CMS is in talks to become the second international law firm to establish a presence in India through an alliance with a local Indian law firm, according to four people who have knowledge of the discussions.
The firm is in discussions with Indian practice IndusLaw, which began around three and a half months ago, sources have told Law.com International.
According to one source, CMS has had several tie-up discussions with other Indian firms over the past 12 months.
The alliance would follow a mass exodus from IndusLaw this year, which accelerated the tie-up, a former IndusLaw partner told Law.com International.
Founded in 2000, IndusLaw has offices in Benguluru, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai and approximately 400 lawyers. In 2022, the firm merged with local real estate boutique firm ASLF—a move which then made it one of India’s largest law firms by head count.
Meanwhile, the tie-up comes in light of CMS’ plans for the future, which includes becoming “a global firm rather than an international firm”, its managing partner Stephen Millar shared in an interview with Law.com International.
Miller said that the firm is currently “under scale in Asia for the size and complexity of the region” and is working on consolidation in the region.
CMS already has an India desk headed out of London by corporate partner Babita Ambikar, who joined the firm in 2020 from the now-defunct Singapore office of DWF, where she was partner and head of the firm’s India practice.
In a separate CMS statement regarding a visit with an Indian Ambassador in August, the firm’s Austria-based banking and capital markets lawyer, Shivam Subhash said, “With the continued growth of the India Desk in Austria, CMS intends to focus on advising Indian companies and investors on their market entry and activities in Austria and Europe.”
The firm also said in its statement that the focus of its India desk is on all aspects of corporate law, advising domestic and foreign corporations on their investments in India. It also advises Indian companies on their deals in Europe. The desk also focuses on work for start-ups, as the country holds “the third largest start-up ecosystem in the world, India had 111 unicorns with a total valuation of $349.67 billion as of October 3, 2023”.
On entry, CMS will become the second international firm to establish a presence in India.
In 2022, Dentons announced a cooperation agreement with Indian law firm, Link Legal, becoming the first international law firm to have such an agreement with a domestic Indian practice.
Months later, the Bar Council of India (BCI) separately announced that it will take steps to liberalize its legal market. While rules to do so are still largely unclear, lawyers say, BCI further announced in June plans to implement amended regulations governing the entry of U.K. lawyers and law firms to the Indian legal market.
A CMS spokesperson said in a statement: “CMS has a long history of working with Indian businesses through our CMS India Group and has strong ties to the Indian legal community. India is a key growth market for us, and we remain open to exploring opportunities in the region. However, we have no updates to share at this time.”
Founding partner IndusLaw, Avimukt Dar, said: “IndusLaw has built strong connections with many foreign and international firms over a period spanning a couple of decades. Following the developments over the last two years, and the news that foreign law firms will enter India, we think that the Indian law firm space is set for some interesting developments.
“IndusLaw is watching the space and working on its strategy to address this sector defining event. At this point in time IndusLaw will not comment on any rumours or speculation and will continue to focus on excelling at the work it does for its many clients both in India and abroad.”