Based on the collective views of in-house counsel and private practice lawyers in India. The following are the top India-focused lawyers at international law firms.
The International A-List is based on extensive research conducted by India Business Law Journal. Biographies and contact details, where provided, are written by the lawyers themselves and have not been independently verified.
Click here to read the editorial report that accompanies the A-List.
 |
Manish Aggarwal Three Crown London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; international arbitration | |
 |
Sheila Ahuja Allen & Overy Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; emerging markets | |
 |
Babita Ambekar CMS Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI out of India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Talat Ansari Seyfarth New York |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; dispute resolution; FDI out of India | |
 |
Philip Badge Linklaters Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance | |
 |
Arun Balasubramanian Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Hong Kong/Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; dispute resolution | |
 |
Ranajoy Basu McDermott Will & Emery London |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; ESG & impact investment | |
 |
Ulrich Bäumer Osborne Clarke Cologne |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; dispute resolution; information technology | |
 |
Jamie Benson Duane Morris & Selvam Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Manoj Bhargava Sidley Austin Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Sidharth Bhasin Latham & Watkins Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Gautam Bhattacharyya Reed Smith London/ Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Philip Boeckman Cravath, Swaine & Moore London |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/ M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Piusha Bose Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Raja Bose K&L Gates Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Anti-bribery and anti-corruption; construction and infrastructure; dispute resolution | |
 |
Andrew Brereton King & Spalding London/ Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; project finance; restructuring & insolvency; energy | |
 |
Cavinder Bull Drew and Napier Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; private equity & venture capital; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Geoffrey Burgess Debevoise & Plimpton London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
David Carpenter Mayer Brown New York |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Bill Carr CMS London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI out of India; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Biswajit Chatterjee Hogan Lovells Singapore |
| Tel: +65 8157 6204 Email: biswajit.chatterjee@hoganlovells.com Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital |
|
| Biswajit (Bis) is a corporate partner, and leads the US securities laws practice focused on India, SE Asia and Middle East. Bis divides his time between Singapore and Dubai. He focuses on equity and debt capital markets, corporate finance, M&A and PE transactions in India, SE Asia and Middle East. He has worked across industries, including technology, fintech, energy, financial services, defence, infrastructure, real estate, retail and hospitality clients. He also supports Indian corporates and conglomerates in growing and/ or reorganising their global operations on corporate commercial matters. Bis has worked on a range of regulatory issues, including economic sanctions, government procurement, white collar investigations, corporate governance and regulatory issues. Bis is highly ranked by Chambers & Partners, IFLR 1000, Best Lawyers, Legal 500 and other legal directories. Chambers Global has consistently (2010 – 2021) ranked him as a highly regarded lawyer and client testimonials state that he is “very professional and extremely thorough”; “solution oriented”; “extremely knowledgeable about India and Indian client requirements”; and a “tough negotiator” who offers clients “incredible personal attention”. |
|
 |
George Cyriac Stephenson Harwood Singapore/ Jakarta |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Andrew Dale Ropes & Gray Hong Kong |
| Key practice areas: Anti-corruption; arbitration; compliance | |
 |
John Dewar Milbank London |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; oil and gas; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Arvind Dixit Corrs Melbourne |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources; technology | |
 |
Rustam Dubash Penningtons Manches London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; international arbitration | |
 |
Rajeev Duggal Skadden Arps Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; financial institutions | |
 |
Valerie Demont Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton New York City |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A | |
 |
Sunil Gadhia Cleary Gottlieb London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Paul Gair TLT London |
| Tel: +44 (0)333 006 0092 Email: paul.gair@TLTsolicitors.com Key practice areas: Banking & finance; dispute resolution |
|
| Paul is a London-based partner in TLT’s banking and financial services litigation team and co-head of TLT’s India Group.
He has particular experience of disputes involving a range of complex financial products, trade finance issues, fraud and insolvency, often involving multiple jurisdictions, as well as contentious regulatory matters such as risks arising from the LIBOR transition and ESG. He has strong relationships with the Indian banking community (in India and across their international networks) with a deep understanding of the issues they face. Over recent years he has been extensively involved in the enforcement of non-performing loans, advising on appropriate strategies to maximise recoveries with an increasing focus on the pursuit of personal guarantors. He works closely with insolvency practitioners and accountants to trace and recover assets around the world. That work is highlighted by his ongoing advice to the consortium of banks on the enforcement of the DRT judgment against Vijay Mallya including the registration of that judgment with the English Courts and, in July 2021 securing the bankruptcy order against Dr Mallya. Other notable matters include:
Paul’s work has previously been recognised at the British Legal Awards where his team was highly commended and received the “Litigation and Disputes Team of the Year” award. Led from the heart of the City of London, TLT’s India Group has built depth of experience and relationships in the Indian market over decades acting for Indian clients. TLT’s India focus is a key part of the firm’s strategy, building on its growth that was recognised by The Lawyer, which named it Firm of the Year in 2021. |
|
 |
Peter Goldsmith Debevoise & Plimpton London/ Paris |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Pallavi Gopinath Aney Allen & Overy Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Ankit Goyal Allen & Gledhill Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
James Grandolfo Milbank Hong Kong |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Nipun Gupta Bird & Bird London |
| Tel: 44 (0)20 7415 6000 Email: nipun.gupta@twobirds.com Key practice areas: Automotive; corporate/M&A; energy & utilities |
|
| Nipun joined the Corporate Group at Bird & Bird as a partner in March 2008 from White & Case, where she was a partner in the firm’s India practice. Prior to White & Case, Nipun was global head of legal at ISPAT International (now ArcelorMittal).
Since arriving at Bird & Bird, Nipun has been a key driver of the strategy with regard to India, including the India related M&A and corporate finance and dispute resolution work. Nipun was named by IBLJ as one of the top 100 international lawyers for India-related matters in 2021 and has recently been awarded the Legal Era Global Achievers Award 2022. “Nipun is someone who has advised Indian and international clients on many matters over the years in multiple jurisdictions. She can assist the client to get to the point they need to, with the right team and all very promptly,” says a client. |
|
 |
Rajiv Gupta Latham & Watkins Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A | |
 |
Rahul Guptan White & Case Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Savi Hebbur Linklaters London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Ian Ho Simpson Thacher Hong Kong |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Ranbir Hunjan Clifford Chance London |
| Key practice areas: Projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Martin Imhof Heuking Kuhn Luer Wojtek Dusseldorf |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; joint ventures; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Narayan Iyer Linklaters London |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance | |
 |
Sushil Jacob Linklaters London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A | |
 |
Abhimanyu Jalan Clyde & Co Dubai |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Sushma Jobanputra Jones Day Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; business restructuring and reorganisation; FDI into India | |
 |
Sunil Kakkad Gowling WLG London |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; FDI out of India | |
 |
Rahul Kapoor Morgan Lewis Palo Alto |
| Tel: 1.650.843.7580 Email: rahul.kapoor@morganlewis.com Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; intellectual property; private equity & venture capital |
|
| With a focus on global commercial, intellectual property, and technology transactions, Rahul advises clients on strategic alliances, joint ventures, and corporate partnering transactions in the technology and life science industries that includes a focus on India related matters. He also handles patent licensing, supply and distribution agreements, spinoffs and core technology licenses.
He is the leader of Morgan Lewis’ India initiative, the local practice group leader of the Silicon Valley and San Francisco corporate transactions practice, and previously served as the firmwide hiring partner and a member of the firm’s Advisory Board. Rahul brings a deep technology background and a comprehensive understanding of the business and technology markets to his practice. In addition to practising law, Rahul taught an IP strategy class for 10 years at University of California Berkeley School of Law. Morgan Lewis is a global law firm with offices in North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. |
|
 |
Raj Karia Norton Rose London |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/ M&A | |
 |
Amit Kataria King & Spalding London |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Srinivas Kaushik Kirkland & Ellis New York |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Stephanie Keen Hogan Lovells Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Sachin Kerur Reed Smith Dubai |
| Key practice areas: Construction; oil and gas; projects, energy, infrastructure &resources | |
 |
Ryo Kotoura Anderson Mori & Tomotsune Tokyo |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; dispute resolution; FDI into India | |
 |
Yohei Koyama Mori Hamada & Matsumoto Tokyo |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; dispute resolution; FDI into India | |
 |
Karthik Kumar Orrick Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; corporate/M&A; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Ashok Lalwani Baker McKenzie Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A | |
 |
Laurence Lieberman Taylor Wessing London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; dispute resolution; FDI out of India | |
 |
Bobby Majumder Frost Brown Todd Dallas |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Roddy Martin Herbert Smith Freehills London |
| Key practice areas: Automotive; corporate/M&A; corporate governance | |
 |
Smitha Menon WongPartnership Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; restructuring & insolvency | |
 |
Samantha Mobley Baker McKenzie London |
| Key practice areas: Antitrust; foreign investment | |
 |
Malcolm Moller Appleby Port Louis |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; corporate/M&A; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Alan Montgomery Herbert Smith Freehills London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; joint ventures and investments; pharmaceuticals and healthcare | |
 |
Soumitro Mukerji Mayer Brown Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance | |
 |
James Mullock Bird & Bird London |
| Tel: 44 (0)20 7415 6000 Email: james.mullock@twobirds.com Key practice areas: Data privacy and technology; FDI out of India |
|
| James is a partner in Bird & Bird’s commercial team in London and co-heads both the renowned data protection team and India strategy group.
He has assisted a number of Indian companies with their international operations. He advises on information law issues, including in the fields of data privacy, cyber risk and freedom of information and also handles complex technology, communications and outsourcing transactions for both customers and suppliers. James has deep experience assisting Indian companies with their international operations and recently contributed to Global Media Group’s “India Unleashed”, a global guide that examines India’s emerging role in the global economy. James provided comment on the pressing issues facing Indian companies in the UK, including Brexit, the GDPR and Indo-Anglo M&A transactions. Prior to joining Bird & Bird in 2015, James was a partner at Osborne Clarke. |
|
 |
Vikram Nair Rajah & Tann Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Construction and projects; dispute resolution | |
 |
Deepak Nambiar Kelley Drye & Warren New York |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Gautam Narasimhan Allen & Overy Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking and finance; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Nandan Nelivigi White & Case New York |
| Key practice areas: Projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Meraj Noor DLA Piper Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; FDI into India | |
 |
Chris Parsons Herbert Smith Freehills London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Ferish Patel Cooley Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Rahul Patel King & Spalding Atlanta |
| Key practice areas: Private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Jai Pathak Gibson Dunn Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Nicholas Peacock Bird & Bird London |
| Tel: 44 (0)20 7415 6000 Email: Nicholas.Peacock@twobirds.com Key practice areas: Banking & finance; dispute resolution; technology |
|
| Nicholas is a partner and head of the international arbitration practice at Bird & Bird in London.
Nicholas has enjoyed a 20+ year career in international dispute resolution and has been heavily involved acting on India-related commercial disputes for the last 15 years. He has appeared before arbitral tribunals in Europe and Asia, as well as in the London High Court. Nicholas has advised on various industry sectors including energy, power, financial services, leisure, maritime services, telecoms, media, technology, manufacturing and consumer goods. He has also acted for and against state governments. Nicholas has sat as an arbitrator on India-related disputes in London and Singapore under various institutional rules and ad hoc. Nicholas is a member of the Law Society of England & Wales, CIArb, and the IPBA. Prior to joining Bird & Bird, he was a partner at Herbert Smith Freehills in London and Singapore. |
|
 |
Jonathan Pentzien Gunderson Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Sherina Petit Norton Rose London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Prakash Pillai Clyde & Co Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; international arbitration | |
 |
Kelvin Poon Rajah & Tann Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Nallini Puri Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton London |
| Tel: + 44 20 7614 2289 Email: npuri@cgsh.com Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital |
|
| Nallini is a recognised expert acting for sovereign wealth funds and major multinationals with respect to their foreign direct investment into India. She has particular expertise within the technology, media and communications and pharmaceuticals and biotechnology sectors. Having previously studied law in India and worked at a corporate firm in New Delhi, India, Nallini has a long history of working for clients in India and the wider Asia-Pacific area. Her clients include Brookfield, Lavazza, TPG, and Wockhardt. She is fluent in English and Hindi.
Nallini’s expertise has been recognised by a number of leading publications and directories. The Legal 500 UK has recognised her as a “Next Generation Partner” for M&A. Premium Deals, noted her experience in “the world of tech and pharmaceuticals,” and described her as “very knowledgeable and pleasant to work with.” IFLR1000 and Legal Week have both recognised Nallini as a “Rising Star”. |
|
 |
Yash Rana Goodwin Procter Hong Kong |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Philippe Reich Baker McKenzie Zurich |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Stuart Rubin Ashurst London |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Dipen Sabharwal White & Case London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Tihir Sarkar Cleary Gottlieb London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Kamal Shah Stephenson Harwood London |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Daniel Sharma DLA Piper Frankfurt |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; investigations | |
 |
Nish Shetty Clifford Chance Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Amit Singh Linklaters Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Kabir Singh Clifford Chance Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution | |
 |
Parmjit Singh Eversheds Sutherland London |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; financial institutions | |
 |
Parveet Singh Gandoak King & Spalding Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; FDI out of India | |
 |
Sarjit Singh Gill Shook Lin & Bok Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; restructuring & insolvency | |
 |
Sivanesan Sivagnanaratnam Dentons Rodyk & Davidson Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital | |
 |
Siddhartha Sivaramakrishnan McDermott Will & Emery Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
 |
Priyank Srivastava Duane Morris & Selvam Singapore |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; dispute resolution; projects, energy, infrastructure & resources | |
 |
Jonathan Stone Skadden Arps Hong Kong |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate/M&A | |
 |
Taeko Suzuki Nishimura & Asahi Tokyo |
| Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; Dispute resolution; FDI into India | |
 |
Ralph Voltmer Covington & Burling Washington, DC |
| Tel: +1 202 662 5479 Email: rvoltmer@cov.com Key practice areas: Corporate/M&A; FDI into India; private equity & venture capital |
|
| Ralph is the chair of Covington’s India practice and a partner in the firm’s corporate group. He has been active in India for over 22 years, working with companies such as Reliance Industries, Reliance Jio Infocomm, Piramal Enterprises, UPL, Mindtree, the Aditya Birla Group, the Tata Group, OmniActive Health Technologies, Sterlite Technologies, and Balkrishna Industries. He advises both US and foreign clients in cross-border transactions such as mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic alliances, and financings (whether debt or equity). He has represented clients on a variety of transactions in Europe, Latin America, and Asia.
In addition to being named to the India Business Law Journal’s “International A-list”, Ralph is ranked in Chambers Global for corporate/M&A (India) and corporate/M&A (US). Ralph earned his JD from Georgetown University Law Center, MA from University of California Riverside, and BA from Wheaton College. |
|
 |
Pallavi Wahi K&L Gates Seattle |
| Tel: +1 206 370 6648 Email: pallavi.wahi@klgates.com Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; intellectual property; technology |
|
| Pallavi serves as co-managing partner of K&L Gates in the US that covers 24 offices. She is the managing partner of the Seattle office, chair of the Firmwide Diversity Committee and co-chair of the firmwide India practice.
As an experienced litigator, Pallavi practises complex commercial litigation with an emphasis on corporate and intellectual property litigation. She works regularly on complex contractual breach matters and has also represented Fortune 500 companies in plaintiff or defence counsel capacity. Pallavi also acts as global coordinating counsel for litigation. In this role, she has developed litigation programmes for clients to drive efficiencies of costs and consistency of approach across multiple engagements and jurisdictions. Pallavi is active in the community and serves as a director of the Seattle Branch Board of Directors of The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, and First Vice Board Chair of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, among other boards. Pallavi has been included in the International A-List by India Business Law Journal since 2019. She has also been selected to the Indian Corporate Counsel Association’s Most Trusted Corporate Lawyers list. In addition, she is ranked in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business in the Litigation: General commercial category in Washington state; named to the Washington Super Lawyers list; named to the “IP Stars” list; and named among the 25 Most Influential People by Seattle Magazine. Lawyers of Color named Pallavi to their fifth annual “Power List”, which recognises the most influential minority attorneys and allies in the nation. Previously, Pallavi has been included in the Puget Sound Business Journal’s “Power 100”, spotlighting the 100 most influential business leaders in the Puget Sound area and named one of the 100 most influential lawyers in the US by editors and writers across The Business Journals’ network of more than 40 publications. Pallavi has significant experience with the business environment in India. She grew up in India, went to college there, and speaks fluent Hindi. She is well versed with the culture and business environment of the country. Pallavi received her BA from St Stephen’s College, New Delhi. She also received her BA from the University of Cambridge Tripos Law, Magdalene College, Cambridge University in 1999 (automatic conversion to an MA). |
|
