Law firm CAM set to establish edge in capital markets after poaching 50 lawyers from rival firm

CAM set to poach capital markets lawyers from Induslaw

India’s booming capital-market law practice is set to witness a major consolidation as Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas(CAM) is in the process of poaching over 50 lawyers from IndusLaw, said market participants.

This hiring is expected to take the bench strength of the CAM capital markets team to over 100 lawyers, which is more than double, compared to its peers.

“Even in terms of revenue and client base, the law firm will have a clear edge over others. Capital markets is a niche practice that is fast growing in India and all the big law firms are trying to make the most of this boom,” said a lawyer privy to the development. “With the kind of pipeline we have right now in the capital markets, the practice will continue to do well.”

Former IndusLaw capital markets partner Manon Lahoty and eight other partners and 45 associates are joining the CAM’s capital market practice, said industry insiders. While IndusLaw has so far issued a statement confirming the exits, CAM is yet to issue any official communication.

“While it is a loss, we wish the team well. In the industry, all major firms, including IndusLaw, are fighting for talent and we are having to deal with it like other firms. We look forward to maintaining a cordial relationship and collaboration with them in future,” said  Gaurav Dani and Suneeth Katarki, founding partners of IndusLaw, in a statement dated July 29.

The development assumes significance as, in the past few months, there has been a flurry of activity among top law firms, in terms of hiring.

In May, JSA Associates had poached Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas 's (SAM) private equity partner Iqbal Khan, with 20 other associates. More recently, JSA had also poached Trilegal’s competition practice head Nisha Kaur Uberoi. A similar kind of poaching has been observed in other firms as well.

CAM is already among the top two law firms in the capital market practice. The team advises companies and institutional investors on an array of capital market offerings, including initial public offerings(IPOs), follow-on offerings along with more niche offerings such as real estate investment trusts(REITs) and Infrastructure investment trusts(INVITs).