

    Handling cases that intersect environmental, industrial, and corporate law can be challenging. How do you ensure a smooth workflow while effectively managing your practice?

    My answer might seem clichéd but success in legal practice follows a compound effect which means that one well-handled case leads to many opportunities. The practice of law, especially when dealing with intersecting areas, requires more than just technical knowledge. It demands unwavering confidence and self-belief to effectively manage both the practice’s growth and workflow complexities. I have found that maintaining strong organizational capacity while staying adaptable to changing circumstances is key to handling these cases effectively.

    Given the high demands of your role, particularly Independent Practitioner and Co-founder Ahmadi Law Offices, how do you manage personal obligations? What strategies do you employ to recharge and stay motivated in your legal career?

    Maintaining work-life balance is crucial in our demanding profession. I make it a point to spend quality vacation time with my family, and always outside Delhi, to truly disconnect from work. While weekends tend to sometimes blur into workdays due to professional commitments, I ensure we maximize our vacation time. 

    To stay grounded, I find solace in literature and arts – reading biographies, enjoying poetry in Hindi, Urdu, and English, and listening to Ghazals.  I am particularly drawn to Satyajit Ray’s work, especially “The Apu Trilogy.” The way he portrayed human relationships and societal transitions in films like “Pather Panchali” resonates deeply with me. They are a constant reminder of the human elements that underlie our professional work.

    Given your broad experience across different legal domains, what advice would you give to young legal professionals who aspire to have a corporate practice as you?

    My advice to law students and aspiring lawyers is very straightforward: maintain unwavering focus and work consistently toward your goals. Remember that no challenge should shake your confidence. Success in this field is built on the fundamental pillars of commitment, hard work, patience, and perseverance. Most importantly, make discipline your core habit – it is not just about managing your practice, but about making it an integral part of your life. This discipline will naturally reflect in your work quality and professional relationships.

    Get in touch with Tariq Ahmed-

  • “Young lawyers should not lose themselves in over planning everything about their career. Work hard, be authentic and allow things to happen.” – Kaushik Sochannam, Managing Partner at Sochannam Legal Indian Advocates.

    “Young lawyers should not lose themselves in over planning everything about their career. Work hard, be authentic and allow things to happen.” – Kaushik Sochannam, Managing Partner at Sochannam Legal Indian Advocates.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Having extensive experience in shipping, insurance, commodities, and international trade, can you walk us through the journey that led you to choose law as a career and to specialize in these areas?

    My decision to study law was an unplanned act of desperation based on a two-minute argumentative interaction with women’s rights lawyer Flavia Agnes who visited KC college (where I was pursuing BSc – Statistics and Economics) to conduct a seminar on women’s rights. During the discussion, Flavia touched upon the topic of martial rape of wife by the husband. The impatient rebel in me promptly asked her whether the wife could be guilty of martial rape when the husband didn’t want to have sexual intercourse. This interaction with Flavia and her articulation stayed with me.

    When I completed my Bsc – Statistics and Economics, I realised that as much as I enjoyed statistics as a subject, I was not good at it. pursuing it further would be a torture that I preferred to avoid. I had to tell my parents that I was pursuing higher studies to get them off my back!!!   

    Right next to KC College was KC Law College. I recollected my discussion with Flavia Agnes which I found intellectually refreshing. In an act of desperation (or a leap of faith) I decided to apply for admission at KC Law and secured my seat!!! That’s it. No research, no carrier prospects analysis, no guidance counsellor, never met a lawyer previously, neither saw a court room nor did I know how a court room looked, no idea what a solicitor/counsel meant!!! etc. I was the antithesis of what most prospective law students went through when they enrolled in law school and what most law students endure today!!!     

    To be honest, I did not choose to specialize in shipping and insurance law. Shipping law chose me. I would like to think that.  During law school, I was eager for internships to gain experience. I was sending my CV wherever I could to secure an internship. I received a call from Crawford Bayley for an interview. I met the partner who asked me a few generic questions. He asked me to join the next day. While leaving his office, I asked him what law he practices. He said shipping. I said, cool!! I am doing shipping law now. That’s it. No grand plan or scheme was hatched. I stumbled into the field of shipping law!!

    You have worked on admiralty cases across Indian courts. Could you share one of the most complex or interesting cases you have handled in the admiralty space?

    There are so many. A case involving the Salgaocar Group and Goldgen Ocean Group involving ani-suit injunctions against English court proceedings, arrest of vessel in South Africa as security and eventual settlement on favour of the client. 

    Another case involving European creditors against a fleet of vessels controlled by Jaisu Shipping. This involved the arrest of their entire fleet in India, dealing with multiple creditors, challenging port claims, priority of claims and arriving at a resolution where my clients made a full recovery of their claims from the sale proceeds.  

    Allison incident with a chemical jetty where shipowners were straddled with inflated claims. This was one of those cases where you delve into root case analysis, construction path analysis, remoteness of damages, delay analysis, liability in tort, contract and statute. At the end of the journey, the owners were not held liable for any of the claims made by port authorities. 

    In your experience, how has the legal landscape surrounding maritime law in India evolved in recent years, particularly in terms of regulation, enforcement, and the role of the courts?

    The biggest change in the legal landscape is the Admiralty Act, 2017. The Admiralty Act 2017 vested more high courts with admiralty jurisdiction. Previously, it was only the chartered high courts and their successor courts that were vested with admiralty jurisdiction. In terms of substantive legislation, regarding maritime claims and liens, we are following Arrest Convention, 1999 with some variations. 

    Could you share some of your experiences from the early years of your practice as an associate that helped shape your career? And, after almost five years of working with a law firm, what motivated you to establish your own practice? What were some of the key challenges you encountered in the initial stages?

    Looking back, the early years in the profession were exciting, challenging and rewarding. Challenging in part – as I was argumentative, impatient, and blunt without due regard to the person I was dealing with. I was fortunate enough to have worked with Ananjan Mitter at ALMT Legal who encouraged me to soften the rough edges of my personality. His guidance helped me a long way in adjusting to the requirements of the profession. I am indebted to him. The biggest take away from those years – the profession is about people. Dealing with people in an honest, fair and respectable way goes a long way in getting things done.   

    Ananjan decided to pursue other interests and left the firm. I was at crossroads in terms of where I wanted to be. At that point, I did not see myself in the law firm architecture. I was securing decent amount of work through my contacts.  In a leap of faith or madness, at the age of 29 in the year 2013, I set up my private practice under the banner – Sochannam Legal. I sought freedom and had a load of dreams.  In return, I received a rewarding roller-coaster ride that I would not trade for the world!!!  

    The key challenge when setting up practice is migrating from just servicing a client to managing and servicing the client while keeping in mind the value for the services you are offering. It’s a 360-degree role. Private practice is not meant for everyone. Once you endure the practice for a few years, you get a hang of it. 

    How do you manage the complexities of different legal jurisdictions and international laws when handling maritime cases that involve multiple parties across borders?

    Research, research and more research. Speaking with lawyers in other jurisdictions to understand how things work there. You start from a position of understanding what you do not know and then work towards finding answers to them.  

    When dealing with parties across multiple jurisdictions, it is always good to understand the culture they come from. Every culture is unique. Understanding another culture (without being judgmental!!) goes a long way in dealing effectively with clients and parties. 

    You have significant experience in handling arbitrations related to COA disputes, Off-hire disputes, charterparty disputes, and demurrage. What strategies do you find most effective when preparing for and managing arbitration proceedings in these areas?

    1. Get the facts right.
    2. Provide documentary proof for damages. Especially in cases of repudiatory breach of charterparty/COA. Depending on the market situation, these claims can go into millions of $$. 
    3. There are many reasons for demurrage and dispatch claims.  When your clients are relying on adverse weather to defeat demurrage claim, make sure there is adequate documentary proof to demonstrate adverse weather. Vanilla weather reports won’t do. The weather report will be unique to the location of the weather station. The moot point will be if the weather was prevailing at the port.    

    Given your experience in corporate structuring, particularly when advising companies looking to set up operations in India, what are the most critical legal considerations for international businesses entering the Indian market?

    The critical issues are FEMA compliance and sectoral caps. Restrictions on foreign shareholders. Whether they intend to form a wholly owned subsidiary or form a Joint Venture company with a local partner. In which case, shareholding interest in the JV company plays a significant role. Assessing consequences of DTAA which may impact the operations in India and the global parent company. Repatriation of profits.    

    What advice would you give to a young lawyer starting out in the areas of shipping, insurance, and international trade law?

    After a year/two into the practice, young lawyers should ask themselves if they really like this area of law. If they do not, they should be honest enough to admit it and be open to make changes to their career path. These days, a lot of aspiring lawyers at very early stage of their career set their agenda in the profession. This is good when there is clarity of thought. In most cases, it is based on insufficient information, and this is where people get stuck.   

    It serves no purpose to do something you do not like. In my case, I knew I was not good at statistics though I enjoyed it. I took a chance and decided to study law and got involved with shipping. The journey has been enriching and rewarding. More importantly, young lawyers should not lose themselves in over planning everything about their career. Work hard and allow things to happen. Be authentic and don’t be an imitation!!! be open to change!!!

    Get in touch with Kaushik Sochannam-

  • “There is no short cut to hard work. Success can only be achieved with patience, hard-work and perseverance fuelled by honesty and integrity.” – Shilpi Mehta Nanda, Founding and Managing Partner at Zeal Attorneys.

    “There is no short cut to hard work. Success can only be achieved with patience, hard-work and perseverance fuelled by honesty and integrity.” – Shilpi Mehta Nanda, Founding and Managing Partner at Zeal Attorneys.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    You have completed your Masters degree from University of New Hampshire School of Law, USA specializing in Intellectual Property Law, Commerce and Technology. What was your motivation to choose this specialization?

    I remember taking the ‘Intellectual Property Law’ as a mandatory subject in third year of my law school. I was so intrigued by the subject that I finished the entire course curriculum even before our professor taught it in the class. To further increase my knowledge on the subject I started a diploma course in Intellectual Property Laws at the Indian Law Institute, Delhi and attended the evening classes. I believe my attraction towards fancy colorful logos and brands along with my passion for reading stories and inclination towards dramatics and storytelling attributed to my decision of specialising in Intellectual Property Law. 

    Starting your career at prominent IP firms like Lall and Sethi and Anand & Anand must have been a rewarding experience. What key lessons did you learn during your time there that significantly influenced your career?

    It was an enriching experience to work with two of the prestigious law firms in the field of IP. One of the most important lessons I learnt at the beginning of my career at Lall and Sethi was to be always honest with your clients. I run my present firm ZEAL on the same principles –  honesty and integrity. At Anand and Anand, I learnt to handle bulk work and multi-tasking and the importance of billable hours in a lawyer’s life.    

    Serving as an Intellectual Property Attaché for India at the British High Commission and the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) must have provided valuable insights. Could you share your observations and experiences on how the UKIPO operates differently from the CGPDTM?

    At the British High Commission and the UKIPO, I majorly did policy related work relating to Intellectual property. This role was quite challenging as I was contributing to developing policies and engaging with Ministers and high-level officials of both the UK and India.  At the UKIPO, I polished my skills in the art of networking. The same holds immense importance to me even today.  While each job helped me in building my career and skills, my policy driven role at British High Commission assisted my vision and career path exponentially. 

    I particularly worked in the international division of the UKIPO which was responsible for serving the British stakeholders in India. My main profile was to assist and launch British businesses and work on their IP portfolios while working on their IP issues with DPIIT (at the policy level) and CGPDTM.  I majorly worked with DPIIT and CIPAM instead of CGPDTM during my tenure at UKIPO. 

    After gaining experience with various firms, you founded your own practice. What initial challenges did you encounter, and how did you navigate those obstacles?

    To my surprise, I did not face a lot of challenges after setting up my own practice. On the contrary, I faced a lot of criticism while leaving a prestigious job at the UKIPO. Everyone around me, except for a few people, discouraged me to start my own practice, advising it was a difficult market and I might not be able to survive, especially being a woman with two kids. However, my heart was set on building my own independent law firm. I successfully have been running my own firm for the past five and a half years now (special thanks to my supportive husband). 

    Six months after I started my own practice, covid crisis devastated the whole world and my newly established business was severely affected and so was my health. However, I bounced back both on the work and health front with the help of my family and my business partner Swati Mehta who joined the firm in 2020 as litigation head. With her joining and setting up of litigation department we expanded and diversified our practice areas significantly.     

    While advising clients on brand protection strategies and domain name disputes, what key factors do you consider? Can you discuss a time when your advice significantly helped a client?

    While advising our clients on brand protection strategies or domain name disputes, we take multiple factors into consideration for instance, statutory and common law rights of the client,  how big and important the brand is for the client, infringer’s economic and business strength, for how long the infringer has been in the market and most importantly, the client’s budget.

    One of our clients was struggling with getting his trade marks renewed by the Trade Marks Office for almost 2 decades. We advised the client to file a writ petition before the High Court of Delhi and am proud to say that we successfully received a favourable order for our client within merely 2 court hearings. 

    In another case, {Om Logistics Ltd. vs Sh Mahendra Pandey (CS (COMM) 447/2021)} we (along with Adv. Rahul Ajatshatru and Adv. Gitika Khanchandani) got a prominent order under Order 39 Rule 4. An ex-parte ad interim injunction issued by our client was set aside by the Delhi High Court. The Court held that the descriptive Words/ Religious Symbols/ Names of Deities cannot be monopolized. This order proved to be a significant milestone in field of Intellectual property and is often cited by the Judges while deciding trade marks matters. 

    Further, in another case {Usha Varia vs Rupinder Kaur & Ors (CS(COMM) 446/2022)}, the Defendants represented by us and Adv. Rahul Ajatshatru were restrained from infringing the Plaintiff’s registered trade mark ‘SAMOOLAM’ and from passing off of Plaintiff’s trade mark and Copyright material.

    You have mentioned that you’re an Independent Director at the Phonographic Performance Limited, India (PPL, India). How does your position on the board influence your broader goals and strategies in the IP landscape?

    As an Independent Director at the PPL, India, we collectively make sure that piracy is reduced, people get quality music and stakeholders get their dues. Being on the PPL Board assists me to approach the issue of Piracy and illegal distribution of music not only from the legal point of view but also business point of view as well as from the perspective of creators and distributors of music. 

    You have worked on various IP portfolios of National and International Clients, what has been one of the most interesting issues that you have dealt with that you’d like to share with our readers?

    One of the most interesting and recurring issue that keep on resurfacing in most of our matters is unauthorized registration of trade mark by the distributors. The domestic distributors get the registration of the trademark before the original international proprietor can get the trademark registered in India. I have seen this in several matters where the international clients have distributors in India operating for years and got their trademark registered in their own name and the clients are absolutely unaware of such registration for decades until one day they move to a new distributor and are threatened by the previous distributor of being the registered proprietor of international entities’ trade mark in India . 

    As a member of the Panel for Standardization at the Bureau of Indian Standards, what specific strategies are you advocating to combat piracy in India, and how do you envision these standards impacting both creators and consumers?

    Some of the strategies to combat piracy is India would include collaborating with all the stakeholders to ensure that the music is original, flagging websites that infringe copyright, giving proper credits to the creators, framing guidelines to not promote channels/ websites/ domain names that infringe copyright of the creators, creating an infringing website list (IWL) and spreading awareness amongst consumers as well as encouraging them to buy from the original source  are few measures that will help both creators and consumers.  

    In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge stakeholders are facing in the field of intellectual property law specially and what role do emerging technologies play in shaping these challenges?

    Some of the biggest challenges that stakeholders face in current IP scenarios include high litigation cost, widespread counterfeiting and piracy, lack of intermediary accountability and fallacious use of AI technology. Emergence of technology can work both as a catalyst for such challenges as well as a preventive tool to deal with them. Another major setback stakeholders are facing is that the technology is fast emerging and changes / progresses every day; however the pace at which the law agencies work is not only at the speed of a snail but also expensive and time consuming. Thus, it would not be wrong to say that infringers are often left unpunished and their illegal businesses (affecting rightsholders’ IP) keep on flourishing contributing immensely to heinous crimes like terrorism, drug and child trafficking etc.    

    How have accolades like the Indian Achievers Award impacted your career trajectory and the growth of ZEAL Attorneys?

    The awards have assisted us in gaining recognition among the existing and future clientele. Getting recognized for the hard work and efforts helps the organization to provide better services to our clients. To be candid, however, client’s feedback and satisfaction matters to us more than the Awards itself. 

    As a guest lecturer and author of numerous research papers, what core messages do you hope to convey to students and young professionals in the legal field that aspire to become IP professionals in the future?

    My advice to the students and young professionals would be that “there is no short cut to hard work”. Success can only be achieved with patience, hard-work and perseverance fuelled by honesty and integrity.

    Get in touch with Shilpi Mehta Nanda-

  • “In essence, success is about creating value, making a positive impact, and finding joy in the journey. It’s an ongoing, evolving goal rather than a single milestone.” – Dr. Abhimanyu Singh, Founder and Managing Partner at Manulegal & Associates.

    “In essence, success is about creating value, making a positive impact, and finding joy in the journey. It’s an ongoing, evolving goal rather than a single milestone.” – Dr. Abhimanyu Singh, Founder and Managing Partner at Manulegal & Associates.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    Can you tell us about your academic journey, starting from your undergraduate studies at National Law University, Patiala, to completing your Ph.D. at the University of Rajasthan? What motivated you to specialise in criminal law and criminology?

    Well, I hail from Bharatpur, Rajasthan which is a very small town; got my initial education there till 12th Standard and thereafter my academic journey in Law began with my under graduation at National Law University, Patiala, where I pursued a Bachelor in Law with a specialization in criminal law. My years at NLU Patiala were full of new and inspirational formatives, providing me with a solid foundation in various aspects of law and life including improving and working on my articulation skills. This period marked my initial exposure to the multifaceted nature of how the world is revolving around law  and deepened my interest in understanding the mechanics of the criminal justice system.

    Upon completing my postgraduate studies, I sought further specialization through a Ph.D. program at the University of Rajasthan. The decision to focus on criminal law and criminology stemmed from a combination of personal motivation and academic curiosity. Growing up in an environment where societal issues, particularly crime, were frequently discussed, I developed an early interest in the root causes of criminal behavior and the societal mechanisms to address it. Criminal law and criminology offer insight not only into punitive measures but also into preventive aspects, which I find particularly compelling. My Ph.D. thesis, focusing on “Crimes Against Juveniles in India,” allowed me to delve deeper into specific issues affecting vulnerable populations, contributing to both academic discourse and practical solutions in the field.

    You worked as a Junior Associate with an IP Law Firm before establishing your own practice. What motivated this transition and what were the initial challenges you faced while starting your firm?

    I guess all experiences matter, be it me working as a Junior Associate in an IP law firm or any other, provided me with invaluable experience in routing all my legal impressions towards what laws says and its implementation. Talking specifically about the IP Law Firm I honed my skills in client management, legal drafting, and courtroom proceedings, which prepared me for the multidimensional demands of independent practice. However, I soon felt the urge to branch out on my own, driven by a desire to apply my legal skills across a broader spectrum of law and cater to a more diverse clientele.

    The transition to establishing my own practice was both exciting and challenging. Initially, I faced difficulties in building a client base, as the legal industry is highly competitive, and establishing credibility as a new firm takes time. Managing administrative tasks, securing office space, and setting up operational systems were other hurdles. Yet, these challenges were instrumental in shaping my resilience and business acumen. Overcoming these obstacles strengthened my commitment to my clients and fortified my understanding of what it takes to thrive in independent legal practice.

    As a Managing Partner at ManuLegal & Associates, you deal with complex legal matters in domains like corporate law, taxation, ADR, IPR, and criminal law. Could you share a memorable case or challenge you’ve encountered in your legal practice?

    One of the most memorable cases I encountered at ManuLegal & Associates involved a complex corporate dispute intertwined with criminal allegations. This particular case required a nuanced approach, as it involved corporate stakeholders and accusations of embezzlement. We needed to navigate both corporate law and criminal proceedings simultaneously, balancing civil legal remedies with criminal defenses.

    The case taught me a great deal about the intricacies of handling multi-dimensional legal matters, particularly the importance of collaboration across legal domains. Our team’s efforts ultimately helped secure a favorable outcome for our client, while reinforcing my commitment to a holistic approach in managing cases. This case underscored the value of multidisciplinary legal expertise and reminded me of the profound impact that comprehensive legal strategies can have on a client’s life and livelihood.

    Your career spans across both legal practice and academia. How do you balance the practical demands of running a law firm with your academic pursuits and publications?

    Balancing the responsibilities of running a law firm with academic pursuits is challenging but rewarding. I have always been passionate about contributing to academic literature, as it enables me to share my insights and learnings with future legal practitioners. I believe the more knowledge we share the more knowable we become. My approach to balancing these roles involves structured time management and a commitment to prioritizing both facets of my career.

    I often schedule my academic commitments, such as lectures and research, around my practice’s caseload. Engaging in academia also keeps me updated with evolving legal theories and practices, which, in turn, benefits my clients. This dual commitment has enhanced my professional versatility and enriched my contributions to both the academic and legal communities.

    Your Ph.D. dissertation focused on ‘Crimes Against Juveniles in India’ with a special reference to Rajasthan. Could you elaborate on the key findings of your research and how it contributes to the understanding of juvenile crimes in India?

    My Ph.D. dissertation, “Crimes Against Juveniles in India,” focused on understanding the patterns, causes, and implications of juvenile crimes, with a particular emphasis on Rajasthan. One of the key findings of my research was the alarming prevalence of crimes perpetrated against juveniles, highlighting the need for targeted reforms in juvenile protection laws. I discovered that socio-economic factors, educational disparities, and lack of awareness contribute significantly to the vulnerability of juveniles.

    My research also underscored the need for a stronger legal framework that specifically addresses juvenile protection, beyond the general provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act. The study’s findings advocate for improvements in preventive measures, awareness programs, and the establishment of rehabilitative support systems. By contributing to the understanding of juvenile crimes in India, I hope my research will aid policymakers and legal practitioners in implementing more effective protection mechanisms for vulnerable young individuals.

    As a lawyer specialising in both criminal and corporate law, how do you see the intersection of these fields, particularly in areas like corporate crime, data protection, and intellectual property rights?

    As a lawyer with a specialization in both criminal and corporate law, I often encounter cases where these fields intersect, especially in areas such as corporate crime, data protection, and intellectual property rights. Corporate crime has become a pressing issue, as global businesses face increasing scrutiny over issues such as fraud, insider trading, and data breaches. These cases not only involve criminal liability but also impact corporate reputation and operational integrity.

    Data protection is another area where criminal and corporate law intersect. With the rise of digital platforms, protecting sensitive data has become paramount, and legal frameworks must address both corporate responsibilities and criminal liabilities associated with data breaches. Intellectual property rights also face challenges from digital piracy and infringement, which have criminal implications. My expertise in these fields allows me to offer clients comprehensive guidance that addresses both regulatory compliance and criminal accountability, ensuring they are well-prepared to navigate today’s complex legal landscape.

    You’ve worked with a variety of organisations and governmental bodies. What changes or improvements would you recommend for enhancing the legal and institutional support for child protection laws in India?

    Working with various organizations and governmental bodies has given me insights into the strengths and gaps in India’s child protection laws. To enhance legal and institutional support for child protection, I recommend several key improvements. First, there should be greater emphasis on preventive measures, such as community-based awareness programs, to educate families and children about their rights.

    Second, the judicial process for child protection cases should be expedited to minimize the trauma and uncertainty faced by young victims. Establishing special courts with trained professionals dedicated to child protection cases could ensure faster and more sensitive handling of these matters. Finally, I believe that better coordination among governmental agencies, law enforcement, and non-governmental organizations is crucial for effective child protection. With these improvements, India’s child protection framework can become more resilient and responsive to the needs of vulnerable children.

    As someone who has worked both as an educator and as a practitioner, what is one piece of advice you would give to those entering the legal field in India today?

    For those entering the legal field in India, my advice is to embrace the learning process and maintain resilience. The legal profession is challenging and demands a lifelong commitment to learning, as the law is ever-evolving. New lawyers should focus on developing a strong foundation in legal principles and gaining practical experience through internships or clerkships.

    Additionally, I encourage aspiring lawyers to be adaptable, as the legal field often requires one to navigate diverse areas of law and adjust to changing regulatory environments. It is also important to cultivate professional integrity and uphold ethical standards, as these qualities form the bedrock of a reputable legal career. By embracing these values and committing to continuous growth, new lawyers can make meaningful contributions to the legal field and their communities.

    You have handled intricate legal matters across areas such as corporate law, taxation, ADR, IPR, and criminal law. What does success look like to you now?

    To me, success has evolved far beyond conventional measures like profit or growth. Success now means creating a lasting impact and making a difference in people’s lives and in my industry that continues to resonate, even when I’m not directly involved.

    Today, I define success as building a business that’s sustainable, resilient, and purpose-driven. It’s about more than just reaching short-term goals; it’s about creating a legacy, something meaningful that reflects my values and contributes positively to society. 

    I’ve learned that if my work is not aligned with my personal values or if it detracts from my well-being, it doesn’t feel like real success. I aim to build a business that not only thrives but allows me and my team to thrive alongside it.

    In essence, success is about creating value, making a positive impact, and finding joy in the journey. It’s an ongoing, evolving goal rather than a single milestone, and it motivates me to keep learning, adapting, and growing every day.

    Based on your extensive experience, what advice would you offer to aspiring entrepreneurs?

    Embrace learning and adaptability as your greatest assets. In business, nothing will go exactly as planned. Markets shift, trends evolve, and obstacles arise when you least expect them. So, rather than striving for perfection, focus on building resilience and agility.

    One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that failure is a stepping stone, not an endpoint. You’ll make mistakes, and you’ll face setbacks—probably more than once. But each mistake brings a new insight, and each setback is a chance to grow stronger and smarter. Don’t let fear of failure hold you back; lean into the challenges, and let them teach you.

    Build a strong support network too. Surround yourself with people who challenge and inspire you—mentors, advisors, or even fellow entrepreneurs who understand the journey. No one builds success alone, and the perspectives of others can help you see things you might miss or encourage you when things feel tough.

    Finally, remember to stay true to your values and your “why.” Having a clear purpose will ground you in moments of uncertainty and remind you why you started in the first place. Passion is a powerful motivator, but a meaningful purpose is what keeps you going over the long haul.

    Get in touch with Dr. Abhimanyu Singh-

  • “To have a future, we must try to understand the impact of AI on our lives, working and otherwise, and to harness AI by working with it.” – Mark Lewis, Solicitor in England and Wales, Senior Consultant (Technology) at Stephenson Harwood LLP, London.

    “To have a future, we must try to understand the impact of AI on our lives, working and otherwise, and to harness AI by working with it.” – Mark Lewis, Solicitor in England and Wales, Senior Consultant (Technology) at Stephenson Harwood LLP, London.

    This interview has been published by Anshi Mudgal and The SuperLawyer Team

    You started your educational journey with the University of Cape Town (UCT), and then went to the University of Warwick, and from there went on to do your master’s at The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Was law a planned choice for you and what were the challenges you faced in law school?

    To be honest, I really didn’t want to study law, let alone be a lawyer of any kind.

    But the BA degree I took at UCT gave me a much broader education, majoring in English and Comparative African Government and Law. This allowed me to study in depth English language and literature, and the rise of African independence movements and the politics of liberation. Some of the lecturers on those two courses were inspirational – and brave. In my final year, I was taught by Mary Simons (both of whose parents were major figures in the ANC and were then in exile) while she was under a succession of 90-day banning orders.  I have her to thank for the most important part of my education there – or anywhere.  In summary, being a student at UCT at that time, and opposing Apartheid, I faced challenges just being there.

    The BA I took was part of the (then) South African legal qualification, leading to a second, LLB, degree. During my BA, I was exposed to some legal studies, as we had to take Roman Law, Roman Dutch Law and Constitutional Law.  Roman Law was historically and intellectually interesting and challenging as it also required university-level Latin, but bore no relationship to the socio-political, economic and human reality of Apartheid SA. As I saw it, Roman Dutch law was equally irrelevant to the lives of most South Africans. 

    I knew that I wanted to leave South Africa because of my views on Apartheid. And I was lucky enough to have British nationality, so the UK was, thankfully, my first and only choice.  I left SA forever as soon as I could, soon after graduating from UCT. 

    I had become interested in English law – mainly through my constitutional law studies at UCT (which were largely based on UK constitutional law). So, when I arrived at Warwick to study for the LLB degree, I was committed to studying law, and about four-five years older than most of my undergraduate class.  Being a mature student, I understood why I was there and was committed to my UK legal studies. Warwick had (and still has) an exceptional and pioneering Law School – having developed its “law in context” approach to studying law.  I had several inspirational teachers, too.  It was at Warwick that I became so interested in English law that I then seriously considered an academic legal career. 

    The main challenge I faced at Warwick was settling into a very different institution, approach to teaching and studying law, and, of course, learning what it was actually like to live in the UK – a challenge that many international students are likely to face when arriving in the UK for their studies.  I had no doubts about being there, studying law, or the value of its LLB degree. And it didn’t take too long to settle.

    In my final year at Warwick, I realised that I wanted, if possible, to take a master’s or equivalent degree to broaden my legal thinking and to allow me to study and think about subjects that weren’t available to me as an undergraduate. Financial constraints meant that it had to be a one-year degree course.

    The LSE was my first choice, mainly because of its outstanding reputation as an institution and because of the quality and fame of its Law Department.  Again, I was lucky to have some inspirational teachers and mentors. I studied the law of restitution and English legal history. I was also able to study in much greater depth constitutional and administrative law and wrote my dissertation on administrative law. (It was subsequently published in The Modern Law Review in 1984.) Again, I had no doubts about being at LSE. 

    The challenges I faced as a law student were different at each of UCT, Warwick and LSE.  Those I faced at UCT are obvious from the way I have outlined my background. The main moral challenge I faced at UCT is that you can’t divorce law from its place in its social, political, economic and human contexts, and that, as in Apartheid SA, it was an instrument of oppression for the majority. The Law Faculty at UCT did what it could under very challenging circumstances.  As I said, some of my teachers were trying to live and teach under a series of banning orders (in effect, house arrest, and under near constant surveillance). Others were arrested, charged and imprisoned for serious offences in resisting Apartheid.

    At Warwick, I had to settle into a new country and a very different university and academic life. Those challenges were more personal. By the time I arrived at LSE my challenges were mostly financial, especially as I had then decided to become a barrister. I knew I was going to have to find ways of keeping myself for some time beyond LSE, at the Inns of Court School of Law for my Bar Final Examination studies, and into 12 months’ pupillage in London barristers’ chambers.  I was fortunate – and I am grateful to this day – that the Law School at Warwick offered me extensive part-time lecturing and tutoring, and the LSE Law Department engaged me as a part-time teacher, too. These, among other jobs I held while studying at LSE for my LLM and at the Inns of Court School of Law, kept me afloat.

    More broadly, one challenge I have come across often is trying to answer the question asked by many in the UK who are contemplating a legal career: should I study law at university, or something else? 

    There are two opposing schools of thought here: one is that it is better to have a broader education than the typical, three-year, UK undergraduate law degree offers, and to take the law conversion course later, and then the professional examinations.  The argument is that this creates a more rounded individual with broader perspectives to bring to legal practice. There are many, including some of our most senior judges, who advocate this thinking.  

    The other is that it is better to immerse yourself in law from the start to get a deeper understanding of, and grounding in, law as an academic discipline. And besides, that saves you taking a law conversion course, so there is a timing and financial advantage, too.  

    I realise that, for many prospective law students in India and elsewhere, this may not be a dilemma, but I thought this challenge may resonate for some.

    You’ve been involved in the technology and outsourcing sectors since the mid-80s. How have you seen the landscape evolve, particularly in terms of regulation, client needs, and technology advancements like AI and cloud computing?

    The information technology landscape has evolved markedly from product (think mainframe computers that occupied entire buildings) to software and applications and then to IT-enabled services, including IT and business process outsourcing (which has of course, led to the dominance of India as an offshore IT services destination). This isn’t to say that the infrastructure – information networks and systems and their components – aren’t important. Obviously, they’re critical, as we’re now seeing at GPU level in AI compute. It’s just that, over the years, there’s been greater focus on software and services, especially from market and client perspectives. This broad evolution has obviously led the focus of regulatory responses and client needs from a product-supplier perspective leading to a service-service provider perspective. 

    To illustrate this evolution from hardware to software – cloud computing is a good example of a business model – less a technology (though some may argue with that), that has evolved to become all-pervasive “as a service”.. 

    AI has been and is evolving all the time and will continue to evolve. To be honest, I think it’s too early to call how AI will evolve.

    But, based on experience of tech hype cycles to the point where tech ultimately delivers real value, I think we must take the long view of all technology developments. This means that it’s probably wrong to take either of the extreme views that, on the hand, AI spells the end of humanity as we know it and should be regulated accordingly, while, on the other, AI will be the saviour of humanity and should, if it’s regulated at all, be regulated as lightly as possible.  AI’s actual benefits, risks and challenges will become clearer over time. This makes regulation today, and even client needs, much more difficult to formulate – and to deliver.

    Today, the greatest challenge facing governments and regulators with AI – as with any significant, fast-developing technology – is if, how and to what extent to regulate it.  We can see at either end of the spectrum the US approach (broadly, don’t regulate federally or we’ll stifle innovation) and the European Union response evidenced in the recent and comprehensive AI Act, with which I am sure all your readers are familiar. The UK is perhaps somewhere in the middle, for now. It’s hard to read the direction of travel that the current UK government and our sector regulators will take. For those interested in this subject, have a look at writings on “the Collingridge Dilemma” and “the Pacing Problem” in technology regulation.

    Can you walk us through your journey from starting your career with the UK Civil Service to your current role? How has your career evolved over the last 40 years, and what were some pivotal moments that shaped your path?

    In the 1980s while in the UK government, I was lucky enough to have access to some leading-edge information technologies, systems, and products. I became fascinated by them and their potential.  I also started to understand – at a very basic level – how those technologies, products and systems were supposed to work and what their implications might be for the mission-critical networks and computer systems then deployed by the UK government and its agencies – and for the outputs and outcomes of those networks and systems.   At the same time, in the mid- and late-‘80s, I found myself as probably the only lawyer in the UK government having to advise on some leading-edge technology applications and the start of what we’d now call outsourcing (then, we called it “facilities management”). 

    I had to learn very quickly to apply traditional legal rules and principles, that had no apparent application to the transactions before me, to developing technologies and the services around them, where there were no textbooks or precedents – in fact, no guidance at all, either from the UK, the USA, or elsewhere.  So, I learned the hard way, and certainly made some big mistakes of various kinds along the way. Those mistakes were all my own.

    I found this challenge both daunting, but also exhilarating and fascinating, and I still do today, for example, when I must think about and advise on AI. That’s what drew me to becoming a technology lawyer. IT law and the challenges of being an IT lawyer aren’t for everyone.  But they were pivotal for me and made me want to practise “computer law” (I am not sure it even had a name then) when I left the UK government and went into legal private practice in the City of London.  And so I became a highly specialised (some would say, too narrowly specialised) advisory and transactional commercial lawyer, focusing on the strategic and operational aspects of IT and related regulation. As I am today.

    Recognising that I had chosen such a narrow path in my legal career, as soon as I’d established myself as an IT legal practitioner, I realised that I needed to broaden my perspective.  It wasn’t common then – and it’s still relatively uncommon – for lawyers like me in private practice to represent IT suppliers and service providers.  But I decided that I should represent some selected suppliers and service providers, because this would broaden my transactional perspectives, my legal, contractual, and negotiating experience, my practice base, and my career prospects. And I thought it would make me a more rounded, effective IT lawyer. 

    Also, I started to engage with others in the IT ecosystem, for example, management and procurement consultants, business advisers, corporate financiers, banks that debt- funded IT companies and projects, and private equity and venture capital houses – all of which increased my networks, live connections, and opportunities. That isn’t to say that I became a corporate, corporate finance, finance or any other kind of lawyer – but I was (and am) able to introduce my colleagues who were (and are) to those IT-market and client-related opportunities.  So, this was a career- and practice-enhancing pivot. 

    Another major development in my career comes from, and is about, India. When India started opening up economically in the early 1990s, its IT sector became recognised, and Jack Welch at GE had decided to site GE’s back-office operations in India. This eventually opened a very important new practice for me.  It came about because my team and I were often instructed by Western organisations to advise on the newly emerging offshore outsourcings from India to our client locations, as well as to represent our Western clients in the development and operations of Indian-based captive and build-operate-transfer structures.  This took me to India frequently, and I came to know the giants of the Indian IT sector: Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Wipro, HCL, Satyam (as was) and Tech Mahindra, along with most of the other major IT and newly emerging business process service providers like L&T Infotech (as was), NIIT Technologies (as was), WNS, Genpact and EXL Service.  Consistent with my desire to broaden my practice and client base, I started representing many of those Indian Tier 1 and 2 service providers in their first major IT and outsourcing transactions in the UK and Europe, as well as being involved in their first M&A transactions in the UK.  India being India, and with such a highly networked business community, I found myself drawn into a wide range of Indian transactions and opportunities, irrespective of my legal experience. I have spent many happy years travelling in India, also on family holidays, from the far North to the deep South.

    Another one of those unexpected developments that proves to be pivotal in a career: while I was making my way as a partner in Stephenson Harwood (where I started my IT private practice legal career in earnest in the 1990s), a fellow SH partner and I were approached by the UK firm of Coopers & Lybrand, then one of the global accountancy practices, to set up and lead their first associated UK law firm.  So we established Tite & Lewis. This meant learning new, very different, and much broader management skills alongside running an IT law practice and serving clients. Coopers & Lybrand very soon merged with Price Waterhouse, to become what is now PwC. We became, in effect, PwC Legal. So, my co-founder and I, along with our T&L colleagues, saw a massive, complex, global merger at close quarters. All I can say is that it was quite an experience, and not an especially comfortable one, either. 

    The direction of travel and aspirations for PwC’s legal practice changed, but not in a way that appealed to all of us. So, when Ernst & Young (EY) UK approached us to create their first associated UK law firm, we moved shop and created Tite & Lewis a second time.  I learned much from the experience, too, as this was a complete start-up that needed to scale up rapidly and, on the EY side, it was led with a different senior management style to PwC’s. Again, I had to combine senior management learning with running a successful IT law practice and serving clients, often in places like Europe, the USA, Hong Kong and Australia.  That experience came to an end because of Enron, the demise of Arthur Andersen, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and changes in SEC public audit rules, all of which meant that a standalone UK legal practice was no longer viable for EY.

    So, I returned to mainstream legal private practice as an IT specialist and held various practice leadership and senior partnerial positions. And I now find myself – very happily – back where I started my specialist IT legal career, at City of London and international law firm, Stephenson Harwood LLP, but this time, as senior consultant, not a partner. 

    Finally, another direction that proved pivotal for me has been serving as a non-executive director and adviser to various companies, including chairing a UK plc. The first opportunity arose because an important academic client needed someone to represent it on the board of a funding body operating in the medical and scientific technology areas. I had never served on such a board. So I learned. 

    The next, much more significant, opportunity arose because a client who had become a close friend had been appointed chief executive of one of Europe’s leading IT and outsourcing advisory groups and wanted me to support him and the board as non-executive chair. The other directors interviewed me and agreed. As this was a UK public company, I had to learn, understand, and apply corporate governance rules and London Stock Exchange regulations, as well as – and most challenging of all – boardroom dynamics and politics.  This was a powerful and valuable, if occasionally unnerving, experience, from which I learned more than I could have imagined. As the company I chaired operated in the IT and outsourcing markets, often involving my clients, I had to consider and negotiate my way through potential conflicts and other legal practice governance rules. But, overall, my part-time, non-executive, chairing and later non-executive director role at this company complemented my legal private practice very well and helped me to develop my skills and experience.  

    Other corporate and academic non-executive director and senior advisory roles followed, all of which were complementary to my practice as an IT lawyer, and actively enhanced my career. I had to ensure that none of these roles was going to cause difficulties for my work as a private practitioner, which was always top priority.

    Based on my experience, are there any messages for readers?  Maybe these: 

    1. broaden your networks and horizons, 
    2. learn from your colleagues, your clients, and others you meet along the way, 
    3. keep an open mind about the opportunities that may come your way (some which you may make for yourselves, some of which may be entirely fortuitous),
    4. be open to taking up those opportunities, even if you decide, ultimately, not to take them,
    5. consider all opportunities and roles that are complementary to, and will enhance, your personal, business, and legal skills and experience, 
    6. think about helping, giving opportunities to, and nurturing others when you can. It’s rewarding in so many ways, and
    7. above all, it’s really important that you enjoy your work and your role(s), accepting that there will inevitably be moments that are definitely less enjoyable. 

    In your experience, what are the key legal or regulatory risks that companies face when outsourcing critical IT services or adopting cloud computing solutions.

    Each critical IT outsourcing or cloud computing transaction raises legal and regulatory risks depending on specific contexts and conditions, including on the customer side, for example its operational readiness for the transaction and the strength of its IT and compliance functions.  It would be wrong and potentially misleading to set out a long list of specific legal or regulatory risks in such situations. Instead, based on my experience, I’ll list some of the most common key legal and regulatory risks concerned.

    1. Regulatory compliance, especially in the UK and Europe, with the financial services sector outsourcing and cloud controls under, for example, the European Banking Authority outsourcing guidelines, the EU Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and the UK Operational Resilience requirements.
    1. Similar regulatory compliance in the EU critical national infrastructure (CNI) sectors, under the Network and Information Systems Directive (NIS2). The UK should soon be legislating to introduce similar rules in our CNI sectors. NIS2 has important implications – and obligations – for the IT, data centre, internet infrastructure, managed services and outsourcing markets.
    1. Third-party supply chain transparency, especially in the context of cloud sub-outsourcing, clearly identifying where the cloud service provision is in the customer supply chain and putting in place suitable contractual governance.
    1. Concentration risk in contracting with one of the small group of cloud hyperscalers, and how to relocate and ensure continuity of service in the cloud-delivered services in the event of a hyperscaler service outage or failure.
    1. EU and UK GDPR compliance, including in cross-border data transfers outside Europe.
    1. The application of the Acquired Rights Directive (ARD) and its UK equivalent, the TUPE Regulations (TUPE), effecting the mandatory transfer of in-scope staff on outgoing employment terms to the new outsourcing service provider or back to the customer where it takes the outsourcing back in house, especially where certain contractual pensions and enhanced redundancy rights are included in the transfer.  It has not (yet) been established conclusively that the ARD and TUPE will apply to cloud computing transactions (especially public or hybrid deployment models), but in principle these rules could apply to certain kinds of cloud outsourcing.
    1. Exit provisions to ensure efficient and timely migration of IT and cloud services on the expiry or termination of the outsourcing or cloud service provision.

    As a trusted advisor to boards of some of the world’s largest corporations, what are the key strategic factors you emphasize when advising companies? Additionally, could you describe a particularly complex IT or outsourcing transaction you’ve been involved in, and how you approached overcoming the challenges associated with it?

    In my experience, corporate boards do not usually call on external counsel in my practice area early enough in transactions or projects to advise on key strategic factors. Maybe they should, but usually that advice has been given before by a combination of external consultants and internal stakeholders. 

    When I’m called on to advise boards, it’s most often in the final stages of a transaction or technology implementation, when the board wants an external counsel’s view, delivered face-to-face and supported in writing, on the particular material risks in the IT or outsourcing transaction or project, and how those risks are being mitigated by contract, operationally, or in some other way.  The board wants final legal sign-off. The key strategic risk factors vary from transaction to transaction, and from board to board. There is no one list of these factors, so it would be misleading to list them here.

    In many cases, my role is to support board and corporate governance to enable the board to reach a critical “go/no-go” decision. You may think that it seems too late for such a decision, and you would be right, but that’s often the way it is.  Usually, I’m able to give the legal assurance sought.

    One exceptional (in every way) transaction that fell into the above category was a massively complex, business- and mission-critical IT outsourcing and data migration project for a UK bank.  Because of the history of the bank, its financial situation, and its standing in the UK retail banking market, for the first time in my experience, this outsourcing project was under the regular, direct supervision of the three UK financial regulators – the Bank of England, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority. Such was the importance of this outsourcing in the UK retail banking market, that I was interviewed personally by the three regulators on the risks of the outsourcing to the bank concerned, and how they were being mitigated.

    I was then asked to attend a full board meeting of the bank with the bank’s then general counsel to address those risks and the mitigation. My team and I prepared a graphic chart to illustrate and clarify the transactional risks to the bank’s board – this helped to explain and emphasise the issues and concerns. The board questioned me and, finally, the chair asked me directly if I would sign the outsourcing contract in its present form, given the legal and contractual risks we had identified and the mitigation in place. I said I wouldn’t unless certain contractual and operational measures were put in place, which was consistent with the advice we had been giving as the outsourcing progressed.

    The board did not sign off the transaction until, sometime later, we had been able to negotiate various additional risk and operational mitigations with the outsource service provider and other entities. When these had been achieved and the documentation was finally agreed, I was able to confirm to the board that the outstanding risk areas had been addressed in contractual and operational mitigation. 

    The deal signed and is still considered one of the most effective banking technology and data migrations and outsourcings in the UK market.

    As a Visiting Professor in Practice at LSE Law School, you teach subjects like AI, cloud computing, and legal technologies. What do you think are the most pressing legal issues in the realm of advanced technology today, and how do you prepare your students to tackle them?

    LSE’s motto is “rerum cognoscere causas” meaning “to know the causes of things”. I am going to apply the motto broadly in answering this question. 

    In the realm of advanced technologies today, I think – and it’s a personal view that others in LSE Law may disagree with  – that what serves our students best is an intellectual framework to help them “know the causes” of advanced technologies and their implications, and understand and analyse the most pressing legal issues that follow from those causes. So when I am preparing and delivering lectures, I have in mind a framework, which I hope will help our students to know and to understand the following kinds of things (this is not intended as an exhaustive list): 

    1. the way(s) that the advanced technologies concerned work
    2. their macro and micro impacts, positive or negative or both, on the world, for example, the environment, society at large, on human activities and interactions, and in all relevant contexts, including in the commercial sphere(s) concerned. For example, in the context of AI in retail financial services markets, how bias in datasets and skewed algorithms might result in denying credit to particular, say ethnic, groups in society,
    3. the specific risks and harms, as well as the positive impacts, associated with those technologies (see the example in (2) above),
    4. the main providers of such technologies and their market position, for example, if those providers are dominant, as the hyperscalers are in the cloud infrastructure markets, and especially if this creates systemic concentration risk in, say, the regulated financial markets, 
    5. the ancillary issues and considerations that may arise from such technologies, for example, the impact of the growing cyber risk on the insurance markets, how AI and sovereign actors and their proxies may be contributing to that risk, and the decreasing insurability of certain kinds of cyber risk, or the private right of self-defence in response to cyberattacks,
    6. the geopolitical consequences of advanced technologies, for example, the so-called “arms race” for GPUs in AI, and the rush to acquire alternative energy sources to drive the increasing power demands of data centres in AI compute, as well as the strategic importance of AI in the “Third Offset”,
    7. how current law and regulation may apply to those technologies and those risks, especially in unintended or unexpected ways, and
    8. how proposed law and regulation may apply to those technologies and those risks.

    How do I try to prepare our students to tackle these issues?  By encouraging them to think about them, to discuss them in class and, if students wish, to write about some or all of these issues in their summative essays.

    You may be surprised that I follow this approach. I think that having a framework to “know the causes of things”, then trying to understand and think more about the impact of those things, is a more adaptable, flexible and useful approach in considering the most pressing legal issues in advanced technologies like AI, which are constantly evolving and changing.  Our thinking needs to be able to keep track, and to evolve, too.

    You’ve played significant leadership roles at firms like PwC and EY. How have you navigated the challenges of managing large teams of lawyers while maintaining a focus on technological innovation and client service?

    The honest answer is that it was a struggle, though an exciting and rewarding one in many, though not all, ways. And it remains so for all senior lawyers in private practice and, similarly, for general counsel in corporate roles.  There is an inherent and constant tension in balancing the following: 

    1. developing new and maintaining existing client relationships, 
    2. delivering the best possible legal service to clients, 
    3. being aware of, and deploying, new technologies, processes and techniques in legal service delivery, 
    4. nurturing, managing and retaining teams, 
    5. taking difficult decisions about people and the business, 
    6. general management, and
    7. interacting with other, non-legal, colleagues.

    I don’t mean this to be a complete list. 

    There is another, more personal and, maybe for your readers, more important challenge here. I allowed work to come first. Because of those challenges, I wasn’t at home much, I wasn’t around to support my wife much of the time and missed my three children growing up. While being an international technology lawyer looked, and was, exciting and took me all over the world serving household-name clients, I was away from my family and home for long periods over many years.

    So, as I say, while it was exciting for me, and materially rewarding for my family, there were significant downsides in trying to balance these challenges. If I had my time again, I hope I would do, and be more able to do, things differently in that respect.

    Your career spans across both legal practice and academia. How do you balance the practical demands of being a Senior Consultant at Stephenson Harwood LLP with your academic pursuits and publications?

    These roles are actually quite complementary.  My main academic commitments, which involve lecturing to the LLM and LLB classes in LSE Law, are concentrated in a relatively short period, around which I can plan my legal practice and academic work. I also have an understanding, supportive and inspirational leader in LSE Law, Professor Andrew Murray, who happens also to be one of the foremost academic lawyers globally in IT law and regulation. 

    My title at LSE says it: Visiting Professor in Practice. What LSE expects from me is exactly that – perspectives from practice. It says much about the LSE Law School that it recognises that a perspective in practice benefits both undergraduate and taught postgraduate students.

    More importantly, I find that the learning and experience I have from my practice and academic careers enhance each other. I have the chance to think more widely and deeply about subjects like cybersecurity, cloud computing and AI when I’m preparing and delivering my lectures. This, in turn, brings additional perspectives and also opportunities to my private practice work, both substantively and in offering new and creative ideas to clients.

    At Stephenson Harwood, I’m grateful to Simon Bollans, Technology practice global lead partner, and Dan Holland, overall practice leader, for their vision, understanding, and the opportunity to work in their team.

    Given your involvement in legal innovation and technology, do you have any personal projects or initiatives that you’re particularly passionate about in the field of legal technology?

    I’m going to interpret “legal technology” here as it applies to legal practice thinking and operations, and to client delivery of legal services in the broadest and narrowest senses.

    In answer to this question, I wouldn’t single out one single personal project I can say I am particularly passionate about.

    What I am passionate about is an initiative, both in my private practice and academic roles, which starts from this proposition:  all lawyers, especially those studying law at university or elsewhere, and those coming into legal private or in-house practice, need to understand as best they can, and to embrace, developing legal technologies and processes, wherever and whenever they have the opportunity to do so.  A current example is AI in legal use cases and applications, legal analytics, document assembly tools, workflows, and so on.

    All lawyers today need to be aware of and to manage the implications of legal technologies and new processes for their clients, their markets, their own legal careers, and for their effectiveness as lawyers, especially in the age of artificial intelligence.

    And, as senior lawyers, whether as practitioners or academics, we have a responsibility to our junior colleagues and students to provide them with opportunities to help them understand, and to embrace where suitable, legal technologies and processes. This doesn’t mean that all lawyers should become legal technologists, software developers and coders, or data scientists – just that all lawyers nowadays must understand the impact of these technologies and processes on their work to be able to operate effectively as lawyers, in whatever capacity. 

    This is a subset of the much wider challenge of AI in society: to have a future, we must try to understand the impact of AI on our lives, working and otherwise, and to harness AI by working with it. If it will let us!

    In your career, you’ve mentored numerous lawyers and young professionals. What advice do you typically offer to those considering starting out as technology lawyers?

    While I’m often glad that those who approach me are considering becoming technology lawyers, I feel dutybound to point out that, whether they intend to be and remain in legal private practice or work in-house, they are choosing a narrower career path for themselves than many others for lawyers.

    To be blunt, in legal private practice IT law is not mainstream in most law firms, unless they are IT law boutiques. And even in boutiques, there is likely to be a need for more broadly based practitioners, for example those who can advise clients on VC or PE deals, fundraising, IP rights protection, as well as on operational IT commercial work. 

    So, the first piece of advice I give anyone thinking of starting out as a technology lawyer is this: understand that you would be choosing a much narrower career path than other areas of legal practice. I discuss the obvious and real implications of that choice, whether in private practice or in-house practice, including a smaller range of career opportunities, more limited opportunities for career advancement, and in many scenarios, lower levels of remuneration. I also emphasise the upsides of choosing IT law as a career, which I hope everything I’ve said here supports. But obviously it’s a personal decision.

    If anyone then remains determined to pursue a career in technology law, I encourage them to find ways of broadening their perspectives, markets and market opportunities, networks, and potential client bases, and I explain how (as I have earlier in this interview) this could benefit them. Above all, my message to them – and to you – is that you need to have fun!

    Get in touch with Mark Lewis-