Dear Sir,
I refer to your coverage of India’s legal market in the July/August issue of India Business Law Journal.
There is hardly any denying that the entry of foreign law firms is only going to help the Indian legal market find some solutions to the current challenges of organization, management and specialization.
What needs to be considered are the new challenges that would be posed by the entry of foreign law firms. As the saying goes, “What we resist persists.”
As a first step, we all need to accept that the entry of foreign law firms into India is inevitable. Once we accept this and decide to look around to find how it can possibly benefit the community, a lot of answers start showing up.
There are definitely a lot of pros and cons related to the entry of foreign firms in India and one can argue equally well either way.
The matter finally boils down to the real question of competition between Indian firms and foreign firms.
I believe the problem could be addressed to a great extent in the preparation stage. First, we must create a level playing field for Indian and foreign firms.
The major advancement in this regard would be provision for limited liability partnerships in India and the relaxation of Bar Council rules such as restrictions on law firms advertising.
While a lot of observers have suggested that the creation of a level playing field will be enough, I disagree. Merely playing on a level playing field will be grossly insufficient.
What we need to do first is to practise playing on this field. We must practise working in the new environment and structure. We must learn the skills of organization, management and advertising before we start competing with foreign firms.
The biggest error we can make is to allow the entry of foreign firms immediately after relaxing the rules. I strongly believe sufficient time must be given to Indian firms to practise playing on this field.
We must feel at home! After all, Indian firms are going to be competing against foreign firms that have significant expertise in non-practice disciplines, such as law firm management, advertising and exposure to international legal markets.
Abhinav Bindra, who won India’s first individual gold medal at the Beijing Olympics practised at similar facilities in India to those used by his foreign competitors in their home countries.
He practised and played on a level playing field. Unfortunately, many of the other Indian athletes didn’t have the benefit of such facilities at home. So while they played on a level playing field in Beijing, they hadn’t practised on the same playing field in India.
I believe once Indian firms practise on this level playing field, they will be very much geared up to extend a “warm Indian welcome” to foreign law firms, learn from them, collaborate with them and compete with them sportingly.
Chetan Chadha
Head: International Department
Chadha & Chadha, Advocates
New Delhi
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