Government-level discussions with bar councils across the country on the opening up of India’s legal market to international law firms continued in September.
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“We are consulting the Bar Council. They [the bar council] are going to have a joint meeting of the bar councils throughout the country. They want a month’s time to decide about it,” said India’s law minister, HR Bhardwaj, after inaugurating a law office in New Delhi. He also promised a “cushion package” to protect domestic law firms.
A decision could come after a proposed Limited Liability (Partnership) Bill is passed into law, possibly as early as the end of the year, reported the Udayavanai, Karnataka’s daily newspaper. The bill would allow foreign nationals to enter into limited liability partnerships as long as one partner is an Indian resident. Partnerships would be allowed in any trade, profession or occupation. The bill also seeks to allow LLPs established abroad to operate and conduct business in India.
A June 2007 survey conducted by India Business Law Journal found that 72% of legal professionals in India (lawyers in private practice and corporate counsel) support the entry of foreign firms. Many others, however, are worried about the negative effects that the foreign firms will have on India’s domestic law firms. “[Foreign firms] will capture the market,” warned Lalit Bhasin, president of the Society of Indian Law Firms.
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