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India gradually opens up to foreign law firms

05 May 2023 08:50 (UTC +04:00)

India’s legal market has opened up to foreign lawyers for the first time, following more than a decade of talks over restrictions, APA reports citing Financial Times.

But many are expecting a long wait before international firms set up shop due to confusion over new regulations and pushback from some domestic lawyers.

In March, the Bar Council of India announced overseas firms would be able to open offices in the country, giving foreign lawyers a foothold in one of the biggest legal markets in the world. However, just a few weeks later, confusion abounds over how to interpret the new rules. In its original statement, the BCI said it was allowing foreign law firms to open offices in India to advise clients on the international elements of mergers and acquisitions, or appear as arbitrators. However, foreign lawyers would still not be able to advise on Indian law or appear in India’s courts.

International lawyers are currently only able to advise Indian clients on a “fly-in, fly-out” basis. So the change was heralded as a major liberalisation likely to attract some of the biggest global law firms. In a public statement, Baker McKenzie said the development was “hugely exciting”.

Then, days later, a clarification issued by the BCI appeared to restrict international law firms to advising non-Indian clients only, even though many already advise Indian conglomerates from offices overseas.

Cyril Shroff, managing partner of one of India’s biggest law firms, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, says he welcomes the new rules. “The status quo has to change,” he says. “You have to turn a page of history and move on.”

But he admits there is “still a lot of ambiguity” regarding many key provisions. “In this current format, I don’t know how many people will be actually interested in it because [the rules] only allow practising foreign law and advising only foreign clients.”

One international law firm partner says the restriction to non-Indian clients would actually reduce what the firm was currently allowed to do.