India Disputes Mumbai

Perspective on issues in Indian and cross-border transactions with particular focus on London, Singapore & The Middle East

1&2 December 2023 - In Person | Sofitel Mumbai BKC

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Advisory Board

Sushmita Gandhi
Partner
IndusLaw (India)

Sushmita has 15 years of extensive experience of handling a variety of commercial disputes including insolvency & restructuring matters and arbitrations including construction contracts arbitrations. She has advised lenders, borrowers, advisors and other intermediaries in complex local and cross-border financing transactions across major debt financing disciplines.

Sushmita has handled a number of domestic and international arbitrations, representing clients in institutional arbitrations in India and abroad and she has also advised on corporate and commercial disputes, appearing before a variety of forums, courts and tribunals. In particular, she has expertise in handling proceedings against some of the biggest debt defaulters in India. Sushmita has extensive experience in insolvency litigation and does a lot of advisory work relating to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

Sushmita has been enlisted as a Recommended Lawyer by Legal500 Asia Pacific edition, 2022 in the field of Litigation, white collar crimes and Insolvency and Bankruptcy. She was recognized as one of the top individual lawyers in the field of Arbitration and Insolvency and Bankruptcy in the very first edition of Forbes-Legiquest Legal Powerlist 2020. LexTalk World Forum awarded Sushmita the “Top 50 legal Falcons” in 2020. Sushmita has also been nominated by RSG for its “EmergingLeader50” 2019. She regularly features in client recommendations given to several legal research journals such as Legal500, ALB, IFLR and RSG. Sushmita has authored articles and publications on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, Arbitration and Conciliation Act, Banking laws etc. which are published by leading journals such as India Business Law Journal, SCC Online; Manupatra and Mondaq. She is a regular speaker on the subject at various events and summit and her views on various legal issues are often published in leading newspapers.


Sushmita Gandhi
Sushmita Gandhi Partner
IndusLaw (India)
Prashan Patel
Partner
Grant Thornton (London)

I am a director in our insolvency and asset recovery team dealing with contentious assignments. I specialise in global asset tracing, recovery, and enforcement, where I use insolvency and civil procedures as powerful tools to recover hidden and misappropriated assets to maximise financial recoveries for stakeholders.

My work typically involves multiple onshore/offshore insolvency appointments – liquidations, bankruptcies, and receiverships – where I coordinate enforcement and asset recovery strategy across multiple jurisdictions, including India, the Middle East, the UK, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, the Offshore Financial Centres, and the US.

I have extensive experience working with Indian and Middle Eastern financial institutions, corporates, and lawyers, in enforcing non-performing loans, judgments, and arbitration awards. I often act on a contingent basis where I share the costs and rewards of recovery.

I have recently been working with Grant Thornton India to help grow and develop its asset recovery and insolvency business in light of recent legislative changes in India. The recovery of assets related to Indian fraud or bad debts outside of the jurisdiction is a particular interest and focus.

Outside of work, I enjoy reading, hiking and spending time outdoors.


Prashan Patel
Prashan Patel Partner
Grant Thornton (London)
Ritin Rai SA
Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India
7 KBW (India)

Admitted

1995 India; 1999 New York

Designated a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court of India – March 2019

Ritin started his career in 1998 as an Associate in the Business Practice Group of Jones Day in its Cleveland office before relocating to India to practice corporate law.  He transitioned to a disputes practice in 2004 when he joined the Chambers of Ashok H. Desai, a Senior Advocate and formerly Attorney General for India. Ritin has been designated a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court of India in 2019.

Ritin brings his experience as a corporate lawyer to bear on a variety of commercial and regulatory disputes, including in company, competition, insolvency and telecommunications law.  His practice spans appearances in the Supreme Court of India, the High Court of Delhi, the commercial tribunals situate in Delhi and before arbitral tribunals.

Ritin accepts instructions to appear both as counsel and as arbitrator in arbitral disputes, and as an Indian law expert in courts or forums outside India. Ritin is on SIAC’s panel of arbitrators.  He is a member of the ICC India Arbitration Group and the India Rapporteur for the 3rd Edition of the “ICC Guide to National Procedures for Recognition and Enforcement of Awards under the New York Convention”.

Ritin also teaches a course on the practice of commercial disputes at the Jindal Global Law School where he has been appointed Honorary Adjunct Professor of Law and Distinguished Professor of Legal Practice.

(India)


Ritin Rai SA
Ritin Rai SA Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India
7 KBW (India)
Priyank Srivastava
Director
Duane Morris & Selvam LLP (Singapore)

Priyank Srivastava
Priyank Srivastava Director
Duane Morris & Selvam LLP (Singapore)
Marc Keidan
Partner
Keidan Harrison (London)

Marc co-founded specialist London-based disputes and insolvency law firm Keidan Harrison LLP in May 2020, having previously co-founded successful disputes boutique Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP back in 2009. He started his career at international law firm Simmons & Simmons and has over two decades of international disputes experience. He is recognised by the leading legal directories as being one of the UK’s top disputes lawyers, Chambers & Partners describes him as “a great strategist”, and the latest edition of The Legal 500 says he is ‘’an exceptionally dedicated, inventive lawyer’’, with previous editions describing him as “a no-nonsense lawyer who gets results for his clients” who has a “willingness to get stuck into difficult fights”.

Marc leads Keidan Harrison’s India-disputes team and has worked on substantial cross-border India-related cases for many years, acting for Indian nigh net worth individuals and corporates including (successfully) in a notable and widely reported case for IIFC UK. He visits India at least annually to see clients, friends and colleagues, and has since 2019 been active in initiating and helping to arrange India-disputes related conferences in London.

Marc advises on high value commercial and financial litigation and international arbitration across a range of industry sectors (including financial and professional, IT/tech, commercial property, manufacturing, mining and commodities). His expertise includes commercial agency and joint venture disputes, civil fraud and asset tracing cases, as well as partnership/LLP, shareholder and corporate disputes. He is experienced in bringing and defending claims for interim relief, including worldwide asset freezing injunctions.

Marc’s international arbitration work includes substantial cases across a range of industry sectors, including energy, mining and other commodities, as well as bringing and defending challenges to arbitration awards in the English Court (under ss68 and 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996).


Marc Keidan
Marc Keidan Partner
Keidan Harrison (London)
Tariq Khan
Registrar
IAMC Hyderabad (India)

Tariq Khan is a seasoned disputes practitioner having over 10 years of experience. He was appointed as the Partner of a prominent law firm Advani and Co., New Delhi in 2021 and is currently the Registrar of International Arbitration and Mediation Centre (IAMC), Hyderabad. He is also an arbitrator, trained mediator and member of the chartered institute of Arbitrators (CIArb,UK). Over the course of his career, Tariq has been involved in more than 50 complex and high-stakes arbitrations both domestic and international, across a variety of industries including construction, infrastructure, energy, joint-venture and intellectual property and worked with clients from around the world. Tariq is a Professor (Adjunct) at NALSAR University of Law and has authored several books including commentary on Indian Arbitration Law and Law Relating to Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. He has more than 60 publications on arbitration to his credit and has been recognised as an arbitration expert by SCCOnline. Tariq has conducted several training programme for arbitrators, mediators, IAS officers, corporate counsel, company secretaries, and he is a resource person in various national and international institutions. He is also serving as an advisor to several ADR societies and is a member of the Scrutiny Committee of the Confederation of Alumni for National Law Universities (CAN) Foundation. Tariq has been listed in the Forbes Legal Powerlist, 2020-2021 as one of the top individual lawyers and the youngest lawyer listed in BW (Business World) Legal 40 under 40, 2020. He also featured in Fortune 500 (India) Magazine for authoring the best-selling book ‘On the Rise’


Tariq Khan
Tariq Khan Registrar
IAMC Hyderabad (India)

Featured Speakers

Justice L. Nageswara Rao
Supreme Court of India

Justice Nageswara Rao enrolled in the Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh in 1982 and practised in the Andhra Pradesh District courts (1982-1984), Andhra Pradesh High Court (1985-1994) and the Supreme Court (1995-2016). In 2000, he was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Andhra Pradesh High Court. He served two terms as Additional Solicitor General of India (2003-2004 and 2013-2014). 

Justice Rao defended J. Jayalalitha in the Disproportionate Assets case before the Karnataka High Court. He also appeared for the state of Tamil Nadu and Christian Medical College in the NEET case before the Supreme Court.

He served on the three-member Supreme Court-appointed Mudgal Committee to conduct an independent inquiry into allegations of corruption and unfair means in the Indian Premier League cricket matches.

On May 13th 2016, he became the seventh person elevated directly from the Bar to the Supreme Court.


Justice L. Nageswara Rao
Justice L. Nageswara Rao Supreme Court of India
Srishti Jain
Managing Associate
Keidan Harrison (London)

Srishti is a commercial disputes lawyer with a focus on international arbitration. Srishti has a particular interest in and focus on India-related disputes and she continues to develop and maintain connections in the region.

Srishti’s practice focuses on complex, cross-border, high-value commercial disputes including both litigation and international arbitration. Srishti has considerable experience in advising clients (both corporates and high net worth individuals) globally on contractual and shareholder/joint venture disputes, fraud and asset tracing matters, insolvency issues, interim relief applications, jurisdictional matters and enforcement actions. She has acted as counsel for multinational clients in commercial disputes before various courts and tribunals in India and the US as well as in ad hoc and institutional arbitrations under various arbitral rules (including the ICC, SIAC, LCIA and UNCITRAL rules). In addition, Srishti has substantial experience in advising and representing investors and states in investment treaty arbitrations under the ICSID rules.

Srishti’s experience spans a number of sectors, including banking, mining, oil and gas, energy, telecommunications, construction and infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and hospitality. Her work has included disputes across various jurisdictions, including Africa, India, Singapore, Turkey, South Korea, Middle East, England and the Americas.

Srishti is also experienced in ADR, including both mediations and without prejudice negotiations. Prior to joining Keidan Harrison LLP, Srishti worked at the London office of LALIVE, Debevoise & Plimpton and Three Crowns. Before moving to London in 2017, she was a disputes associate at Trilegal, a leading law firm in India and Stokes Wagner, a boutique disputes firm in New York. She is admitted to practice in England & Wales, New York and India.


 Srishti Jain
Srishti Jain Managing Associate
Keidan Harrison (London)
Sameer Abhyankar
Partner
Innovatus Law (India)

Sameer Abhyanker
Sameer Abhyankar Partner
Innovatus Law (India)
Prateek Bagaria
Partner
Singularity Legal (India, UAE & Singapore)

Prateek Bagaria is a specialist practitioner in international disputes.

He brings forth over a decade of experience in complex commercial cross-border disputes with strong focus on international arbitration, complex litigation, white-collar crime litigation, global enforcement and recovery.

He also represents athletes & sports federations in matters of anti doping and other disputes. Legal 500 describes him as "responsive and dynamic" and "a very driven individual and a good lawyer who handles clients well".

He is licensed to plead before the courts in India and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). A prominent speaker across leading forums and a sought after advisor & thought leader in matters across the globe, his robust legal knowledge coupled with a unique approach to problem solving continues to be recognized widely.


Prateek Bagaria
Prateek Bagaria Partner
Singularity Legal (India, UAE & Singapore)
Kingshuk Banerjee
Partner
Khaitan & Co (India)

Kingshuk Banerjee is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution practice group of Khaitan & Co. He is currently based in Mumbai, India.

Kingshuk acts for and advises clients in a variety of commercial, corporate and contractual disputes. He has represented clients in disputes arising out of M&A transactions, shareholders’ and joint venture agreements, private investments, international trade, construction contracts and real estate transactions.

Kingshuk primarily focusses on arbitrations and related proceedings in Indian and foreign courts. He regularly appears before domestic and international arbitral tribunals. He has led and appeared in arbitrations administered under the rules of SIAC, ICC, LCIA, SCMA, WIPO as well as ad-hoc arbitrations.

Kingshuk is regarded as a leading arbitration practitioner in India. He has received the Lexology Client Choice Award for his arbitration practice in 2021 and 2022. He is also ranked and recommended by Chambers & Partners and Legal 500. Most recently, Kingshuk has been recognised as a ‘Litigation Star’ by Benchmark Litigation.


Kingshuk Banerjee
Kingshuk Banerjee Partner
Khaitan & Co (India)
Tine Abraham
Partner
Trilegal (India)

Tine Abraham is a Partner in the Delhi office of Trilegal and specialises in Commercial Disputes. She regularly represents Indian and multinational clients in complex disputes in institutional and ad-hoc arbitrations and before various courts and tribunals in India. Her expertise has been sought after in areas ranging from infrastructure contracts, investments by foreign firms in India, and regulatory issues to financial mismanagement, shareholder disputes and insolvency proceedings. She has advised clients on disputes pertaining to media rights licensing, supply contracts, infrastructure contracts and equity/debt investment contracts.


Tine Abraham
Tine Abraham Partner
Trilegal (India)
Rajat Malhotra
Partner
Laware Associates (India)

Rajat Malhotra
Rajat Malhotra Partner
Laware Associates (India)
Amit Jajoo
Partner
IndusLaw (India)

Amit spearheads Dispute Resolution practice of INDUSLAW in Mumbai. He has extensive experience in complex civil, commercial and criminal litigation.

Amit was ranked by Chambers & Partners under disputes practitioners in Mumbai. He has been recognised as a ‘Notable Practitioner’ in the Dispute Resolution practice by Asialaw 2023. The Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2023, 2022 & 2021 recognised Amit for Dispute Resolution, Intellectual Property, White Collar Crime and Restructuring & Insolvency. Asian Legal Business recognised Amit as one of the ‘Top Disputes Lawyers of India’ in 2022, 2021 & 2020 and also featured him as ‘India’s Super 50 Lawyers’ in 2021. RSG India, 2019 Report recognised Amit for Dispute Resolution.

He joined the bar in 2004 and has led several litigations representing HNI, corporate and international clients, financial companies before the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts across the country. He has represented many corporates and their directors contesting the liability imposed by Enforcement Directorate, SEBI and other regulators.

The nature of his practice demands experience not only in the courtroom but also risk management and strategizing to minimize potential criminal and civil liability and committed advocacy in pursuit of justice.

Amit specialises in promoter and shareholder disputes, insolvency and restructuring, white collar crime and has also been involved in several cutting edge IPR related litigation including some landmark cases. He has handled various domestic and international arbitrations, both institutional and ad-hoc.

He has not only handled matters as an attorney but also appears as an arguing counsel in the Courts and Tribunals. He also regularly works with the leading senior counsels across the country. He is also involved in pro bono legal services and regularly assists under privileged clients.

Amit has vast expertise in criminal matters, including some high-profile white-collar crimes. Added to such experience in dispute resolution, Amit has also been rendering various opinions on property related matters and has extensive experience in handling matters before SEBI, RBI and other Tribunals and regulators. He has litigated several employer-employee disputes enforcing the confidentiality and non-compete/non-solicitation agreements.

Amit is a regular speaker at events and summits. He has also contributed to articles on relevant legal issues.

Amit has graduated in Commerce from Sydenham College of Commerce & Economics and Completed his Law from Government Law College.

Prior to joining INDUSLAW, Amit was a Partner at Paras Kuhad and Associates in Mumbai and a senior partner at HSA Advocates.


Amit Jajoo
Amit Jajoo Partner
IndusLaw (India)
Neeti Sachdeva
Secretary-General and Registrar
Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (India)

Prior to joining MCIA, Neeti has extensively worked in the field of International Commercial Arbitration, both as a private practitioner representing clients and as an administrator, facilitating the dispute resolution procedure. Neeti’s past professional experience includes working with some of the top Indian Law Firms like Trilegal and Economic Laws Practice. She has also worked at the International Arbitration Department of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Paris Office, besides being judicial clerk for Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Muralidhar of Delhi High Court.

Neeti has also worked with LCIA India as its First Deputy Registrar. She is also active in the academic circle and is an academic advisor at KIIT Law School, Orissa. Neeti is also a guest faculty at HNLU Raipur and at National Law University, New Delhi. Ms Sachdeva has obtained a Masters in International Commercial Arbitration from Stockholm University, and has also undertaken a course in Private International Law from the Hague Academy of International Law, The Hague. She is regularly invited as a speaker at various conferences and conducts workshops in the field of arbitration. She is an office bearer at the IBA Arbitration Committee and regularly sits as an Arbitrator too.


Neeti Sachdeva
Neeti Sachdeva Secretary-General and Registrar
Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (India)
Zal Andhyarujina SA
Barrister
Fountain Court (London)

He has a large and diverse commercial practice with a focus on cross border disputes. He has appeared in many important commercial disputes. Zal’s areas of expertise include international arbitration, banking, financial services, commercial law, company law, enforcement of foreign awards and decrees and restructuring and insolvency.

He practices in the Bombay High Court, The Supreme Court of India and various tribunals including the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).


Zal Andhyarujina SA
Zal Andhyarujina SA Barrister
Fountain Court (London)
Meenakshi Arora
Senior Advocate
Supreme Court of India (India)

Senior Advocate, Ms. Meenakshi Arora, has been practising in the Supreme Court since 1985, and is a senior designated counsel. She brings over 29 years of experience and experitise in the field of litigation and is considered one of the leading counsels in the country.

In 1984, Ms. Arora got enrolled at bar and since 1986 has been practising law at Supreme Court of India. In 1989, she qualified and became an Advocates-on-Record at the Supreme Court. She had also, for a brief period, worked with Goodwin and Soble, an international law firm based in Washington DC. She was also a partner at an Indian law firm Hemant Sahai and Associates.

In 2010, her name was recommended by a judges' collegium for elevation as a judge of the Delhi High Court however she later withdrew her consent from the judgeship. She was also the standing counsel for the Election Commission of India. In September 2013, full bench of Supreme Court headed by then Chief Justice of India P. Sathasivam designated her as a senior counsel/senior advocate being only the fifth woman to be designated so.

She was one the members of the drafting committee which drafted the regulations, The Gender Sensitisation & Sexual Harassment of Women at the Supreme Court of India (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal), Regulations, 2013 to protect and provide greivance redressal to women lawyers from sexual harassment at the Supreme Court.


Meenakshi Arora
Meenakshi Arora Senior Advocate
Supreme Court of India (India)
Sanjay Nambiar
Senior Group President & General Counsel
YES Bank (India)

Founded in 2004, Yes Bank has grown to become India’s fifth largest private bank. Sanjay Nambiar joined the company in late 2010 and, according to nominators, has shown ‘masterful judgement of the legal issues it faces’, while taking ‘a brave but firm stance on the risks facing the banking industry’. Nambiar joined Yes Bank just as the wave of litigations following the 2008 financial crisis was reaching its peak, and oversaw the resolution of these claims, assisted by senior team members. His previous roles have included senior positions at ICICI Bank, real estate developer IDBI, and Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation. His six years at Yes Bank have been marked by a rethinking of the legal team’s relationship with the business and an overhaul of its processes for identifying and managing risk. He is, says one nominator, a ‘supreme legal organiser who encourages his team to advise the business in the way that he advises it: with great tact, thought and insight’.


Sanjay Nambiar
Sanjay Nambiar Senior Group President & General Counsel
YES Bank (India)
Sarbjit Singh Chopra
Managing Director
Duane Morris & Selvam LLP (Singapore)

Sarbjit Singh Chopra is Managing Director of Duane Morris & Selvam LLP, the Joint Law Venture between Duane Morris LLP and Selvam LLC. Mr. Singh is concurrently a Director of Selvam LLC, a Singapore law entity, where he heads the dispute resolution and construction practices. He focuses his practice in the areas of commercial litigation and arbitration. He has handled a wide range of cases from construction disputes to defamation suits. Mr. Singh has been cited in The Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2022 edition as a recommended lawyer in Singapore Dispute Resolution.

A client described Mr. Singh as “an experienced litigator before the Supreme Court of Singapore, has the ability to handle complex facts with ease. His mild mannered nature, calm demeanor and genuine care of the client makes him approachable and reassures the client. His capability in Court cannot simply be expressed in words and was indeed a treat to watch. It was a real pleasure working with him and I hope to work with him on future matters.”

Another client describes his experience: “I was recommended to Mr. Sarbjit Singh of Selvam LLC after using two other law firms. I am very satisfied with his and his team’s services. He is understanding and caring and I am very thankful for the emotional support he showed me when I was under tremendous stress. He took care of my worries as if they were his own. I am very grateful for his assistance.”

Mr. Singh has acted in numerous matters in the High Court and the Court of Appeal over the years. He has also undertaken substantial projects for various clients and these include involvement in tenders for structural projects (e.g., The Mass Rapid Transport (MRT), telecommunication contracts and construction of power plants) and matters related to joint ventures. He has conducted numerous arbitration, mediation, adjudication and Court proceedings.

Mr. Singh was admitted as a Barrister-at-Law (Gray’s Inn) and has been in practice as an Advocate & Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Singapore since 1984. He has successfully completed the course in arbitration law and practice conducted by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and Singapore Institute of Arbitrators. Mr. Singh can speak English, Malay and Punjabi.


Sarbjit Singh Chopra
Sarbjit Singh Chopra Managing Director
Duane Morris & Selvam LLP (Singapore)
Dhananjay Kumar
Partner
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (India)

Dhananjay Kumar advises creditors, acquirers and office holders on the entire range of restrcucturing and insolvency matters including special situation financings, security enforcement, and recovery of loans.

He also has deep experstise in dealing with stressed debt trading and asset reconstruction matters such as the sale by YES Bank of its stressed loan portfolio. He has been involved in high stake insolvency matters such as Essar Steel, Jet Airways, Videocon Group, Ruchi Soya, Reliance Capital and Srei Group.


Dhananjay Kumar
Dhananjay Kumar Partner
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (India)
Naresh Thacker
Partner
Economic Laws Practice (India)

Naresh has over 20 years of experience in litigation, international arbitration and mediation; particularly in large infrastructure project arbitrations and post M&A arbitrations, corporate litigation, commercial disputes, regulatory and tax disputes and white-collar crimes. Over the years he has handled a number international and national arbitration cases as counsel under the Rules of ICC, LCIA, SIAC, UNCITRAL, Swiss Rules and Ad-Hoc proceedings for both domestic as well as multinational clients.

Recognitions:

Benchmark Litigation's Asia Pacific 2021 Edition: Litigation Star

Top Individual Lawyers: India Forbes 2020 Legal Powerlist 2020

(India)


Naresh Thacker
Naresh Thacker Partner
Economic Laws Practice (India)
Sumanta Ghosh
HEAD – LEGAL LTIDPL INDVIT SERVICES LIMITED (INVESTMENT MANAGER TO INDINFRAVIT TRUST) (INDIA)
IndInfravit Trust (India)
  • Sumanta is a corporate & commercial legal counsel with over 15 years in the Indian infrastructure & energy space comprising well-rounded exposure to both transactional / advisory work as well as litigation & international arbitration including advocacy before Indian courts, appellate tribunal for electricity & electricity regulatory commissions.

 

  • With significant in-house experience as a business partner, Sumanta blends technical lawyering with a strong commercial approach, and has the experience of dealing with domestic & global business development initiatives, M&A, operations throughout the life cycle of infra projects, technological collaboration, development of sustainable assets like Integrated Renewable Energy Projects, setting up of JVs, modelling power sale & revenue mechanisms, asset management & engineering services, carrying out risk & feasibility analysis, and having handled disputes, and regulatory as well as transactional issues, in the fields of roads & highways, solar, wind, hydro, energy storage solutions, hydrogen, electricity mobility solutions, satellite launch vehicles & sustainable urban infrastructure ecosystem projects.

 

  • Sumanta brings the experience of having represented / advised in the past (as a legal counsel) government authorities, urban local bodies, developers, contractors, investors & lenders in the context of bidding for, development, financing, acquisition &/or disposal of, projects dealing with power generation & transmission, water & waste, mining, cement & steel manufacturing, petrochemicals, roads & highways, ports, urban mass rapid transport & railways, in drafting of key sector specific legislations as well as with high-stake & high value litigation & dispute resolution.

Sumanta Ghosh
Sumanta Ghosh HEAD – LEGAL LTIDPL INDVIT SERVICES LIMITED (INVESTMENT MANAGER TO INDINFRAVIT TRUST) (INDIA)
IndInfravit Trust (India)
Gopal Subramanium
Senior Advocate
3 Verulam Buildings (India)

Gopal Subramanium is a Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court of India. In 1993, he was designated Senior Advocate suo moto by the Supreme Court, one of the youngest in India’s history to receive the designation.  Gopal has served as Solicitor General of India, Additional Solicitor General of India, and as Chairman of India’s Bar Council. He is an Associate Member of 3 Verulam Buildings and a Judge at the Qatar International Court. Gopal was recently made a Foundation Fellow at Somerville College, Oxford and is a Member of the University’s Chancellors Court of Benefactors.

In 2018, Gopal was unanimously elected an Honorary Master of the Bench by the Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn, London. In 2009, he received the National Law Day Award for Outstanding Jurist from the President of India.

Gopal is regularly engaged as counsel in high value commercial disputes before Indian courts, and as both arbitrator and counsel in ICC, SIAC and LCIA arbitrations.


Gopal Subramanium SA
Gopal Subramanium Senior Advocate
3 Verulam Buildings (India)
Rajendra Barot
Senior Partner
AZB (India)

With over 27 years’ experience, Rajendra Barot heads the Firm’s Dispute Resolution practice. Rajendra has advised and represented clients in institutional and ad–hoc arbitrations seated in and outside India. He has appeared in various fora, including the Supreme Court and several High Courts across India, on corporate commercial disputes, enforcement and challenge petitions for arbitration (domestic, international and BIT) awards, monetary suits, administrative writs, maritime law disputes, insolvency laws, intellectual property disputes and regulatory & securities law matters. Rajendra has advised leading global PE Funds, MNCs, insurance companies and global leaders in the telecom and mining sectors. He also advises clients on asset tracing exercises, forensic investigations and white–collar crime matters. Additionally, Rajendra has advised insurance companies, particularly in the life insurance, non–life insurance and health insurance spaces, on their India entry strategies


Rajendra Barot
Rajendra Barot Senior Partner
AZB (India)
Sharan Jagtiani
Senior Counsel
Senior Counsel (India) and 39 Essex Chambers (England & Wales)

Sharan appears primarily in the Bombay High Court and regularly in domestic and international arbitrations. He also appears before other tribunals such as the National Company Law Tribunal and the Securities Appellate Tribunal. Sharan was designated as a Senior Advocate in 2020 and has achieved this distinction at the very early age of 42.

He has been frequently appointed by the Bombay High Court as amicus curiae to assist in matters of public importance or where substantial questions of law have arisen. Sharan has about 14 amicus curiae appointments on various questions of public / writ law and commercial law to his credit.

As of July 2023, Sharan has close to 140 reported judgments to his credit as arguing counsel and about 252 reported judgments in total (excluding arbitral awards). These span across varying fields of public/constitutional law, civil and commercial laws, personal laws and environmental disputes etc. Sharan also regularly appears as counsel in international arbitrations seated in various jurisdictions.

Sharan has also been appointed as an arbitrator in various commercial disputes by the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court.


Sharan Jagtiani
Sharan Jagtiani Senior Counsel
Senior Counsel (India) and 39 Essex Chambers (England & Wales)
Parveen Arora
Partner
BTG Legal (India)

Parveen is Partner and Head of the Energy & Infrastructure Practice at BTG Legal. He brings with him almost two and half decades of rich experience in many roles, including the legal, commercial, regulatory and management activities of large infrastructure, power, renewable and manufacturing companies. Apart from his specialization in commercial contracting for the energy, renewable and infrastructure sectors like high value and capital intensive EPC, turnkey, O&M contracts, he also has in-depth expertise in handling litigation, financing, project construction and regulatory matters. In the past, he has led the legal and secretarial department of a London Stock Exchange (LSE) -listed entity, which was the first Indian company to explore Coal Bed Methane from a large government awarded block and got its GDRs (Global Depositary Receipts) listed on AIM, LSE.

Prior to joining BTG Legal, Parveen was the Director - Legal and General Counsel of Vestas Wind Technology, a global leader in manufacturing and supply of wind turbines. He is also a fellow member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India.


Parveen Arora
Parveen Arora Partner
BTG Legal (India)
Ed Palmer
Director
Greyhawk

Since co-founding Greyhawk in 2012, Edward has been the lead investigator in over 100 cross-border disputes and enforcement actions in the context of investor-state arbitration, civil fraud, contentious insolvency and commercial litigation.

Recent cases include acting for a state to identify over $500m stolen by a corrupt official; identifying enforcement options for an investor with an ICSID award against a sovereign; acting for creditors pursuing the personal assets of directors following a $200m banking fraud; and acting for a state oil company in the successful enforcement of an arbitral award against an energy group in the CIS. The majority of his work is international and often involves an offshore element


Ed Palmer
Ed Palmer Director
Greyhawk
Rupa Lakha
Partner
Charles Russell Speechlys (London)

Rupa Lakha has extensive experience in contentious construction and engineering work with experience in all forms of dispute resolution including extensive experience for key firm clients in relation to:

  • Claims for delay and disruption
  • Final account disputes
  • “Smash and grab” adjudications
  • Defects claims

Rupa acts on behalf of all parts of the supply chain including major developers, main contractors and specialist sub-contractors including Derwent London Plc, Howard de Walden, London and Regional, The Dorchester Collection, Bouygues, Vascroft Contractors Limited and Permasteelisa.

She has experience across both domestic and international projects including, hotels, commercial offices and infrastructure such as tunnels and bridges.

As well as dispute resolution, Rupa focuses on dispute avoidance and risk management. Rupa has an energetic, pragmatic and commercial approach to matters that consistently delivers strong results.

Rupa has been highly commended for her work and expertise and is regularly quoted in the press. She has also been ranked in The Legal 500 ‘Next Generation Lawyers’ for Construction: contentious and non-contentious and is recognised as a ‘Future Leader in Construction’ by Who’s Who Legal. Rupa also leads on the development of the firm’s India Desk, a dedicated group bringing together the firm’s broad expertise to assist British Asians and Indian nationals in navigating the complex UK legal spectrum and cross border issues.

Rupa is admitted to practise in England and Wales and is a qualified mediator.


Rupa Lakha
Rupa Lakha Partner
Charles Russell Speechlys (London)
Ashish Chugh
Legal Principal
Baker McKenzie (Singapore)

Ashish Chugh
Ashish Chugh Legal Principal
Baker McKenzie (Singapore)
Naief Yahia
Partner
Al Tamimi & Company (Dubai)

Naief Yahia joined Al Tamimi & Company in 2009.  He is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution Department. Naief has been working in Dubai since 2006 with two of the local firms before he joined Al Tamimi & Company. He gained experience in various areas of practice (including: construction and commercial, banking, property and corporate related matters). He received his Bachelor of Law degree from Cairo University, English Section. Naief uses his wide knowledge of local laws, commercial and legal acumen and practical experience to the best of his abilities in conducting all commercial and civil litigation cases with the commercial reality and the clients’ interest in mind.


Naief Yahia
Naief Yahia Partner
Al Tamimi & Company (Dubai)
Neerav Merchant
Partner & Head of Disputes
Majmudar & Partners (India)

Neerav Merchant has more than 25 years of experience in dispute resolution, arbitration, litigation, enforcement of foreign judgments and awards, asset recovery, technology and telecommunication, intellectual property, employment, anti-corruption, and real property matters.


Neerav Merchant
Neerav Merchant Partner & Head of Disputes
Majmudar & Partners (India)
Thomas Rodwell
Managing Director
Rodwell Disputes Advisory

Thomas Rodwell is an experienced testifying expert and is recognised as a leading forensic accountant and business valuer. He provides economic and financial advice to clients, legal teams, and counsel in shareholder and commercial disputes. Thomas specialises in preparing expert reports for litigation and arbitration that address valuation and damages issues and receives regular instructions in respect of:

  1. the valuation of shareholdings in private companies, across a wide and diverse array of business areas, from energy, to transport, to financial services, to retail;
  2. the quantification of loss and lost profits resulting from contractual breaches; and
  3. the assessment of appropriate valuation discounts and their application to minority interests.

Thomas and his firm, Rodwell Disputes Advisory, are highly commended for the quality of their work, value for money, and expertise as an expert witness in finance and valuation. In 2023, Thomas was recognised by Chambers and Partners as a leading UK forensic accountant (Band 1). Thomas is regularly asked to speak on topics of valuation and finance in litigation and arbitration. He has published articles in many leading legal journals.

Thomas holds Masters degrees in Physics and International Relations. Between 2017 and 2020, he studied towards a PhD in Mathematics and researched the use of Artificial Intelligence techniques to model the flow of patients admitted to NHS hospitals to improve efficiency.


Thomas Rodwell
Thomas Rodwell Managing Director
Rodwell Disputes Advisory
Manish Aggarwal
Partner
Three Crowns (London)

Manish Aggarwal is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Indian advocate, and partner in the London office of Three Crowns. He has extensive experience of representing clients in both commercial and investment treaty arbitrations across a broad range of sectors (including energy, infrastructure, life sciences, telecommunications, and technology) and in arbitration-related court litigation.  Manish is consistently ranked as a leading practitioner by directories such as Who’s Who Legal and The Legal 500. He is a co-chair of the LCIA’s Young International Arbitration Group and teaches commercial and investment arbitration at law schools across the globe


Manish Aggarwal
Manish Aggarwal Partner
Three Crowns (London)
Rajat Sethi
Partner
SNR Law (India)

Rajat Sethi has primarily worked in foreign investment, joint ventures, private equity, restructuring, competition, corporate governance and regulatory matters. He has worked with P&A Law Offices and the chambers of Mr. Arun Jaitley. He has  advised Fortune 500 corporations, Indian companies and private equity firms on acquisitions and sales, investments, restructuring and exits, joint ventures and shareholder disputes, as well as Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code matters. He is recognized as a leading lawyer by Chambers Global, Chambers Asia-Pacific, The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific, IFLR1000, RSG India Report, and among India’s top 100 lawyers by India Business Law Journal.


Rajat Sethi
Rajat Sethi Partner
SNR Law (India)
Kaizad Hazari
General Counsel
The Chatterjee Group (TCG) (India)

Kaizad Hazari
Kaizad Hazari General Counsel
The Chatterjee Group (TCG) (India)
Rajagopal Venkatakrishnan
Senior Vice President
Reliance Industries Ltd (India)

Rajagopal Venkatakrishnan
Rajagopal Venkatakrishnan Senior Vice President
Reliance Industries Ltd (India)
Zarir Bharucha
Managing Partner
ZBA Advocates & Solicitors (India)

Zarir, a third-generation lawyer is a leading dispute resolution professional in India, with over 20 years’ experience and previously worked at magic circle firm, Linklaters in London. Zarir has acted in a number of ground breaking cases in the Bombay High Court and Supreme Court of India and regularly litigates international disputes in courts and tribunals throughout India. Zarir is also nominated by the LCIA as an arbitrator on India related disputes and has frequently given expert evidence in foreign arbitration and before courts outside India. Ranked in Band 1 in Chambers & Partners and Legal 500.


Zarir Bharucha
Zarir Bharucha Managing Partner
ZBA Advocates & Solicitors (India)
Michael Harrington
Principal
Control Risks (India)

Michael Harington is the principal in charge of Control Risks’ business intelligence practice in South Asia, and the regional disputes intelligence lead for Asia Pacific. Michael specializes in gathering facts and intelligence to help clients make complex business decisions, mitigate risks, and succeed during cross-border disputes. During his more than 16-year career, he has been based in India, Hong Kong and the United States. His experience includes:

  • Leading a multijurisdictional investigation into supply chains during an intellectual property dispute, culminating in an expert report and Michael’s testimony at an arbitration tribunal.
  • Mapping global assets of debtors and gathering intelligence to provide clients with sufficient leverage to reach a favourable settlement or outcome in arbitration.
  • Providing assessments of the intentions, motivations, and influence of public and private sector stakeholders in India, to foreign companies facing regulatory and political headwinds in the country.

Michael Harrington
Michael Harrington Principal
Control Risks (India)
Sanjay Kaushik
Managing Director
Netrika (India)

Mr. Sanjay Kaushik, Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) USA, FCIISCM, CATS, CCPS, CFAP, ARVP ASIS International Region 13 A, Former Chairman ASIS International, Chapter 207, India and Southeast Asia leader in Singapore for Netrika Consulting. Sanjay is a renowned and celebrated expert in digital forensics & incident response, cybersecurity, e-discovery, and litigation support, and has led a broad range of matters including regulatory investigations, high-stakes investigations into data leakage, cross-border disputes, government inquiries, bribery & corruption, cyber risk, white collar crime, and other employee-related misconduct. and counterfeit Strategies, with almost three decades of incredible experience, including working as Chief Operating Officer of one of the largest Risk Consulting Firms. He is part of the IPR Committee of ASSOCHAM and the FICCI Homeland Security Committee.


Sanjay Kaushik
Sanjay Kaushik Managing Director
Netrika (India)
SHWETHA BIDHURI
DIRECTOR & HEAD, SOUTH ASIA
SIAC (India)

As the Director & Head of South Asia at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, Ms Shwetha Bidhuri oversees SIAC’s activities in South Asia, works with regional stakeholders on dispute resolution matters, and facilitates dissemination of necessary information on arbitration at SIAC and in Singapore.

Shwetha enrolled as an Advocate in 2007 and holds a Master of Laws degree. Prior to joining SIAC, Shwetha worked in the dispute resolution practice of a leading law firm in New Delhi for nearly a decade on commercial litigation cases and a number of  investment treaty arbitrations involving India. Shwetha has worked on many leading cases which have contributed to the development of law affecting global companies. She is also an expert faculty on International Arbitration at NALSAR, Hyderabad


SHWETHA BIDHURI
SHWETHA BIDHURI DIRECTOR & HEAD, SOUTH ASIA
SIAC (India)
Avinash Pradhan
Deputy Head, International Arbitration Co-Head, South Asia Desk Partner, Rajah & Tann Singapore Partner, Christopher & Lee Ong
Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP

Receiving plaudits from Who’s Who Legal for his ‘superb advocacy skills and ability to explain complex concepts easily’, Avinash has wide-ranging experience in international arbitration, both institutional and ad hoc. He was recognised in the ALB Asia Rising Stars Singapore List 2022. He has also been recognised by Best Lawyers International and Asialaw Profiles for his abilities, while Legal 500 records that Avinash ‘thinks around corners to chase down every avenue of attack’.

Avinash’s experience encompasses a broad spectrum of commercial disputes, including banking, corporate finance, hospitality, M&A, joint venture and shareholder disputes. Avinash also has extensive experience of disputes in the construction, infrastructure & energy sectors. He is an accredited specialist for building and construction law, under the Singapore Academy of Law’s Specialist Accreditation Scheme. Avinash is also familiar with the techniques for dealing with cross-border disputes and disputes involving a conflict between international arbitration

proceedings and court litigation.


Avinash Pradhan
Avinash Pradhan Deputy Head, International Arbitration Co-Head, South Asia Desk Partner, Rajah & Tann Singapore Partner, Christopher & Lee Ong
Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP
Samit Shukla
Partner
DSK Legal (India)

Samit is a keen observer of the evolution of the law regulating real estate, private equity, securities and corporate laws in India. He has a rich experience in advising host of clients in different jurisdictions relating to real estate, corporate, infrastructure, environment, securities and private equity litigations He has been part of several high profile corporate battles including various leveraged buyout transactions & exits.


Samit Shukla
Samit Shukla Partner
DSK Legal (India)
DK Singh
Managing Partner
KBH (Dubai)

DK Singh
DK Singh Managing Partner
KBH (Dubai)
Sara Sundaram
Partner
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas

Sara Sundaram is a Partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. She focuses on the areas of disputes, internal investigations and compliance training, white-collar crimes, corporate and financial investigations, fintech and financial matters and international sanctions. She has assisted and advised several foreign investors, corporates and financial institutions on anti-corruption, anti-bribery issues, anti-money laundering, sanctions violations, and serious fraud investigations Sara advises multinational corporations and financial institutions on a wide range of cross border issues including regulatory compliance, and setting up their payments operation in India. She regularly advises several foreign and domestic clients on AML/ABAC compliance, regulatory compliance and trade sanctions and has handled internal investigations into compliance violations and whistle-blower complaints for corporations and financial institutions. She has considerable expertise in corporate governance, international sanctions, and international fraud related issues and regulatory compliance issues and financial crimes and Fintech.


Sara Sundaram
Sara Sundaram Partner
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas
Amit Kumar Jha
Executive Director
Grant Thornton Bharat LLP (India)

Amit is a Chartered Accountant having experience in advising clients on Financial and Operational Restructuring;  Interim management , business process improvement and Turnaround services, standard operating procedures, Bid advisory and Due Diligence reviews (financial), and Insolvency.

 

Amit has been involved in high stake insolvency matters across multiple industry verticals such as Aviation, Manufacturing, Metal & Mining, Textile, EPC & Real Estate, Healthcare etc.

 

Amit is a member of INSOL India


Amit Kumar Jha
Amit Kumar Jha Executive Director
Grant Thornton Bharat LLP (India)
Ishita Sharan
Head of Legal
National Asset Reconstruction Co Ltd (India)

Ishita Sharan has been appointed the Head of Legal at National Asset Reconstruction Co Ltd (NARCL). With over two decades of experience in acquisition and resolution of stressed assets, Sharan is a graduate of the ILS Law College. 

Sharan's expertise lies in ensuring maximization of value for all stakeholders through various mechanisms like restructuring, settlement and enforcement under SARFAESI. She also has extensive experience in legal due diligence for the acquisition of single asset and portfolio of distressed corporate, SME and Retail (secured) assets, including debt aggregation, which is critical to protect investor interest and mitigate risk with respect to stressed asset investments.

Before joining NARCL, Sharan served as the Head - Legal at Asset Reconstruction Company (India) Limited for almost four years. Her appointment at NARCL is expected to bolster the company's legal team and help it deliver value to its stakeholders.


Ishita Sharan
Ishita Sharan Head of Legal
National Asset Reconstruction Co Ltd (India)
Abhishek Sinha
Deputy Head-Retail Litigation
ICICI Bank Limited (India)

Abhishek Sinha
Abhishek Sinha Deputy Head-Retail Litigation
ICICI Bank Limited (India)
SIDDHANT KANT
Partner
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co (India)

SIDDHANT KANT
SIDDHANT KANT Partner
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co (India)

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