Earlier, the law profession in India was normally considered a male-dominated turf. Several strong-willed females have now burst through and made their mark on the pitch. These female advocates have paved the way for future generations by breaking stereotypes and motivating a number of young females.
Introduction to India’s Corporate Law Industry and the Role of Women Lawyers
One of the most vibrant and expanding segments of India’s legal profession is the corporate law area. Businesses, corporations, and other commercial entities in India rely on this sector for legal advice and assistance. In India, corporate lawyers covers a wide variety of legal disciplines, such as corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, securities law, intellectual property law, labour and employment law, and taxation law. Corporate law specialists advise their clients critically on a variety of business operations, including contracts, compliance, conflict resolution, and risk management.
In India’s corporate law sector, the position of women attorneys has significantly changed over time. Corporate law was no exception to the historical underrepresentation of women in the legal field. However, there has been a growing trend in the business in recent years towards gender diversity, with more women entering and succeeding in this sector.
The rise in the number of women studying law in India is one of the causes of this change. Women made up roughly 30% of all law students in India in 2019, according to a study by the Bar Council of India. As more women shatter stereotypes and enter the legal field, this figure is anticipated to increase further in the years to come.
Top Female Corporate Lawyers in India: Overview and Background
Preeti Balwani:
(General Counsel, India – The Kraft Heinz Company)
Balwani’s career began in private practice where she worked for a decade, focusing on corporate M&A, private equity, and other financial laws. In 2016, she transitioned to in-house counselling by joining Welspun Group. At The Kraft Heinz Company, where she joined in 2017 as a general counsel, Balwani’s responsibilities include corporate and governmental affairs, legal and regulatory functions, and corporate secretarial work. She is also responsible for upholding the company’s ethics and compliances. Under Balwani’s leadership, the company conducted its first-ever company-wide audit, and she led an investigation that exposed a series of distributor malpractices following an anonymous complaint call. Since Balwani’s arrival, the company has been able to save a considerable amount on litigation matters by reducing legal vendors and closing pending cases.
Vidyut Gulati:
(General Counsel & Director, Legal – Bharti Airtel)
After completing her studies at Campus Law Center, Delhi University, Miss Gulati began her career with Dua Associates and later worked at Amarchand Mangaldas for over 8 years. During her time there, she handled complex M&A matters, multi-party negotiations, and transactions involving private and public sector companies across various industries such as oil and gas, media, real estate, and travel.
In 2016, she started her in-house career at Cairin Oil and Gas before moving to Bharti Enterprises (Bharti Airtel Group) in 2017 as the Director of the legal team. She was later appointed as the General Counsel of the company in 2019, where she focuses on the group’s strategic transactions and decisions, particularly those related to M&A in Africa. Miss Gulati has worked on numerous high-stakes matters on both the corporate and litigation fronts.
Smita Priyadarshani:
(Senior Managing Legal Director – Dell EMC)
Miss Priyadarshani embarked on her legal career as an associate at Luthra & Luthra Law Offices, having an exceptional academic background. After serving the law firm for four years, she joined Perot Systems Corp as a Legal Counsel. Following the corporation’s acquisition by DELL in 2009, she was promoted to the senior management team.
As the lead commercial lawyer for the Asia Pacific and Japan region, Miss Priyadarshani plays a crucial role in providing legal support to various regional profiles. She was one of the pioneers of the ‘Global CLaaSS’ (Contracts and Legal as a Shared Service) team, which recruits legal talent in India to provide legal support to their global offices. Besides spearheading the creation of Global CLaaSS, she manages several internal matters, acquisitions, and facilitated a seamless transition of Perot to Dell.
Priyanka Sinha:
(General Counsel and MD – Vodafone Shared Services)
Miss Sinha began her legal career by working for various law firms, including K&S Partners, before joining Pernod Ricard India, the largest multinational alcoholic beverage company, as a Legal Manager. During her tenure, she managed the company’s litigation portfolio, handled IPR issues, and oversaw document management for M&A transactions such as Sales and Marketing agreements.
She has also held Director or Manager-Legal positions at Honeywell, Convergys, and UnitedHealth Group. Prior to her current role, she served as the Chief Officer-Legal, Compliances, and Corporate Affairs for India and adjoining countries at Yum! Brands, the largest restaurant company with flagship brands like KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell.
In 2017, Miss Sinha joined Vodafone as the General Counsel for VSS (Vodafone Global Shared Services), where she is responsible for managing end-to-end legal, risk, and compliance for VSS locations such as India, Hungary, Romania, and Egypt. She currently holds dual roles as the Centre Head for India and General Counsel for India, EU, and Egypt.
Aditi Chopra:
(Director and Legal Counsel – Microsoft)
Aditi began her legal career as an associate with Dua Associates, a full-service legal firm, in 2002. After two years, she joined Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co, where she worked for six years on various issues related to foreign investment, venture capitalist, PE, and general corporate advisory across multiple sectors.
She transitioned to an in-house career with Ibibo Group, where she served as the General Counsel/Legal Head for almost a year. After Ibibo, she joined International Business Machines (IBM) as a counsel and was part of several multi-million dollar negotiations related to contracts with multinationals in India and globally. Following that, she served as SVP for Network18 Media & Investment Limited for a year and a half before joining her current role as Direct and Legal Counsel at Microsoft.
Aditi has degrees in Commerce and Law.
Dipti Kotak:
(Chief Legal Officer – Reliance Industries, Media Business)
Dipti Kotak is the Chief Legal Officer of Reliance Industries’ Media Business. She has over 20 years of experience, primarily with Sony Picture Networks India. She worked as the Legal Vice President of Sony Entertainment Television Pvt. Ltd. for 13 years and was later promoted to Senior Vice President of Sony Picture Networks India. In 2018, she joined Reliance Industries’ media and entertainment sector as Chief Legal Officer. This sector invests mainly in the production of movies, web series, and other media content. Her areas of expertise include digital media, intellectual property, post production, copyright laws, and licensing, among others. Kotak received her law degree from Government Law College, Mumbai.
Rashmi Kathpalia:
(Vice President Legal – Technip India)
She commenced her legal career in 1988 as an advocate working with Mr. Kapil Sibal, a Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India, for ten years before embarking on her L.L.M. degree.
Following the completion of her L.L.M., she joined Bechtel Group, a US-based multinational corporation, as the sole general counsel for India and SouthWest Asia. She was responsible for drafting contracts, negotiating matters related to employment, statutory and regulatory compliance, and corporate governance. Additionally, she oversaw all arbitration and litigation proceedings in India, and provided advice on business matters related to various industrial sectors, such as Telecom, Power, and Mining & Metal. She also advised on projects in EAMS (Europe, Africa, Middle East, and SouthWest Asia) regions, and worked with the company for 17 years, eventually rising to the position of Chief Legal Advisor.
In 2015, she transitioned to her current company, Technip India, where she serves as the Senior Vice President Legal. Her responsibilities include advising, directing, supervising, and litigating matters pertaining to commercial transactions, contract negotiation, and compliance.
She earned her L.L.B. from the University of Delhi and her L.L.M. from the College of Law in York.
Shruti Mehta:
(Principal Counsel, Walt Disney Company (India) Private Limited)
After completing her studies, she began her legal career at Trilegal, a well-known full-service law firm. She spent 5 years there and was eventually promoted to Senior Associate. During this time, she handled a variety of corporate law matters such as mergers and acquisitions, private equity, and joint ventures.
In 2007, she became a principal associate at Amarchand Mangaldas, where she focused on legal compliance and banking laws for the company. By 2010, she had moved in-house and joined GE Capital, the financial services division of General Electric. She worked there for almost 4 years and rose to the position of Vice President-Legal.
In 2014, she became the Principal Counsel at Walt Disney Company (India) Private Limited, where she currently works.
She received her law degree from Government Law College.
Pujarini Maulik:
(Vice President, Legal – InMobi)
She currently holds the position of Vice President-Legal at InMobi, an online advertising company in India where she has been employed for the past six years. She joined the company in 2012 as the Global Head of Contracts and was later promoted to Director, Associate General Counsel. Her responsibilities at the company include ensuring the smooth functioning of legal operations in the ever-evolving advertising technology markets and their legal framework.
Prior to her current role, she worked at Infosys and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories. During her six-year tenure at Infosys from 2006 to 2012, she negotiated complex deals and provided clients with legal opinions on legal and commercial issues. She briefly worked with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories where she was primarily responsible for drafting agreements and compliance checklists.
She earned her L.L.B degree from Symbiosis International University.
Debolina Partap:
(General Counsel – Wockhardt)
With over 25 years of experience in the legal field, she has primarily worked with two companies. She began her career with IDBI Bank, a government-owned financial institution, where she served for more than a decade before moving to Wockhardt.
In 2006, she joined Wockhardt, a pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, as the head of their legal department. While leading the legal team of Wockhardt hospitals, she handled a number of matters related to US Food and Drug Administration laws.
In 2011, she was promoted to General Counsel at the group level. Her role involved providing legal knowledge on technology to the legal team, enabling them to provide effective and efficient solutions that could enhance the company’s business. She leads a team of 11 and directly reports to the Managing Director and Chairman.
In addition, she is part of the company’s Corporate Strategy Governing Council. She assists the company in identifying business risks and provides litigation practices to overcome them.
Shukla Wassan:
(Executive Director Legal, South Asia-Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd)
Throughout her career spanning more than thirty years, she has held the position of company secretary at Reckitt Benckiser, Xerox India, and Max New York Life Insurance Co. Ltd. She began her career in the legal and in-house domain at Max New York Life Insurance Co. Ltd. where she worked as the Assistant Vice President Legal for a period of two years.
Prior to her current role, she served as the Executive Director Legal and Company Secretary at Xerox India Limited.
In 2008, she joined Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Private Limited, where she currently serves as the Executive Director – Legal and Company Secretary- South Asia. In addition to her role, she also chairs International Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Bottlers Nepal Limited (Bangladesh) and Bottlers Nepal (Terai) Limited, Nepal, and is a non-executive director of Coca Cola Beverages Sri Lanka Ltd.
Her responsibilities involve formulating legal, regulatory, compliance framework, and corporate governance strategies. She is responsible for ensuring the smooth and coordinated functioning between the Indian Management and Overseas Parent Company as well as Joint Venture partners.
She obtained her legal education from Calcutta University and is a member of the Institute of Company Secretaries in India.
Sheetal Sawhney Kapur:
(Director – Legal and Senior Counsel – Netflix)
As of late, she has taken on the position of Director-Legal and Senior Counsel at Netflix. Her primary responsibilities include providing legal support in partnerships and transactions.
Prior to joining Netflix, she served as the Regional Counsel for India and West Asia at Google, where she provided legal guidance in shaping products. She was responsible for matters related to privacy and data protection, regulatory liaisoning/licensing, M&A, FinTech & payments projects, geographic projects, telecom & broadcasting projects, and various other government-led initiatives. She also worked as the Head of Legal, Compliance, and Regulatory at PayU, where she dealt with similar cases. In addition, she briefly worked with the Private Equity and M&A team at J. Sagar Associates.
She is widely recognised as one of the most influential individuals in the area of Payment Laws in India. She earned her L.L.B and L.L.M degrees from Indian Law Society Law College, Pune and the University of Melbourne, respectively.
Shelly Kohli:
(General Manager – Legal Business Partner – Unilever)
She has recently taken up the position of General Manager- Legal Business Partner at Unilever.
Miss Kohli has had over 5 years of experience working in various law firms such as Crawford Bayley & Co., Wadia Gandy, Trilegal and CPA Global before making the shift to an in-house role.
In 2010, she joined GE (Energy Management) as Senior Legal and Compliance Counsel for South Asia, where she provided legal advice for the company’s business transactions. Her role involved identifying and mitigating legal risks in commercial opportunities.
In 2015, she took up the position of Assistant General Counsel for Levi Strauss & Co., South Asia, where she managed a team of lawyers handling matters related to commercial transactions, real estate, employment, and intellectual property.
Miss Kohli holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Law from Mumbai University and New York University School of Law, respectively. She is authorized to practice law in both India and the USA.
Ananya Sanyal:
(Senior Regional Counsel, APAC – Adobe)
Miss Sanyal has worked with several prominent brands in India and globally for over a decade. Her career began as an associate with Amarchand Mangaldas, a full service law firm. Following three years with the firm, she transitioned to an in-house role.
In 2009, she became a Legal Counsel at Infosys Limited, where she provided legal opinions to the management and handled commercial transactions. After three years, she moved to Adobe as a Legal Counsel, where she was subsequently promoted to Regional Counsel for the Asia Pacific Region in 2016. Currently, she holds the position of Senior Regional Counsel for Asia Pacific at Adobe.
She completed her L.L.B from NUJS, Kolkata in 2006.
Dipali Talwar:
(Group General Counsel – Tata Steel)
Talwar began her professional journey as a litigator, practising in Delhi High Court and Supreme Court of India. Later, she joined the law firm Arthur Andersen in India, where she worked as a regulatory policy advisor to government, international institutions, and companies from various sectors, and handled matters related to corporate law.
After her stint at Arthur Andersen, she moved to Pfizer, a global research pharmaceutical company, where she served as the Legal Director and General Counsel for India and South Asia. She was then promoted to Senior Director of Global Business Transactions, where she advised on transactions and formulated strategies for market entry and expansion of business.
Currently, Talwar holds the position of Group General Counsel for Tata Steel, an Indian steel-making MNC, and is also a board member of the company. She is a member of Delhi Bar Association, New York State Bar, and the US India Business Council Legal Executive Committee.
She obtained her LLB from the University of Delhi and LLM from Harvard Law School.
Pioneering Women Lawyers in India’s Corporate Sector
In the legal profession, and especially in the corporate sector, women have historically been underrepresented. It took a long time for women to overcome the traditional male dominance of the corporate sphere in India. But there were a few trailblazing female attorneys who cleared the way for others to follow.
Cornelia Sorabji was one of the first women to establish a name for herself in the business world. In the late 1800s, Sorabji was the first female student of law at Oxford University. She returned to India after finishing her studies and became the first woman to practise law there. She was also the first Indian lady to serve the British government as a legal advisor.
Justice Fathima Beevi, who was the first woman to be nominated to India’s Supreme Court in 1989, was another trailblazer. Before being appointed to the High Court of Kerala, Beevi started her legal profession in the early 1950s and practised in numerous courts across the nation. She was well recognised for her progressive views on women’s rights and contributed significantly to several important rulings.
Breaking Barriers: Challenges Faced by Women Lawyers in India’s Corporate Sector
It is important to recognise the obstacles that women still experience in this field despite the accomplishments and contributions of trailblazing female lawyers in India’s corporate sector. The following are some of the major obstacles facing women lawyers in India:
Gender Bias: Women lawyers in India frequently experience gender bias at work, which results in lower pay, fewer chances for advancement, and a lack of appreciation for their accomplishments. To acquire the respect of their coworkers and clients, they might also need to put in more effort.
Job-Life Balance: For many Indian women lawyers, juggling job and family obligations is difficult. It can be challenging to juggle career aspirations with family obligations due to long working hours and the demands of the profession, especially for women.
Lack of Support: Female attorneys frequently experience a lack of support from their bosses and peers. With little to no assistance from senior partners or mentors, they might be forced to work in an unpleasant atmosphere. They may find it challenging to advance in their jobs as a result of this.
Cultural and social barriers: In India, social and cultural norms frequently limit the employment possibilities for women. Women may experience social pressure to adhere to traditional gender roles, but they are supposed to put their families and domestic responsibilities first. Due to this, it may be challenging for female lawyers to be successful in the business world.
Discrimination and Harassment: Women attorneys in India may also experience sexual harassment, gender-based discrimination, and prejudices based on their age or marital status.
Women lawyers in India are succeeding in the business world despite these obstacles. They are removing obstacles and promoting greater female equality at work. Women are transforming the legal field and opening doors for future generations of female lawyers through advocacy, education, and empowerment.
Advancing Gender Equality: Initiatives and Organisations Supporting Women in Law
UN Women
The United Nations organisation known as UN Women is committed to advancing gender equality and empowering women all over the globe. Its goal is to assist UN member states in achieving international standards of gender equality in order to accelerate the process of meeting women’s needs. To achieve this, UN Women works with governments, civil society organisations, and other organisations to develop and execute laws, policies, and services that benefit women.
Four categories have been deemed as priorities by UN Women: Promoting women’s leadership, participation, and equality of benefit in governance systems; ensuring women have stable incomes, respectable employment, and economic independence; working to end all forms of violence against women and girls; and empowering women and girls to take part in fostering lasting peace and resilience and benefit equally from disaster prevention, conflict resolution, and humanitarian action. UN Women also works to have gender equality recognised as an essential part of the UN’s sustainable development objectives and supports member states in holding the UN system accountable for its commitments to gender equality.
Womankind Worldwide
Womankind Worldwide is a global organisation that promotes women’s rights and collaborates with groups and organisations fighting for women’s rights to better the lives of women. Their final goal is to create a fair society where all women’s rights are upheld, honoured, and valued. In order to support international organisations and governments in promoting and protecting women’s rights, Womankind Worldwide presently works with women’s rights organisations and movements in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nepal, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
In order to help women and girls change their lives, Womankind Worldwide collaborates with its local partners. They offer refuge to those running from violence and collaborate with local leaders on initiatives that encourage gatherings of women to talk about the changes they want to see in their communities and how to get there. The group additionally offers technical help, funding possibilities, and advocacy platforms to movements for women’s rights. Additionally, they make use of their knowledge to alter public policy and guarantee that women’s rights are given top priority on the global agenda.
Equality Now
With the help of legal advocacy, the group Equality Now was founded with the mission of defending and promoting the human rights of women and girls everywhere. Through the use of the law, it seeks to advance a just and equitable society for women. International human rights law is used to lobby decision-makers and persuade national governments to enact and uphold effective legislation in order to draw attention to specific instances of mistreatment. Equality Now works in conjunction with other organisations to make sure that particular cases receive international notice.
In order to bring about change, Equality Now collaborates with a wide range of people, organisations, and coalitions, including grassroots activists, survivors, legal reformers, lawyers, service providers, businesses, and national and regional women’s organisations. They do this by utilising their knowledge of the issue and connections in the community. It puts pressure on nations to pass laws that support gender equity and holds them responsible when such laws are broken.
Plan International
An multinational organisation called Plan multinational is dedicated to supporting global humanitarian, development, and human rights initiatives. Its main goals are to advance children’s rights and encourage gender equality for females. To do this, Plan International works directly with youth, kids, and communities while addressing the root causes of exclusion, vulnerability, and discrimination. Plan International uses its extensive expertise, experience, and reach to impact policies and practises at the local, national, and international levels by educating and empowering people and communities to face challenges.
Fostering an inclusive community that supports justice and gender equality is one of Plan International’s main goals. The group confronts and combats gender-based discrimination and breaches of human rights, including imbalances in power and stereotypes of men, women, boys, and girls. Plan International works to create a culture that values optimistic viewpoints, ethical behaviour, and inclusion by advocating for gender equity and human rights.
Global Fund for Women
An illustrious organisation called the Global Fund for Women works to advance gender equality and defend the rights of women and girls around the globe. It was developed with the intention of highlighting the brave work being done by women who are supporting social initiatives and upsetting the status quo. The group promotes gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and liberties for women worldwide, and the elimination of all forms of violence.
In order to achieve gender equality, it is the main goal of the Global Fund for Women to guarantee that every woman and girl can exercise their rights as stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Fund works to safeguard women’s rights to choose whether and when to have children as well as their access to high-quality prenatal and postpartum treatment. It abides by and supports the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which have an effect on women’s rights in all spheres of life.
Future Outlook: Opportunities and Growth Potential for Women Lawyers in India’s Corporate Industry.
The corporate industry in India has a bright future for women lawyers, with plenty of opportunities and room for expansion. The following are some of the major trends and advancements that are predicted to have an impact on the market over the next few years:
Diversity and Inclusion: A growing number of Indian law companies and corporations are realising the value of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. More female attorneys are actively being sought after, and they will be given the same opportunities for advancement as males. In the corporate sphere, there will likely be more job opportunities for women lawyers as a result of this trend.
Digital Transformation: With an increase in the use of technology and automation in legal procedures, India’s legal sector is experiencing a digital transformation. Women attorneys with expertise in cutting-edge fields like legal tech, data analytics, and cyber law will have new opportunities as a result of this trend, which is predicted to continue.
Startups and entrepreneurship: As India’s startup ecosystem expands quickly, more opportunities exist for women attorneys to join cutting-edge businesses. Numerous female attorneys are also launching their own companies and using their legal knowledge to create profitable ventures.
Specialisation and Niche Practice Areas: As India’s legal market becomes more competitive, many female attorneys are choosing to focus on particular practice areas, including intellectual property, litigation, and mergers and acquisitions. This pattern is anticipated to continue, giving female attorneys the chance to specialise in particular areas of the law and provide customers with specialised services.
International Exposure: As the Indian economy becomes more internationally integrated, many corporate entities and law firms are extending their operations abroad. More opportunities for women lawyers to participate in cross-border transactions and receive exposure abroad are anticipated to arise as a result of this trend.
In Conclusion
The participation of such intelligent female advocates in the country’s judicial system is critical. These strong and courageous women use their sword of “intellect and courage” to offer justice, empower other parts of the community, and achieve victory by battling all odds. Female lawyers inspire entire generations of women to pursue their dreams, both personally and professionally.
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