Super Lawyer

Tag: Kurukshetra University

  • “A positive approach is a must while working in a team. ‘You’re almost there’ is always better than ‘you cannot do it.'” – Ritin Vatrana, Legal Counsel -Corporate Litigation, Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Limited

    “A positive approach is a must while working in a team. ‘You’re almost there’ is always better than ‘you cannot do it.’” – Ritin Vatrana, Legal Counsel -Corporate Litigation, Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Limited

    This interview has been published by Namrata Singh and The SuperLawyer Team

    You started your legal career in 2007 after completing your BALLB (Hons.) from Kurukshetra University. What motivated you to choose law as your career, and could you walk us through your journey from those early days to where you are now?  

    My entry into the Legal field was very much certain since I am a third generation Lawyer. My grandfather practiced in Labour Laws, my father is still practicing in District Courts Patiala and hence my parents had already decided during my childhood about my profession and hence I entered the field. Initially, I started learning the procedures followed in court and the ground realities of the Legal field where I came to know about how to apply what I learnt in my degree. For this, I actually went through the entire degree subjects 4-5 times again doing self-study in order to get a deep knowledge of the subjects so that I can have better understanding of the cases I got to handle. Slowly and gradually, I developed my own understanding in law and by that time I was able to handle the cases independently. Being a trial lawyer, handling the evidence part was most challenging and most interesting as well. I started cross examining the witnesses independently and luckily many cases went my way. However, in Patiala there wasn’t much to learn about since there was hardly any variety in the cases we got; mostly there used to be Cheque bounce matters, matrimonial disputes, NDPS etc. and those cases were very much cyclostyled and my eagerness to learn wanted me go out and do something new in the field. 

    You began your law practice at the Patiala district courts, where your father was a well-established professional. How did working in the district courts shape your approach to law, and what key lessons did you take away from those early formative years?    

    My time in the Courts was extremely important. Being a legal professional, the most important thing is to know how to draft a legal document and an in-house Counsel is always expected to have very crisp drafting skills which would go on to protect the interest of the organization. Further, being meticulous, attention to detail, presence of mind, patience and calculated aggression were the key qualities I learnt during my practice days.

    You mentioned your encounter with the Legal Head of CIPLA, which inspired your transition into corporate law. What about that interaction made you decide to shift from litigation to becoming an in-house counsel?  

    As I had stated, in one of my cases related to CIPLA, I met the in-house counsel of the company and had a great conversation with him about how things go as an in-house counsel and what are the prospects. He told me that as an in-house, he came across several types of different cases and that made his knowledge in the field vast and comprehensive and to add to that the biggest incentive was the opportunity to travel. Afterwards, I discussed it with my elder brother, who was already working in corporate and he also reiterated a similar view. That was perhaps the trigger point of me looking to shift to the Corporate. It took me quite a while to get my first opportunity in a large organization. The first one month was like a roller coaster but gradually I managed to get into the system and started understanding corporate governance and that was perhaps the turning point of my life both professionally and personally as it gave me so much energy to work and live round the clock. Leaving the comfort zone was tough initially but once you are out of it, THERE BEGINS THE LIFE.

    What advice would you give to young legal professionals who aspire to transition from litigation to corporate in-house roles, especially those aiming to work with large multinational corporations?

    Ever since I have started my journey with the corporate, I have met many legal professionals eager to know how things work in the sector. Many are under the myth of “Corporate Slavery”. I shared my experiences with them of how I managed PAN India litigation and contracts of my first Company single handedly. From working for 4-5 hours a day in practice to working 16-18 hours in corporate was an eye opener and a huge confidence booster. I only advise the youngsters to look for excellence and not results early on. Law is a vast field and to move on in this field, not only you need to know the law, but how and where to apply it and this requires both theoretical as well as practical knowledge. In-House Counsels do a whole lot of drafting work including contracts, complaints, notices etc. Litigation lawyers hardly get to know about drafting of contracts and hence i advise them to find some good books pertaining to contract drafting if they have any plans to shift to the sector.  

    You’ve been involved in arbitration cases with values ranging from ₹50 lakh to ₹300 crore. What are some key skills a lawyer needs to successfully handle such high-stakes cases, and how do you manage the pressure?  

    When the stakes are high, the pressure is high as well but as a legal professional, my job is to find the law point and the circumstances favouring my organization so that I can benefit them or at least prevent any loss. The skills I learnt in practice also lets me foresee the tentative result sometimes and that helps us to plan accordingly. The thing with high stake matters is that you need to thing out of the box sometimes to get the desired results and for that you need to have strong legal knowledge but also to know the ground realities. 

    With over 17 years of legal experience and handling high-pressure cases, how do you manage work-life balance, and what advice would you give to legal professionals to avoid burnout?  

    In my previous organization, I did go through that burnout because of the urgencies involved. The stakes were high and time was less and that is when you learn and develop a strong temperament. Sometimes, there were late hour calls and emails but I had set a time for my “homework” so that I can give time to family and household works too and me being a travel bug, occasional holiday was always going to be there. To add to that, I am an early riser and a cyclist so every morning an hour’s ride would freshen me up with all the energy to go hard for the day.

    In your view, how important is interdisciplinary knowledge, such as understanding business or finance, for a successful legal career in the corporate world?

    Corporate is all about business and finances and whosoever is working in corporate needs to know about it. During my stint with Isgec Heavy Engineering, I learnt a lot about International Business processes as to how contracts of supply work and how the conditions are set by the companies and where to negotiate. I was naive back then but going through so many Contracts of Supply, Erection and Commissioning and those tender documents was another experience. Especially when I was told that the documents drafted by me are going to Russia or Dubai; it sometimes gave me goosebumps but it made me work harder and to get a better understanding about the subject. 

    You’ve managed a team of 40 lawyers in your current role. What leadership qualities do you think are essential for managing a successful legal team, and how do you mentor young lawyers under your guidance?  

    My job is to allocate the work to empanelled lawyers. Generally, I have a 5-10 conversation with the lawyer to understand his understanding on the subject and if he is a newcomer or unaware about the topic, I provide him/her with the relevant information along with legal provision and let them prepare the draft and as they say, a lawyer’s calibre can be judged by his drafting skills and so i always advise youngsters to draft the document from scratch and avoid doing copy paste; you’re never going to learn copying and pasting. Drafting skill to a lawyer is like a sword to a warrior.  Further, a positive approach is a must while you work in a team. “you’re almost there” is always better than “you cannot do it”. 

    Looking ahead, what emerging legal trends do you think will significantly impact the corporate legal landscape, and how should aspiring legal professionals prepare for them?  

    The advent of technology has really brought a huge window for legal professionals to enter the corporate world. Earlier, the legal professionals were limited to law practice, judiciary or teaching but now the upcoming generation is proactive and are perhaps 5-7 years quicker than ours. Nowadays, in-house Counsel’s job is not limited to civil, consumer, criminal laws or contract laws; Technology laws, Artificial Intelligence, Intellectual Property Rights, Data Privacy laws have taken over and in the coming times, knowledge about these is going to play a key role. So, I always advise the aspiring professionals to keep getting some knowledge in the fields as they are going to play a pivotal role in carving them a successful in-house Counsel. 

    Get in touch with Ritin Vatrana–

  • “In the courtroom, it’s not about the length of arguments but the merits—crisp and to the point is my mantra for success.” – Neetica Sharma, Partner at MV Kini Law Firm

    “In the courtroom, it’s not about the length of arguments but the merits—crisp and to the point is my mantra for success.” – Neetica Sharma, Partner at MV Kini Law Firm

    This interview has been published by Namrata Singh and The SuperLawyer Team

    Can you take us through the journey of how you started your legal career, from your early days at Maharishi Dayanand University to becoming a Partner at MV Kini Law Firm?  What made you choose law as your career initially?

    I come from a small city, and I completed my LLB from a small town as well, though Maharishi Dayanand University has always been considered a reputable institution for law courses. Growing up in a small town presents its own set of challenges. When I pursued my LLB, a career in law was typically seen as either practicing in district courts, securing a government job like ADA, or preparing for the judiciary. But I had bigger dreams — I wanted to move to Delhi and carve a different path for myself.

    As a first-generation lawyer, I had to find my own way. The lack of proper resources and guidance, especially compared to those from metro cities, made things difficult for me. My journey began with working in an LPO (Legal Process Outsourcing), where I worked for a brief period. At the time, LPOs were booming.

    After a year, I transitioned to the corporate sector, but I quickly realized it wasn’t where my passion lay. I’ve always been drawn to the courts, so I made the decision that for me, law meant “litigation,” and that’s what I truly wanted to pursue.

    I eventually applied to my current firm, and after years of hard work and dedication, I am now a Partner here. However, the journey was far from easy — it wasn’t a bed of roses. What kept me going was my commitment to hard work, my dedication, and my unwavering love for the courts.

    You’ve appeared before various legal forums, including the Supreme Court, High Court, and Arbitral Tribunals. Could you share the key differences in how cases are presented, argued, and decided across these different courts, and how you adapt your approach based on the forum you’re in?  

    Definitely, there is a difference in how we present and argue cases before different forums, such as Arbitral Tribunals, High Courts, and the Supreme Court. In my view, the key difference is that with each advancing stage, arguments become more concise.

    For instance, when presenting a case before an Arbitral Tribunal, a counsel needs to lay out the case in as much detail as possible. Every relevant factual detail must be presented to the Tribunal without fail. However, when it comes to the High Court, the focus shifts to explaining why an award is flawed in law and how the challenge fits within the legal grounds or criteria.

    Finally, when arguing before the Supreme Court, the presentation should be as brief and precise as possible. The synopsis of the Special Leave Petition (SLP) essentially encapsulates the entire case, and it should be drafted in a manner that allows the judge to grasp the case without needing to delve further.

    As someone who is proficient in handling mainstream commercial litigation, what are some of the emerging challenges in this field, and how should legal professionals prepare to tackle them?  

    Nowadays, commercial dealings are centred around arbitration. Almost every contract agreement includes an arbitration clause, with one of the primary objectives being to secure a speedy remedy that avoids the procedural complexities of court proceedings. However, we are gradually drifting away from the advantages of arbitration. Arbitration proceedings are increasingly resembling court processes, as arbitral tribunals adopt similar procedures. In my view, this should not be the case. If arbitration starts functioning like a court, what is the point of having an arbitration clause?

    I began handling arbitrations in 2010 and have attended almost hundreds of proceedings since then. The way arbitration was conducted back then was very different from how it is now. It was more party-friendly than compared to the current scenario. As a lawyer, one must continuously learn and be open to accepting changes, as the arbitration process evolves over time.

    Your successful representation of NHAI in several landmark cases has set significant legal precedents. Could you share the key factors that contributed to your success in these cases?

    For me, the key factor that helped me getting success in the cases is “to be focussed on the issue”. Just be thorough with the facts, updated on the law point and be very relevant in the arguments. I personally don’t believe in the length of arguments; I believe in the merits of arguments. For me “crisp and to the point” is the mantra. 

    Further, when it comes to arbitration/dispute resolution, law is getting stricter with regard to court’s interference so whenever an award is challenged, it’s very important to just focus on the key points of the case where courts can interfere rather just presenting a long history of case when courts can only deal with question of law. Further, I believe to give a right advice/opinion to my clients and do not encourage habitual litigation. 

    You’ve led litigation teams for several years. How important do you think mentorship is in the legal profession, and what role has it played in shaping your career? Do you actively mentor young advocates?  

    Mentorship is very important in every field. It gives a certain kind of confidence and motivation. I remember I was so naïve when I joined this profession. I have also had my own struggles of coming from a small city. So, I always try to make sure that young lawyers joining the firm get my support, mentorship. I believe in Teamwork.   

    Not every case ends in success. Can you share an experience where the outcome was not in your favor? How did you handle that, and what lessons did you take from it?  

    I have been representing government clients mostly and have been appearing on behalf of the government in very high-stakes and complex matters. I will not feel shy to say that success rate of government is less in comparison to private parties in commercial matters. So, I also have an experience of not getting the outcome in my favour. But what I have learnt is that our approach should be defend or fight for our client to a maximum level possible. In dispute resolution/Commercial litigation, specially in Arbitrations, outcome is not always in the form of black-and-white. For eg. defending a client and getting 5 out of 8 claims rejected is also a win to an extent. In the same way, getting an award of 100 crores out of the claimed amount of 150 crores, is also a win. 

    As a leader in your field, what is your vision for the future of arbitration and litigation in India? What reforms or changes do you believe are necessary to improve the efficiency of the legal process?  

    Without any doubt, future of litigation in India is commercial litigation. After acknowledging the need of developing a strong dispute resolution mechanism in India, amendments of 2015 and 2019 were made in Arbitration and Conciliation Act and Commercial Courts act was introduced. The way Commercial Courts Act has simplified the process of litigation in commercial disputes is commendable. 

    Arbitration has been a continuously growing filed. However, it comes with its own challenges which require to be addressed practically. First and foremost is regarding the cost involved in the arbitrations as arbitration these days has become a luxury litigation. In my view, 3 issues which require immediate attention are: Cost effectiveness, procedural simplification and impartiality. 

    As a female partner at a prestigious law firm, what challenges, if any, have you faced in the male-dominated legal industry, and how have you overcome them? What advice would you offer to women aspiring to reach leadership positions in law?  

    I have been lucky enough to not face any gender-based discrimination at my organisation. However, there is one challenge which I have always felt in this profession is Networking. A male lawyer can easily go out with clients, have a professional dinner (which many a times ends up getting more work) but a female lawyer has to consider many things before doing any such networking. So, even if we don’t face any man-made discrimination but some natural discriminations are there in our society. 

    My advice to young women lawyers is that just keep going, no matter how many struggles come in your way. 

    Given your extensive workload and responsibilities, how do you manage to balance your professional life with your personal life? What do you do to recharge and maintain a healthy balance?  

    Legal profession is a very demanding profession and there is no chance of negotiation. So, to balance it out with my personal life, I try to finish up my work by 7.30 pm and that’s only possible with proper planning. Though our profession is full of surprises when it comes to work but I try to plan everything which makes it possible for me to wrap up major portion of my work by 7.30 pm. Another thing is that I always prefer to reside near office area which helps me save travelling time. 

    When it comes to health, litigation lawyers unlike corporate lawyers remain physically active by walking entire day in court which is a benefit to us. I am not a gym or fitness enthusiast, but I try to do 30 mins brisk walk in my colony park. Whenever I get some more time, I try to do little bit of running. I have also successfully run Delhi Half Marathon (21 kms) twice. 

    Apart from physical health, mental health is equally important. Everybody can see your physical illness, but nobody sees your mental illness. And due to “work pressure” and for some “no work”, lawyers are more vulnerable to it. I am a mental health advocate and want to do something more concrete in this area to spread mental awareness.

    Get in touch with Neetica Sharma-

  • Rajiv Choubey, General Counsel, HCL Infosystems, on the Indian legal regime, Corporate Law, and his experience

    Rajiv Choubey, General Counsel, HCL Infosystems, on the Indian legal regime, Corporate Law, and his experience

    Rajiv Choubey graduated in law from Faculty of Law, University of Delhi, in 1999. He is also a certified Company Secretary. He then went on to pursue his LLM from Kurukshetra University in 2014. Rajiv is an in-house corporate counsel working for the last twenty years in the field of Corporate Laws (having handled M&A, JVs FDI Policy, Foreign Trade Policy, in bound & out bound, Securities Laws, Corporate Governance), Commercial Laws, International Trade Laws, Environment related laws, Electricity related issues, Industrial & Labour Laws, Economic laws-Excise, Service Tax, Customs and Foreign Trade Policy.

    In this interview we speak to him about:

    • His diverse experience
    • Corporate Law
    • Pursuing an LLM in India

    What motivated you to pursue law?

    I was born and brought up in Asansol in West Bengal. Honestly, as a kid I wanted to pursue sports and become a footballer. However, that remained an unfulfilled dream since sports wasn’t encouraged or taken seriously back then. I pursued commerce, which was another happy accident. I like commerce as a subject, which exposed me to economics and I developed a liking for the subject. While pursuing B.Com at University of Allahabad, I was introduced to Law of Contract as part of Business Law. A lot of credit goes to our teacher, Prof. Arun Garg, who taught “Contract Act” with a lot of passion and interest. He taught packed classrooms and his students admired him so much, that sometimes we stood at the back of the classroom for lack of space, just to hear his lectures.

     

    Tell us a little about your days in law school.

    The best part of the DU law curriculum is that it is based on case studies. The moment you get admission, as part of admission process they hand over a booklet of case studies. Initially, I could not understand, what kind of booklet is this? Then I understood the system of study, the method of citation. It created immense interest in me and it changed the entire approach to study law. The best way to study and understand law is the case based approach. It was completely different from the Business Law we studied during our graduation day.

     

    What were the activities, academic or otherwise, that you undertook in your law school days which in your opinion have shaped you and your career?

    When I did law, the number of activities were much less when compared to the present day. Further since I was also pursuing CS at the same time, I could not participate in many of extra-curricular activities.

     

    Who was your mentor, or main source of inspiration who motivated you all along the way?

    My teacher at Allahabad University Mr. Arun Garg and former boss Mr.Vinay Shukla (who himself is LLB and CS) and Mr.Vikas Goel (who is CA) always motivated and were sources of inspiration.

    While working with Vedanta, Chairman Mr. Anil Agarwal and Vice-Chairman Mr. Navin Agarwal were great sources of inspiration. In one of my key matters, our Chairman made us believe that we can achieve something which we thought was impossible.  I had the opportunity to work with lots of colleagues at Vedanta and it was fantastic to work with them and handle some of key environmental issues and coming out successful. My current Group CFO, Mr. S.G. Murali is a great source of inspiration, as he leads by example. I am greatly privileged to work with some of great minds.

     

    Are L.L.Ms absolutely necessary for a career in law?

    I do not think so. At the same it is good if one can pursue the same from any foreign university, with specialisation in any particular area (say Competition law, IPR, M&A, etc.) which one ultimately desires to pursue. If someone wants to go into academics, LLM is a must.

     

    What should one expect out of an L.L.M program, if they opt to pursue one?

    I have expressed my views that LLM should be with the sole intention of obtaining specialisation in any particular area. One should always do the cost/purpose – benefit analysis before pursuing any further studies. Doing LLM from a foreign university also provides the global perspective and outlook, which is essential in today’s world, where one may be required to handle clients across the globe.

     

    Why are students only considering universities abroad for an LLM?

    There are good universities in India such as NLS, Bangalore, NALSAR, Delhi University and other National Law Schools. I think one of the reasons students go abroad is because the LLM there is only a year long. Now, even Indian Universities have switched to a one-year curriculum. However, the key reasons for pursuing LLM in foreign universities is that you get specialisation in one particular area, which one would like to pursue. Further, it provides you a global perspective, experience and access to some of best faculties.

    One the issue of Indian legal education system (on LLM Curriculum), I feel Indian Universities need to upgrade their curriculum and focus on specialisation. Currently, it is more inclined towards an academic perspective. Universities can have two branches of LLM, one LLM (Specialisation) and the other LLM (Academic), the former being more inclined towards practice areas and other more inclined towards research and academics.

     

    Which is the ideal time to do an L.L.M?

    I am personally of the view that one should pursue LLM after at least five years of practice, when you feel the need to specialize in a particular area. The initial years of practice will provide clarity in terms of areas of interests, in which one would like specialise. It is like doing MBA after initial years of experience as post work-experience, one can appreciate various facets of management and can link it with their experience.  Ultimately, it is an individual choice as many people find it difficult to pursue LLM once they start working.

     

    From your experience, would you recommend the corporate environment for fresh graduates?

    (Rajiv has worked with several corporate giants such as Vedanta Ltd. and Maruti Suzuki before joining HCL Infosystems Ltd.)

    Career is an individual choice. It also depends what is one liking, strengths. When I started my career, there was no concept of in-house legal counsel and only few MNCs like Hindustan Lever had strong in-house counsels. The role of in-house counsel in other companies was limited to attending courts on behalf of the company. However, the scenario today has completely changed post the 1991 Liberalisation policy. It took almost ten to fifteen years for the role of in-house counsels to shape up and take prominence. India today is an open economy but at the same time has a strong regulatory regime. Today, the exposure of corporates on some of key regulatory issues being faced in the telecom, coal, power, mining and other sectors has increased the scope and role of in-house counsels. I have been a witness to some key environment and mining issues and without the contribution of the in-house counsel/ legal department, it would have been difficult to successfully win the battle in court and clear the regulatory hurdles. Hence the in-house counsels used to ride pillion earlier, but now, they are at the helm of all corporate affairs. Be it advising on contracting, dispute resolution, M&A, structuring transactions, advisory, regulatory issues, or compliance, in-house counsels are playing a major role. Their role is comparable to what the HR Department used to do several years ago. Today HR has moved away from the traditional personnel and administration to more organizational development, strategic utilization of employees to serve business goals, talent management and development. Similarly, in-house counsel is to work closely with the business in terms of advising them on key issues and resolving the same to meet the business objectives and plans of the organisation.

    Fresh graduates can look at working in-house as it offers you a variety of roles and is not limited to only doing a routine job. HCL offers opportunities in all facets of law, contracting, advisory, litigation. The Legal Department is mid-sized law firm, which deals with multiple customers and meets their expectations every day.  Since we are dealing with variety of issues, it is a real challenge in terms of delivery and at the same time upgrade ourselves with the latest of what is happening in law as well as in the industry.

     

    What does a regular working day look like for you, as General Counsel of HCL Infosystems Ltd?

    Prior to taking over as General Counsel of HCL Infosystems Ltd. in June last year, my entire experience was in the manufacturing sector. HCL being into distribution, services and system integration, the issues are completely different. The business model is different, the issues are different. Every day, we have different issues to handle. Since we participate in various bids/ tenders, we receive numerous requests for vetting from the business for RFQs/ RPFs other contracts with Business Partners/ Vendors/ Channel Partners. As I stated, we are in multiple businesses – distribution, services, learning, system integration, financial inclusions; every day is full of action. Apart for advisory, we also have to attend to the pre-litigation advise and strategize in all litigation matters, brief counsels etc. There is no time for the team to relax as it very action packed.

    My previous organisation was into commodities/ natural resources, where issues were different. In HCL since you are essentially providing different services, as the in-house legal department, we are involved in advising the business in contracting, risk analysis/ mapping. Further, since in our business of providing services, they are always issues of recovery of money, which leads to multiple litigations, arbitrations. The in-house team also advises on many pre-litigation issues, which may be potential litigation issues. However, due to the intervention of the legal department, we are able to recover dues. I have felt that people in sales/ marketing and the delivery team are reluctant to take issues with the customer, even where we have delivered. Sometimes issues also arise with respect to understanding the contract obligations to issue such as drafting and put the perspective to clients/ customers. To bridge the gap, we have started an initiative called ‘Legal for Non-Legal’ where we will conduct workshops to improve the understanding of basic facets of law so that they can front face the issues in a better way and take care of the organisation interest. I have a big team of more than fifteen lawyers. Some of the lawyers have joined us at different level with two to eight years of practice. While they are good at general understanding of law, it is always better to improve their understanding or other facets of corporate laws. I have started internal workshop for my team for knowledge sharing called ‘Episteme’ where we discuss various changes/ developments in law, landmark judgments. One recent example is to update my team on the ‘Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code’ (IBC), which I felt was very necessary. There is no much to do and very less time.

     

    If given an opportunity, what would you do differently in your career journey up to this point?

    I could have practised at the Bar as I am the outgoing type. I love to take challenges, meet people and present my point of view. Further, when you are practising at the bar, apart from your practice and service to clients, you can also help people who cannot afford to engage a lawyer. Of course, there is still time and I can still purse the same.

    A student should purse that career option, which he thinks he will be good at and which excites and interests him or her. Once should never try to emulate, seeing the success of others. Further, there is so short cut to success and one has to go through the rigour which is required to prepare oneself to be in a position to advise someone and to deliver to the satisfaction of the client.

     

    Is there any other suggestion you would like to give to our budding lawyers?

    When we pursued law, it was a profession where there was lots of struggle and there was lack of guidance. Being a first generation lawyer, there was no one to guide me. Initially I wanted to practice at the bar but people discouraged me saying it is very difficult. Because of my dual qualification of Law and CS, people advised me to join corporate, saying it is financially rewarding. I still feel that I should have practised at the bar.

    My suggestion to young lawyers is to pursue their dreams – i.e., if they like litigation, they should follow the same and should not swayed by financial aspects. At the same time, if one likes advisory/ solicitor job, they should join a law firm, which has its own challenges. If one wishes to start their own firm, they should take the plunge early, may be after five years of experience. One needs self-belief and determination to start on their own. Today law as a profession is very rewarding and if one remains focused and willing to put in hard work, success is just a matter of time.

    Young lawyers should be tech savvy as today technology is being used big time in law and hence traditional approach needs to be married with new tools being used to deliver to the satisfaction of clients. One more word of advice to young lawyers is that, today’s world is an era of specialisation. While one needs to have a decent understanding of various facets of law, only those who specialize and develop expertise will survive and be valued.

     

     

  • Praveen Sharma, Business Head at Interactive Media on opting for LL.B after MBA

    Praveen Sharma, Business Head at Interactive Media on opting for LL.B after MBA

    Praveen Sharma is a Commerce and an MBA graduate from Kurukshetra University. Right after his MBA he opted for an LL.B from Delhi University and graduated as a lawyer in 2013. Most of you would know about CAClubIndia.com, LawyersClubIndia.com and MBAClubIndia.com; Praveen is the Business Head of Marketing & Partnership of Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd., the company which runs these famous websites.

    Praveen tells us about:

    • Opting for LL.B as a professional requirement after an MBA
    • The formidable mix of LL.B + MBA
    • Work as a Business Head at Interactive Media
    • Utility of online legal courses juxtaposed with the 3 year LL.B

     

    Please introduce yourself to the readers? Please tell us a little bit about your childhood and your background?

    I’m a traveller, sketcher, stage actor and a football enthusiast who believes that in life “knowing what you don’t want to do is more important than knowing what you want to”. My father was in the Indian Airforce. I was born in Srinagar where he was then posted. Originally from Jind, Haryana, my childhood was spent in Pune and teenage days lived in Ambala. After MBA I pursued LL.B from Delhi University and since then I am in Delhi. Since my childhood days, I am a keen observer of people and nature. Travelling helped me to build my skill of observation & correlation.  Currently I am the Business Head of Marketing & Partnership at Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd (CAclubindia.com, LAWyersclubindia.com and MBAclubindia.com)

     

    Being a Commerce graduate and having an MBA from Kurukshetra University, how did you decide to pursue legal studies? What motivated you to choose law after MBA?

    Hunger of diversification motivated me. My interest areas are varied and the yearning to learn more every day whether it is through experience or academia is always present. Marketing and Legal subjects were always my favourite and so I decided sometime during my schooling that I will pursue both. My inclination towards law and MBA was inspired by my dad who is also both – a law graduate as well as a MBA. I find marketing an expressive and creative medium while law is fascinating and insightful. I believe both if combined make an extremely attractive and great combination of skills.

     

    How was your experience studying LL.B from Delhi University? Being a marketing professional how did you manage to take out time for such an intensive course?

    It was rattling, versed and insightful. Delhi University has its own way of treating things. You will find dramatic political scenario during DUSU elections, debate sessions near tea stalls, Haryanvi tea talks and moot court competitions simultaneously. Everything is so self-driven there. Students are mature and faculties are wonderful and make all efforts to justify the course syllabus. Despite the lack of modern infrastructure, I guess the people who teach and study there make the environment conducive to a holistic education.  In evening class you will find people from different background like CAs, IPS-IAS officers, CS, finance and HR professionals who come there to study law. So you can imagine the level of diversity in one class room for one single objective of studying law. Every single individual has different reason and angle of seeing the particular subject of law – imagine how interesting that is!

    As for time, my boss (Mr. Vivek Jain) has always been very supportive, especially during the course and yes, thanks to Delhi metro which made it possible for me to travel 60 km a day on time. When you have passion for something and desire of doing that you find a way to get it done.

     

    praveen-sharma-1

    You joined Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd., as a Senior Marketing Manager while you were pursuing Law in 2011. Please tell us how did this appointment take place?

    After attaining Management degree, I quit 4 jobs in 2 months, including a campus placement and a job in a PSU. I was reading about some legal topic on the web and found “LAWyersclubindia” link there. I explored the website and it was quite helpful. I joined the website and then sent my CV in careers. After a week I got a call from Interactive Media that the founder wants to meet me for an interview. Initially though reluctant, I went ahead and gave the interview. The meeting was scheduled, I reached there and later Vivek (founder & CEO) came in – a 27 year old, young entrepreneur. We had a long discussion/interview at the end of which he asked me to send a small write-up on the company. I did that and same day got a call confirming my immediate joining. Initially I joined simply to meet my expenses, soon I started getting loads of opportunities to cultivate my skills and learn more- the advantages of working in a start up venture. Vivek trusted me and here I am today.

     

    Please introduce Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd. to our readers. What are the main focus areas, and who form your target clientele?

    Interactive media is a company having three brands (websites) i.e. CAclubindia.com, LAWyersclubindia.com and MBAclubindia.com, these connect more than 1.7 million finance, legal and management professionals. By the end of 2015 we hope to reach out to more than 2 million professionals. Our ideology is to connect users, specifically professionals, to provide a platform to share, exchange and distribute knowledge amongst the fraternity. The registration is free of cost for all and anyone can contribute to the community.

    We have also introduced e-learning classes (asynchronous mode) with CCI Online Classes on CAclubindia.com in 2012, followed by LCIlexlearn  on LAWyersclubinia.com and MCI learning corner on MBAclubindia.com in 2014. Currently more than 15,000 students are enrolled with us across the globe. The main focus area of e-learning classes is to provide value addition certificate courses at affordable price for our members.

    We get some revenue to maintain running cost from our ad sales and our clientele include some of the financial and legal giants like KPMG, CIMA, ACCA, Thomson Reuters, Becker, Microsoft, Intuit, NIIT etc.

     

    Being the Business Head of both Marketing & Partnership at Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd. what kind of responsibilities revolve around your job and what kind of activities do you undertake?

    I am primarily responsible for building business partnerships, strategic alliances and branding & marketing of all three portals and sub-brands. I am also involved in new product development & projection strategies. I represent our company on various platforms and am involved in career counselling, motivational and technical seminars, conducting interviews of stalwarts & taking live hangouts. I also take up training classes of the sales and editorial team of the in-house employees & freelancers. In a nutshell my responsibilities revolve around exploring, strategizing & executing the new horizons for various alliances & partnerships and undertaking the holistic marketing activities for a DotCom and e-learning company.

     

    praveen-sharma-3

    How does your knowledge in law help you in your current work profile? How do you think knowing law can help an entrepreneur?

    My studying law has given me a huge advantage at work. Firstly, we have a website ‘LAWyersclubindia.com’, so it’s easy for me to understand and support operational activities on the website. Secondly, we do lots of partnerships with Indian and foreign entities, my education gave me insight and perception to understand the agreements properly, to negotiate fairly, and to be able to ensure that there are no loopholes which might result in our loss and at the same time taking care of the rights and interests of the other party. It also makes it easy for me to handle technical queries and address them effectively.

    As we are a dot-com company and deal with immense user generated content and so we have to deal with copyright related issues, IT laws on content sharing, user terms and conditions etc. When you have one or two lawyers in your team you can be confident while dealing with such issues.

    Whereas in e-learning we deal with content from third party so Intellectual Property Right comes into the play here. My law background helps me to understand and deal with such issues and gain confidence over partners. Thus, having the basic education in law has given me an immense advantage.

    As knowing finance is a must for entrepreneurs so is basics of law which directly affects their business. Understanding the related laws help an entrepreneur to make new product development strategy or starting a new partnership or venture.  It also gives insight in making a marketing policy. New budding entrepreneurs coming up with startups and running SMEs must learn the basics of law and related laws to their business.

    I believe that every individual should have basic education with regard to their rights and duties. For example laws related to protection against domestic violence, rape, road accident. Laws related to insurance, rights of a minor and more. This helps an individual to exercise their rights and get a broader view of the issue at hand. It helps society to mature as a whole. And a matured society develops faster and remains culturally stable.

     

    How do you think this formidable mix of MBA and LL.B can help people working in a similar profile? Would you recommend Management and Marketing professionals to learn the law?

    MBA+LLB is a great combination. It helps you develop a unique skill set which enables you to mitigate complex business situations by understanding the legal issues related to the situation and taking the managerial approach to solve the problem.  It gives you an advantage over your peers. You become aware of the power of words and use it advantageously. There are great career options available in the industry requiring the blended skill set of these two degrees. For example: legal consultancy, social networking, content marketing, legal journalism, business consultancy and many more. I strongly recommend management and marketing professionals to learn law.

    I take care of social media marketing for our brands. Now, I should be well versed with cyber laws, IT and social media laws because I need to deal with related issues in my day to day work. So, one can do small courses to have a better understanding of the areas which deals with his/her job profile.

     

    If there were any part-time online diplomas in Business Laws awarded by one of the top law schools, like the one from NUJS and iPleaders, would you have taken it up?

    Certainly yes! We need to take a pragmatic approach and undertake such certificate and diploma courses to enhance our corporate skills. It is great option for the young graduates and for professionals who are unable to attend full time college due to time and geographical constraints. Online courses are very popular these days and if such diploma course is there online or in my city which gives me flexibility of attending classes I would love to do such course. This kind of certificate/diploma course will have the industry acceptance and it will impart you with updated knowledge and skills.

     

    What are your long term plans? Do you consider getting into a mainstream legal career ever?

    Mainstream legal career, do you mean litigation? 😀

    Whenever you see shows likes Suits, Boston Legal, The Practice, etc. you feel that urge to go into the court house, argue there and win the case with your charming and witty arguments. But frankly, I am quite satisfied with my current job, I love my job and what I get to do. It gives me the space to think out of the box and come up with new things while letting me stay connected to law. I work on numerous projects at the same time, and there is never a dull moment.

    My long term plan is to be happy and enjoy my work… whatever I choose to do or not to do.

    What would be your message to marketing and management professionals who are thinking of taking up legal studies?

    You have to have love for this profession and desire to learn law. Only then you will be able to use the acquired knowledge properly, to grow intellectually, to help others and to share knowledge.

    Marketing and management professionals should definitely study laws which are directly related to their job profile & business. In general also they should have basic legal understanding. For example if you are a social media manager you must understand copyright laws, Social media laws, cyber laws etc. Finally, the core competency for us is to be able to think and work in diverse situations. So it is a must to know something about everything. Don’t be scared to diversify.

     

    काममयएवायंपुरुषइति। सयथाकामोभवतितत्क्रतुर्भवति।

    यत्क्रतुर्भवतितत्कर्मकुरुते। यत्कर्मकुरुतेतदभिसंपद्यते॥

    You are what your deep, driving desire is

    As your desire is, so is your will

    As your will is, so is your deed

    As your deed is, so is your destiny!

     

  • Prof. Ranbir Singh, Vice Chancellor, NLUD, on legal education in India, and his experience

    Prof. Ranbir Singh, Vice Chancellor, NLUD, on legal education in India, and his experience

    Prof. (Dr.) Ranbir Singh is the current Vice Chancellor of NLU, Delhi. Before taking charge at NLUD he had been at NALSAR, Hyderabad’s helm of affairs since its inception. Prof. Ranbir Singh had a long association with Kurukshetra University, as a student, as a PhD Scholar and then as a faculty member. Thereafter he moved onto Maharshi Dayanand University at Rohtak and continued there till he joined NALSAR. He has played a critical role in reviving legal education in the country and recasting it so as to make it more relevant to contemporary concerns.

    In this interview we ask him about:

    • Difference between traditional universities and the NLUs
    • The legal education regime in India
    • Challenges faced by researchers & academics

     

    Tell us a bit about your childhood.

    I started my education in a village school and continued to study in a village till my higher secondary education. I belong to an educated family who knew the value of education and there was lot of emphasis on education. During this education I learnt to respect my teachers, my elders and I strongly believe without their blessings it is very difficult to achieve anything in life.

     

    Why did you decide to opt for the field of law?

    Initially, I never thought to join Law neither had I any idea about the legal profession. There was nobody in my family pursuing this profession. I was in fact trying to do an M.Sc. after my B.Sc. education, but family circumstances and destiny forced me to join Law and then I decided to pursue LL.M. and did Ph.D. I started my teaching career in 1974 at Kurukshetra University itself where I was a student for my B.Sc., LL.B., LL.M. and also Ph.D.

    Teaching law is very stimulating and came as natural flair to me and as they say, “There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it”, best describes it.

     

    What were the highlights of your journey as a law student?

    [sociallocker] At Kurukshetra University, it was a tough journey initially, but this was a time when in the Law faculty we had best of teachers who were very dedicated and learned. The teaching staff was very good but there was a complete disconnect between the teachers and students in those days in the class rooms as there was no interaction and so teaching and learning did not happen simultaneously.

    My favourite subject was Jurisprudence.
    prof-ranbir-singh-1

    What, in your view, are the qualities that a law student should strive to possess in order to rise a notch above the rest?

    The following are the basic qualities one should keep in mind to succeed as law student. Follow these Commandments for Success:

    • Attend classes regularly
    • Maintain proper discipline in campus and inside hostel.
    • ‘NO’ to ragging
    • Proper dress code
    • No misuse of mobile and internet facility
    • Proper use of library and legal software
    • Taking part in Moot Court Competitions and other events like seminars/conferences/workshops and debates etc.
    • Participating in legal aid activities
    • Taking research seriously
    • Adopt gender sensitive anti-discriminatory behavior
    • Positive leadership
    • Jealously guarding the reputation of the Institution

     

    Starting out, where did you envision your career would take you?

    I chose Academics as I did not like the Court environment. When I was doing Law I visited courts and realised that this is not the place for me and so I pursued higher studies & came into academics.

     

    Did you ever question — or did others question — your decision to focus on what some consider a less lucrative field than other fields in the legal profession?

    In fact nobody questioned my decision to join Law and academics. I for one believe that, if you are seriously committed to achieve what you want to do and achieve it successfully, nobody questions you. Ultimately success silences your critics.

     

    How different, would you say, are NLUs from traditional law institutions?

    (Professor Singh has taught at traditional law faculties at Kurukshetra University and Maharshi Dayanand University as well as at National Law Universities such as NLSIU and NALSAR.)

    My journey from a traditional university to Law School, Bangalore made me learn new ways of teaching and research in Law. My time at National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bangalore was a turning point for my life, which helped me to acquire new teaching techniques and importance of research in legal education. In the era before 1980’s not many students came to law by choice, they came by chance and somehow succeeded. After the introduction of 5 year’s Law Degree Course in the year of 1983 and then with the establishment of first law school at Bangalore (NLSIU) in 1988. The students of this institution were admitted by the entrance exam and started to join Law by choice not by chance. The reforms in legal education started being taken up seriously.

    My decision to accept the challenge and move from a traditional law faculty to NLSIU, Bangalore in 1996-97 made me realize the importance of challenges in life. I realised life is a big challenge, accept it if you aspire to achieve something higher in life.

     

    How difficult has it been for you to find time to write research papers?

    (Professor Singh has written on a diverse array of subjects including jurisprudence, human rights, legal education, personal laws, etc and have more than 50 publications to your credit.)

    I always believe that if you have passion to do something you can always find time for it. I personally never felt that one is short of time for teaching and research. It is only a matter of setting your time table and academic priorities. Once one starts enjoying teaching and research and additionally prioritizes academic activities like seminar, conference etc, research work will automatically be carried on. There is so much research to do in almost all fields of Law that one can contribute to research in the big way which can be of great use to society.

     

    How should law students go about selecting topics for research publications?

    One should look for areas of interest in research and also for topics, where research is meaningful and useful to the society. The Editorial Board should additionally look at the hypothesis, the methodology, the advantage of research, critical component and conclusions etc matching with the overall concept of research undertaken.

     

    What, in your view, are the biggest challenges that a young law student wanting to go into academia has to face in India?

    The biggest challenge that a student has to face is getting into a good institute for legal education. All Law related activities whether in courts, corporate law firms etc. need a very strong research based approach to resolve their legal disputes effectively. With the Himalayan heaps of legislation passed by the Parliament and the state legislation in the last 2 decades, legal research has become more complex in the present circumstances. There are more challenges faced by legal researchers. Research in India was not taken seriously before the advent of the law schools with very few exceptions of some law faculties. But for the last 20 years or so legal research has picked up and there is an ever increasing upward trend in legal research and scholarship in India.

     

    What are the biggest challenges that you had to face while building NALSAR?

    (Professor Singh was the founder Vice Chancellor of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.)

    The biggest challenge of creating a law school in a State is to seek liberal financial support for the creation of the University and the infrastructure and then the having best of faculty. For me the biggest challenge was to create my own space for NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad as NLSIU, Bangalore had already earned reputation of a prestigious institution in Law. I had a mandate not only to compete with NLSIU but also to work hard to overtake it as soon as possible. NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad started in 1998 and 2008 it was rated as the best law school among the other law schools in India.

     

    What are the factors that played the biggest role in NALSAR’s success?

    It is easy and it is also difficult. It is easy if we have enough resources to motivate faculty for teaching, research and for organising and attending conferences. One has to motivate students to acquire technical and professional skills through moot court competitions and other activities and also have a dedicated non-teaching staff. If you don’t have any of these it will be difficult to create a good law school. Above all more important is a leadership factor in the institution, somebody who will have a vision and the capacity to take everybody along for achieving overall excellence and lead by example from the front.

     

    You are also the founder vice chancellor of National Law University, Delhi. Tell us about the experience.

    Compared to NALSAR I did not face much challenge at National Law University, Delhi because of the initiative of the Delhi High Court and also very liberal financial support from the Govt. NCT of Delhi. NLU, Delhi was fortunate to attract the best of senior and young faculty to teach and train the students in research.

    At NLU, Delhi the faculty acquired a place of reputation in a very short span of time for itself by engaging in research and opening research centres and helping various Ministries, Commissions etc. in providing research inputs. The University is actively participating in preparation of reports i.e. Justice Verma Committee Report for amendments in Criminal Law and continues engagement with the Ministry of Law & Justice and Law Commission of India and also providing inputs to the Standing Committees of Parliament on Law.

     

    What are the biggest challenges that you have had to grapple with as the Vice Chancellor of NLUD?

    Initially, the biggest challenge was to create good infrastructure especially IT enabled classrooms and seminars, conference halls, etc. A good library with the most advanced legal data base in Law is essential for creating a good library along with the books, reports along with reference books. Library being the nerve centre of a Law schools for legal learning and research has to be given top priority.

    The second challenge was to attract the best of students through our separate All India Law Entrance Test (AILET) and also the best of faculty. It should be possible by motivating faculty through liberal financial assistance for attending conferences, giving them academic space to grow, separate rooms for research and enough funding for research projects.

     

    What is your vision for NLUD?

    Within a short span of six years NLU, Delhi has already made a place for itself and it is reputed as one of the best Law Universities in the country. In a span of 10 years we are already on way to compete with the best of Law schools outside India.

     

    As someone who played an instrumental role in the introduction of CLAT, how successful has the entrance test been in your opinion?

    In fact, I should not comment on CLAT and the strategy which they have adopted as I am not a part of the CLAT. At the same time, since I was one of the main initiators of CLAT I deem it my duty to share it with you that CLAT would be a successful test format only when it has a centralised and permanent body responsible for maintaining the standards of CLAT and effectively conducting the tests. Main cause of criticism for CLAT has come because of the fact that the rotational policy conducting tests hasnot paid dividends because every school may not have the perfect expertise and vision as to what is the standard aptitude and skills to be examined in a legal test.

     

    What are the pros and cons of having different entrance tests for different universities?

    (NLU Delhi has a separate entrance test called AILET.)

    CLAT was introduced only for the reason that it would be able to avoid multiplicity of tests which makes it difficult for students to focus fully on one entrance test. NLU, Delhi decided to go for a separate test mainly because we were not sure about the quality of the test and whether it would be conducted effectively, as CLAT was only in its second year of operation in 2008 when NLU, Delhi was established.

     

    Do you think that standardized testing is the best way going forward?

    In a country like India the foreign standards of testing may not be very successful. Because that requires higher degree of integrity. Emphasis should be on standards of the aptitude and skill tests related to Law.

     

     

    Can you tell us about your association with institutions that seek to effect social and legal change?

    (Professor Singh has been associated with several renowned institutions like the National Legal Services Authority, Indian Law Institute, National Police Academy, National Commission for Women, etc in an advisory role.)

    Law is a great tool for social transformation and change. Effective Laws for social justice if effectively implemented can go a long way in solving problems of millions and millions of people in this country. Those who are have nots and down trodden, dalits, harijans and all those who belong to disadvantaged groups including Women and Children.

     

    Do you think that the curriculum prescribed by the BCI equips law students with the skills necessary for solving real life problems?

    I have been associated with Bar Council of India (BCI) for a long time and I think the course curriculum designed by BCI is perfectly fine as it leaves lot of scope for changes allowing changes according to local needs. Participative institutions can give importance to priority areas, but the problem lies somewhere else. Earlier the country was faced with the problem of mushrooming of 3 years law colleges with no infrastructure, library or the faculty. The same has started happening to 5 years law colleges which are almost more than 1000 in numbers, out of which not even 10% adhere to best standards and norms for good legal education. Unfortunately, for the last 20 years after the introduction of the ‘Rotational Headship Schemes’ in the law faculties and also because of ‘Automatic Promotion Schemes’ in the Universities, the standards of academic research and teaching have miserably come down.

     

    What steps can be taken to turn law schools into justice schools?

    Law schools have adopted the model of five years teaching in Law for acquiring Law Degree and all law schools have to compulsorily teach social science subjects i.e. Sociology, Economics, Political Science, History and Law Language and Literature. This criticism is more true and should be addressed to three years course in Law.

     

    Do you think NLUs, owing to their fee structure, remain inaccessible to a large section of people?

    Most of the NLUs and I have personal experiences of NALSAR Hyderabad and NLU, Delhi provide liberal financial assistance to all the category of students after they join law schools. I had a policy in this direction at both the Universities which we still follow. I have no instance to quote where any student has to leave the law school/university because he or she could not afford the education. The fee structure in the Law Universities is far less than a prestigious primary school in Delhi.

     

    What is your view on the opinion that students pursue law only to get high paying jobs?

    It is highly misplaced criticism because the law schools have this kind of criticism which has been faced by IITs and IIMs. But I shall like to answer this question by asking a counter question – as to why the products of law schools should not have the freedom to choose career of their own choice. The majority of the students admitted to these law schools are from middle class families and most of them are first generation students aspiring to have the Law degree. One can ask, is there any system in place in this country created by the BCI, the Bar Association of Supreme Court of India or the respective High Courts and by the Senior Advocates of the Supreme Court and High Courts including efforts if any by the Government to attract the young talent which is highly competent to join litigation. Since they fund their own education in their law schools joining the corporate law firms may be necessary for them. But at the same time in the present times not many students are going to corporate firms rather they are joining diverse fields including civil services. Let me share this with you that in the coming 10 years maximum candidates qualifying civil services will be from the law universities and they will overtake IITs.

     

    Does law school put too much pressure on its students?

    This kind of criticism applies to the best of professions and institutions like IITs, IIMs etc and Law Universities are not any exceptions. I for one don’t mind that if the students in the Law Universities have to work hard, wherein most of law colleges in the country are producing not even half baked lawyers.

     

    What advice would you like to share with those hardworking students who were unable to get into the top NLUs?

    Most of the Law Schools are a lot better than what they used to be during our time, still as a matter of fact a lot of us graduated started work and many are currently known internationally for their achievements. One should have the sense of pride where anybody joins; one should work hard to be professionally competent, technically sound and socially relevant to succeed in law education. Since, Law Universities have become a brand and known for good education, standards certainly vary from one institution to another. But, those students who work hard come out successful from all institutions.
    [/sociallocker]