Overview

Abhishek Emmanuel Kisku currently serves as a Partner at Luthra and Luthra Law Offices India and is part of the Dispute Resolution practice. He possesses expertise in mainly civil disputes including corporate and commercial disputes, insolvency & bankruptcy matters, and alternate dispute resolution.

His specialization includes arbitrations, special leave petitions and writ petitions, debt recovery proceedings through proceedings before the DRT, civil suits or ADRs, banking and financial matters including proceedings before the NCLT under IBC. Abhishek has also assisted clients in criminal matters, particularly white-collar crimes and cross-border enforcement of decrees and awards, assisting foreign corporations, including international banks, in enforcing foreign awards and decrees within the Indian legal system.

Throughout his career, Abhishek has appeared before various Courts and Arbitral Tribunals across India, including the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India and several High Courts. He has also represented clients before National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), National Company Law Tribunals (NCLT) in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh and Kolkata, Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRT) at Delhi and Jaipur, Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRAT), among others.

Experience Statement

• Representing Kroll Group, which is a global financial and risk advisory firm, in a civil suit filed for recovery of monies based on damages under torts to the tune of USD 5 Billion, alleged to have caused destruction of large diamond business of the Plaintiff. The law involved is Indian Law along with the usage of international convention and treaties. The case is significant as this is one of the first and few cases in India which deals with the issue of breach under tort at this scale, which includes the tort of conspiracies against the client including authorities of the Government of India and will lay down jurisprudence on this subject.
• Represented Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) in litigation in Hyderabad against Hestia Holdings which is a wholly owned subsidiary of a company in Hyderabad. The said litigation was for the enforcement of a foreign decree obtained by MCB directing Hestia to repay the loan of USD 20 Million. The case is one of the few cases which deals with the enforceability of a foreign decree in India, involving issues such as what is a decree on merits, under what circumstances an ex-parte decree can be enforced etc. which has been upheld by the Supreme Court of India.
• Advised and assisted Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre Limited before the Sole Arbitrator Mr. Justice (Retd.) Madan Lokur, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India in an arbitration proceeding initiated against it for an alleged wrongful termination of several pharmacy agreements. In the same proceedings, he has also successfully argued client’s Counter Claim and achieved a favourable Award on the same.
• Advised and represented ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (Ola Cabs) in a number of litigations pending adjudication across various jurisdictions in India in relation to disputes over the regulatory framework within which Ola cabs is to operate. Matters includes a Writ Petition before the High Court of Calcutta challenging ban orders against Ola issued by the Government of West Bengal as well as the applicability of the existing taxi licensing scheme to Taxi Aggregators such as Ola.

Overview

Akshit Kapoor has extensive experience in areas of real estate laws, mergers & acquisitions, private client and family office practice, banking and finance, capital markets, PE investments, insolvency and bankruptcy and corporate restructuring.

Akshit has represented and advised both Indian and International clients on general corporate matters, M&A, joint ventures and commercial contracts across various business sectors like health care, automobile, telecom, consumer goods sector etc.

He has closely collaborated with a wide range of international and domestic corporations, advising them on their business operations in both India and abroad. As being part of the Firm’s real estate practice, he has advised some of the largest real estate companies in India and has been involved in advising numerous international clients for their projects in India.

Akshit has represented and advised HNIs and HNFs, business owners, family offices, corporate fiduciaries as well as charitable and not for profit entities on restructuring, creation of trusts and wills, migration of residency and change in citizenship.

Akshit has advised on private placements and public offerings by issuers across a wide range of industries. He also regularly advises companies for their Initial Public Offerings (IPO) as well as on Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP).

Akshit possesses a profound grasp of the intricate commercial and legal intricacies surrounding land ownership, land acquisition, land use and conversion, regulatory and approval matters, foreign investments, and more.

As part of the Firm’s insolvency and bankruptcy practice, Akshit has gone on to advise clients on exit strategies, refinancing, debt restructuring, distressed sale etc. Akshit specializes in representing distressed funds, bidders’/resolution applicants, lenders / Committee of Creditors, and insolvency professionals in the context of restructurings, insolvency resolution processes, and liquidations governed by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Overview

With over 13 years of experience in the field of intellectual property (IP) law and general litigation, Amit is well-versed with litigation in the civil and white-collar crimes, expanding to disputes arising out of intellectual property and patent infringement. He also holds expertise in IP licensing and brand protection, IP advisory and due-diligence and automobile industry. He has previously briefed and argued alongside eminent Senior Counsel like Kapil Sibal, Amit Sibal, C.S. Vaidyanathan, Rajiv Nayyar, Neeraj Kishan Kaul, Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, to name a few.

Amit has assisted several global and Indian companies in the pharmaceutical sector under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act- 1940 and Drugs Price Control Order 2013, media & entertainment, hospitality, agro-industry sector, information technology, license exploitation, brand protection, start-up management and enforcement of their intellectual property in India and sports law.

His work experience includes protection and maintenance of IP portfolios in litigation, transactions & advisory and prosecution. He has successfully advised start-up on brand protection and expansion including advisory on License/ Software Agreement.

Today, Amit concentrates and supervises on trademark and technology, drug regulatory and drug price control related matters and copyright litigation and advises in IP prosecution matters related to artwork and new age technology with advisory on patent protection. He also expands into copyright and design prosecution, business transactions including one of his core strengths in litigation (IP & general) strategizing.

Experience Statement

• Supervised Mylan Inc. (now Viatris/Biocon) in exhaustive IP litigation involving life-saving drugs and bio-similar drugs, patent protection and advisory.
• Supervised Mylan Laboratories Limited in exhaustive IP litigation involving regulation of price control of life-saving drugs, suits for recovery.
• Strategizing & representing Minor Group Plc in disputes against an Indian hospitality company over misuse of its trademark “ANANTARA”. Successfully procured ex-parte orders of injunction which was later confirmed by the trial court in a hearing and accepted by the High Court, alongside managing the portfolio for ANANTARA chain of hotels, globally and in India.
• Strategizing and representing one of the biggest 2-wheeler manufacturers Hero MotoCorp Limited in prosecution in India and globally, with over 1800+ applications.

Overview

Arjun deals with intricate and complicated competition issues and assists in rendering strategic solutions in terms of the Indian Competition Law including the use of economic theory to put forth arguments before the Competition Commission of India (CCI), the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) and the Supreme Court of India (SC), in addition to making merger filings before the CCI.

He has been involved in numerous high-profile merger transactions, contentious litigations across multiple industries, including fast moving consumer goods, steel, cement, tyre, broadcasting, real estate, auto-parts, agro-chemicals to name a few. He has also represented some of the largest international corporations in cartel and abuse of dominance investigations. He regularly advises clients on comprehensive competition compliance programs and helps train top-management of companies so that they are in compliance of competition laws of the country and has specific experience in preparing clients for ‘dawn raids’.

He is a regular contributor to various international and Indian journals and his articles have appeared in various peer-reviewed journals including in publications of the American Bar Association.

He has been recognised by Legal500 in the competition / anti-trust space and clients say ‘Arjun Nihal Singh provides excellent support to the practice with great subject knowledge. He is always accessible and available for discussion on strategy.’

Overview

Avisha has over 12 years of experience and specializes in Technology laws including Fintech, Data Privacy, and host of other emerging technologies such as E-Commerce, Cloud based Services, OTT Platforms, AI, Crypto Currencies, Blockchain, IoT, Health Tech, and Digital Maps.

She has advised some of the largest global and national technology companies, start-ups and banks/NBFCs on regulatory issues, licenses and approvals, policies and contracts. Some of these include Google India, Airtel Payments, ANI Technologies (Ola), Yum Brands. 

She also has extensive experience in advising on corporate law issues including securities laws and foreign exchange.

Apart from corporates, Avisha often works with regulators and industry associations on policy issues, such as IAMAI and RBI on Payments Vision (Nov 2021); FICCI and Ministry of Corporate Affairs on M&A Rules (May 2019); SEBI on policy changes to Takeover Regulations (Aug 2016), meaning and scope of “Control” and reclassification of promoter (Sep 2015).

Avisha is frequently quoted in media articles and writes for financial dailies on issues around legal developments for The Economic Times, Financial Express etc. She also regularly delivers guest lectures at business schools - MDI Gurgaon (Sep 2020, Dec 2019, Aug 2019 – MBA and Executive MBA Programs), Jindal Global Business School (Apr 2019), Shiv Nadar University (Feb 2019), Start-up Leadership Program (Sep 2017).

Experience

• Advised Lamborghini S.p.A on software systems to be installed in vehicles from privacy and information technology laws of India.
• Advised Audi Ag on Indian privacy and data protection laws.
• Advised Google India on Fintech laws particularly collection, storage and sharing of KYC details related issues.
• Advised RapiPay Fintech in compliance and structuring related aspects under the Fintech laws and setting up and operationalizing neo banks.
• Advised Microsoft Corporation on mapping policy of India including on collecting/ selling/ licensing map data in India and on ‘remote sensing data’ under the Remote Sensing Data Policy.

Overview

G. R. Bhatia is a Partner in the Competition Law practice area at the Firm. A former Additional Director General of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and the erstwhile Monopolies & Restrictive Trade Practices Commission, he underwent intensive training in ‘Anti-monopoly Laws in Japan’ organized by the Japan Fair Trade Commission and has also attended training program on ‘Unilateral Conducts and Cartelization’ organized by the Korean Fair Trade Commission in Seoul. He was also associated with the amendments which were made to the Competition Act in 2007, and spearheaded the Firm’s team that advised the FTC and the DoJ in aligning the U.S. antitrust internal reference materials with Indian laws and circumstances.

In recognition of his in-depth experience in the field of competition law, Mr. Bhatia was appointed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India, as an Expert on the National Committee on Competition Policy.

Prior to his stint at the MRTPC, Mr. Bhatia also served as the Registrar of Companies and the Official Liquidator of Patna High Court.  Mr. Bhatia is a faculty with the Indian Institute of Chartered Accountants and Indian Institute of Management for competition law and policy.

He is Consulting Editor of Manupatra Competition Law Reports and also a Member of Editorial Board of Chartered Secretary. He regularly contributes articles on Corporate and Competition law issues. 

Mr. Bhatia represents and appears before the CCI and the Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) on competition issues. He is an Ombudsman for several German majors on issues relating to anti-competitive and anti-corruption in the Indian jurisdiction. He has appeared as a Competition Law Expert in various courts including the London Court of International Arbitration.

Experience Statement

Abuse of Dominance and Anti-Competitive Agreements

• Represented and defended Jaiprakash Associates Limited one of the largest real estate developers in an abuse of dominance inquiry before the Commission.
• Represented Flipkart - India’s leading e-Commerce organization with respect to competition complaints relating to online sales.

Cartel Investigation & Leniency Matters

• Representing Jet Airways before the CCI in respect of competition concerns emanating from dynamic pricing of airline tickets.
• Represented one of the world’s leading airline groups in an enquiry before the CCI on matters pertaining to the adoption of a zero commission policy by airline operators.
• Represented one of the world’s largest tyre manufacturers as well as the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association in a cartel investigation before the CCI.

Overview

Harish Kumar, Partner with Luthra and Luthra Law Offices India, a full-service law firm [formerly L&L Partners], is accredited with over 22 (twenty-two) years of diversified experience in dealing with complex legal issues and enabling solutions and implementation for businesses and clients. His expertise pans wide range of corporate, and legal matters including mergers & acquisitions, corporate restructuring, insolvency, joint ventures, fintech, corporate disputes, employment and advising on varied aspects concerning corporate governance and regulatory interface.

Harish brings a unique blend of business thinking and strategy to structuring, negotiating, and closing complex commercial and corporate transactions. His background in commerce and corporate laws helps bringing a realistic and risk based holistic approach which seamlessly and effectively helps in delivering the best solution to the clients. During his professional journey, Harish has advised a number of domestic and multinational companies, including various Fortune 500 companies, in his dynamic practice areas.

Aside, Harish has extensively dealt with various ministries and departments of Government of India, including Reserve Bank of India, Securities and Exchange Board of India, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Competition Commission of India. His advisory role also extends to various advice given to Government of India and key industry associations like CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM on various practical & legal issues being posed by industries from time to time. Harish has also been a regular speaker at various seminars/workshops being conducted by professional and government bodies.

Overview

Harry Chawla has extensive experience in the areas of Banking & Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Real Estate. Harry has advised clients in the banking and financial services sector, real estate sector as well as the hospitality, health care, automobile, aviation, telecom, IT, ITES, consumer goods sectors.

He has represented some of the largest players in the Indian real estate market, including several Indian companies as well as foreign investors. He has also assisted the Government of India as well as State Government(s) in the drafting of legislations in this sector.

Harry has worked closely with a large number of international and domestic corporations with respect to their business in India and abroad, in the areas of general commercial advice, mergers & acquisitions, private equity, corporate restructuring, joint ventures, fund raising and commercial contracts, etc.

He has advised and represented clients on issues pertaining to corporate finance (both domestic and cross border), debt restructuring and refinancing, securitization, acquisition finance, structured finance, bonds and similar instruments. He has acted for both lenders and borrowers and been involved in complex transactions involving multiple lenders across jurisdictions.

He has also participated in the evolution and formulation process of business strategies with several clients, vis-à-vis their new ventures and business initiatives and has advised in establishing, operationalizing and implementing such business strategies of the clients. He has also advised several clients on strategizing in dispute resolution, negotiation and settlement etc.

Overview

Maureen Z. Ralte is a Partner in the M&A and Corporate Practice of the Firm. She has over 15 years’ experience in mergers & acquisitions, private equity, real estate and general corporate advisory. She has worked on a wide variety of corporate transactions across sectors including real estate, hospitality, automobile, renewable energy, banking & finance, tourism, entertainment, marketing, information technology, etc.

She has represented domestic and multinational companies in the negotiation, structuring, preparation and review of transaction documents, in the areas of general commercial advice, mergers & acquisitions, private equity, corporate restructuring, insolvency, joint ventures/ collaborations, fund raising and commercial contracts. She has advised clients on issues relating to general corporate compliances, corporate governance issues, real estate and exchange control laws.

Maureen has worked closely with the in-house departments of leading corporate houses and routinely advises them on complex legal issues.

Megha has over 17 years of dedicated experience in Intellectual Property (IP) that includes stints at leading law firms. Her professional journey spans spectrum of IP matters across both international and domestic clients.

Megha’s proficiency encompasses a wide array of IP domains, including patents, designs, strategic counselling, and commercial transactions. She excels in providing comprehensive guidance and formulating strategies across the entire patent lifecycle. Her skills extend to conducting prior art searches, facilitating freedom to operate analysis and patentability assessments; drafting, filing, and prosecuting patent applications largely in India but also in other jurisdictions such as the U.S. and EP; and handling oppositions before the Indian Patent Office and appeals before various High Courts; post-grant compliances and commercialization.

Megha’s expertise and adversarial practice traverse diverse technology domains, including biotechnology, genetics, medical devices, chemical sciences, pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals, atomic energy, mechanical sciences, wireless communication technologies, semiconductors, automotive, industrial, electrical and telecom, software, and wind energy. Megha has successfully handled extensive IP portfolios representing a diverse spectrum of clients with over 4000+ concluded applications. She has assisted clients in developing their in-house IP capabilities and formulating internal IP strategies.

In Megha’s professional journey, she has successfully collaborated with clients across diverse sectors including but not limited to: paints, coatings, and specialty materials; household and personal hygiene appliances; wind turbines and sustainable energy; crude oil and natural gas; medical devices, instrument systems, and reagents; laboratory equipment, clinical and diagnostic instruments and spectrometry; agriculture and agro-processing technologies; drugs and bio-pharmaceuticals; molecular genetics and integrated solutions; immunodiagnostic systems; food, metallurgy and building materials; information technology, signal sources and signal processing electronics; and photochromic solutions.

Professional Qualifications:  Registered Indian Patent Agent (2008)

Overview

Nishant is a Partner at Luthra and Luthra Law Offices India and specializes in the area of Mergers & Acquisitions, Private Equity & Venture Capital and Banking & Finance.

Nishant is admitted to practice law in India and the State of New York (USA). In the last 19 years, Nishant has worked on a wide array of equity and debt financing transactions across multiple sectors and countries. In the M&A space, he has worked on listed as well as unlisted company transactions including, public takeover, PIPE, going private, JV and minority or majority equity investments. As regards the debt investment, he advises on structured debt funding and re-structuring transactions.

Nishant also advises corporate houses and HNI’s in relation to investigations by government agencies like Serious Fraud Investigation Office, Central Bureau of Investigation, Enforcement Directorate, Economic Offence Wing for charges of bribery, money laundering, corporate fraud and various other offences and assists clients in formation of internal corporate policies and structures against anti-bribery, anti-corruption, anti-corporate fraud, whistleblowing, anti-sexual harassment, data privacy and cyber security.

His past international experience of working with the top tier law firms in San Francisco, New York and London offers his clients a distinctive approach and expertise on cross-border deals.

Experience Statement

• Advised American International Group Inc. in its sale of American Life Insurance Corporation to MetLife Inc. for USD 15.5 Billion.
• Advised Future Group, in relation to USD 5 Billion debt re-structuring of Future Retail Limited, Future Enterprises Limited, Future Lifestyle Fashions Limited, Future Consumer Limited, Future Supply Chain Solutions Limited, and other unlisted companies for all outstanding debt owed to 28 Indian banks-consortium under the resolution framework for COVID-19-related stress announced by the Reserve Bank of India.
• Advised Novo Holdings A/S to acquire majority stake in Manipal Health Enterprises for USD 3.6 Billion alongside investors Temasek, The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and TPG Asia.
  • The transaction is a part of the largest private equity deal in the Indian healthcare sector.
• Represented Pocket Aces Pictures Private Limited, through its board of directors (‘Pocket Aces’), and its founders, Aditi Shrivastava, Ashwin Suresh and Anirudh Pandita, in relation to its acquisition by Saregama India Limited (‘Saregama’), a subsidiary of RP-Sanjiv Goenka (RPSG) Group. Saregama will initially acquire 51.8% shares in Pocket Aces, with the subsequent acquisition of another ~41% stake in next 15 months at pre-agreed multiples. The transaction is an all-cash deal.
  • The deal was listed as one of the top 10 mergers and acquisitions deals.
• Advised Orange S.A., a listed company, in relation to its acquisition of Bharti Airtel Limited’s (a listed company) offshore subsidiaries in two African countries (Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone) for approx. USD 1 Billion.
• Advised Agritrade Resources Ltd., a listed company on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, in relation to acquisition of SKS Power Generation (Chhattisgarh) Limited through a One Time Settlement of USD 350 Million approx.for all outstanding debt to State Bank of India, L&T Infrastructure Finance Company Limited and PTC (India) Financial Services Limited.
• Advised Engie Solar SAS and Electro Solaire Private Limited, in a project financing for an amount of USD 100 Million approx.availed from the Asian Development Bank and Société Générale for setting up a 2x 100MW AC grid-connected solar PV project in Raghanesda Solar Park, Gujarat.
• Advised IndoStar Capital Finance, a listed company, in relation to Brookfield Asset Management’s acquisition of 40% stake for INR 1225 Crore through a mix of primary and secondary shares from Everstone Capital, infusion of capital in IndoStar Capital Finance, and public shareholders under the Takeover Code.
• Advised Cipla Limited, in relation to its acquisition of brand rights to market derma and cosmeceutical products manufactured by Percos India.
• Advised Reliance Jio, in relation to its acquisition of properties related to telecom towers from Reliance Communications.
• Advised NewQuest Capital Partners, in relation to its acquisition of a minority stake in Kids Clinic India Private Limited (operating as Cloudnine chain of hospitals), through a combination of a primary investment and acquisition of secondary stake from existing investors and other shareholders in Cloudnine.
• Advised Pharmarack Technologies, in relation to its 92% acquisition by ABCD Technologies LLP, a digital health firm backed by Sun Pharma, Lupin, Cadilla Healthcare and Torrent.

Suprio’s career spans over 30 years, in diverse settings. He started his career with United Nations before moving to academics, then in-house and finally transitioned to private practice from general counsel practice of more than 2 decades.

Suprio’s focus areas of practice are mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, private equity, general corporate and commercial matters, intellectual property, technology, media & telecommunication, labour & employment, ESG, real estate, anti-corruption & compliance, data privacy and litigations/dispute resolution for clients across the sectors such as pharmaceuticals, life sciences, healthcare, technology, media, entertainment, telecommunication, energy and real estate, etc.

Experience Statement

• Advised Board of the listed companies of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Schneider Electric India, Honeywell JVs in India.

• Advised Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories in M&A and business deals with Wockhardt, UCB, Astra Zeneca, etc and Securities Class Action, Anti-trust litigation and Pricing litigations in the USA and India.

• Advised Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals in pharma statutory compliances, FCPA compliances and data privacy compliances.

• Advised Glenmark Pharmaceuticals in prosecution matters with the Dept. of Justice, USA and IP class actions in USA.

• Advised Schneider Electric in power and renewable energy projects both in utility and solar sectors.

• Advised Honeywell in SEZ related matters, real estate deals, global integration in various acquisitions and technology transfer to NAL and other aerospace commercial deals.

• Advised GE and Honeywell in cross border IP transactions, technology transfer, patent protection, licensing, anti-counterfeit strategy & actions and statutory compliances.

• Advised the Government of India in legislative drafting, profit sharing model for CSIR laboratories, IITs and IISc.

Overview

Varun comes with over a decade of experience in M&A, private equity and general corporate advisory. Varun’s involvement in various transactions help both the investors as well as the target company navigate a very uncertain regulatory environment and close large investment rounds. He has played instrumental role in bringing clarity on certain grey areas of the regulatory framework, for instance, surrounding restructuring of such ECB Loans. His insights and legal advisory on transactions in relation to private acquisitions of assets during ongoing insolvency of the asset owner’s group companies has been incredible. Varun’s approach towards solving client’s problem is one of his strongest forte. He brings solution-oriented mind set to the table, helping client navigate the transactions in the most reasonable and timely manner and simultaneously creating space for his team to learn, adapt and grow into an even better professional

Experience Statement

• Advised IFFCO and reviewed financing documentations and corresponding amendments thereto, arising out of the restructuring of the credit facilities amounting to USD 850 Million availed of by IFFCO’s foreign subsidiary i.e. Jordan India Fertilizer Company.
• Advised a leading real estate company on the resolution and eventual acquisition of a landowning company owning 110 Acres of land valued at over USD 140.5 Million under the pre-packaged insolvency regime.
• Advised M3M India Private Limited (M3M) on INR 900 Crore debt infusion by Oaktree Capital through subscription to NCDs.
• Advised Apollo Hospitals in its INR 450 Crore hospital asset acquisition in Gurugram, Haryana.
• Advised by Kunshan Q Tech Microelectronics (India) Private (QTech) Limited on USD 20 Million external commercial borrowings (ECB).