Date:  28 January 2009

A PASSAGE TO INDIA

You will no doubt have read that recently, the Indian government has taken an important legislative step towards the opening up of the Indian legal market to foreign firms with the passing, in December 2008 of the Limited Liability Partnership legislation.

Caroline Coates, Partner of Buller Jeffries was part of a trade delegation to New Delhi in November last year in her capacity as President of the Birmingham Law Society.  The purpose of the visit was to promote “best friend” relationships with Indian lawyers, to attract referrals to Birmingham firms and to lobby on behalf of Birmingham lawyers on the question of liberalisation.  Currently, English law firms cannot set up in India and this legislation is an important step in the opening up of the legal services market.  It enable Indian law firms to form limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”) with no limit on partner numbers and will allow foreign firms to form their own India LLPs.  Ordinary partnerships will continue to be limited to a maximum of 20 partners. 

Of course, full liberalisation is still some way off and further work is needed for a proper opening up of the legal market.  During her visit, Caroline had the opportunity to lobby directly to the head of the Indian bar council on this subject of liberalisation.  The fear expressed by members of the Indian bar council (which is the main representative body of lawyers in India) was that foreign lawyers would take their bread and butter work, namely litigation.  This still accounts for some 80% of Indian legal work.  Caroline and her fellow delegates tried to reassure members of the Indian bar that far from wishing to engage in litigation in India, the focus of English law firms was on cross border transactional work.  Indeed, Caroline had the opportunity in Delhi of sitting in on several cases in the both the High court and the Supreme court – an experience which was sufficient to put her off from litigating in India albeit that it was fascinating. 

The opening up of Buller Jeffries, Delhi, is therefore still some way off!

Caroline Coates