Nandini Pathak quits Nishith Desai to head investment funds practice at Bombay Law Chambers

Nandini Pathak will be heading head of the investment funds and asset management practice at Bombay Law Chambers

India’s leading law firms continue to witness talent churn with dozens of high profile exits in the last few months. The latest of them, Nandini Pathak, former leader of the Investment Funds Practice at Nishith Desai Associates has now joined Bombay Law Chambers as head of the investment funds and asset management practice. Nandini will advise domestic and international funds including foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and Alternate Investment Funds (AIFs), amongst others.

The development assumes significance as Indian financial markets are witnessing a strong uptick in the participation of institutional investors. While newer FPIs are lining up for licenses for listed investments, even global private equity and venture capital funds are planning to up their exposure to India. Mutual funds are already well established investors in the Indian market.

"This is an exciting step in my journey to keep contributing to the alternatives space in India as a legal professional. My vision is aligned with that of Bombay Law Chambers and together we hope to create a positive impact on the industry including through deeper involvement in advocacy and policy matters." Nandini told Moneycontrol.

Nandini has spent over a decade at Nishith Desai Associates in the Investment Funds practice and advised numerous AIFs such as private equity and venture capital firms on India compliance.

"She will provide counsel to both international and domestic clients on legal and regulatory matters related to fund formation, fundraising, and governance. Her focus will span the alternatives space, including guidance for general partners (GPs) and limited partners (LPs), intermediaries, foreign portfolio investors, investment advisers, portfolio managers, and research analysts." Said Bombay Law Chambers.

Over the last few months, all the leading law firms have seen a churn in talent as many mid and high level lawyers have switched jobs. In several cases, the partners switching jobs have taken their whole team with them to the new law firm. For instance, leading law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas(CAM_ had last month poached former IndusLaw capital markets partner Manon Lahoty along with eight other partners and 45 associates. Similarly, in May, JSA Associates had poached Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas's(SAM’s) partner Iqbal Khan along with two more equity partners and 20 lawyers.