India Liberalisation “When, not If”

By John Hyde » Justice Minister Shailesh Vara has said the long awaited liberalisation of India’s legal market is now a matter of ‘when, not if’. Vara told Indian lawyers at Chancery Lane that the country’s leaders are now committed to inviting UK firms to practise and form partnerships – possibly within five years. The issue of the closed Indian legal market has confounded the UK profession for decades, but Vara said opposition is disappearing as the sector and its young new entrants seek to broaden horizons. ‘I take particular heart that at the highest levels of [Indian] government this is now being addressed,’ said Vara, who led a delegation to India last year. ‘Your leaders are not only speaking of liberalisation but are putting a timeframe on it.’ Vara said he understood the fears of some members of the Indian profession but stressed they were ‘unfounded.’ [Courtesy: The Law Society Gazette]