Nishith Desai Associates

The firm improves its ranking to ‘Recommended’ and ‘Highly recommended’ in Investment funds and Dispute resolution, respectively. It enters the Competition/antitrust table for the first time this year due to its overall solid performance in regulatory matters.  

Banking and finance  

Work highlights 

Instructed by MedPlus Health Services, the firm worked on a management buy-out of the company from private equity shareholders, including TVS Capital, Piramal and Mount Kellet Capital. The project involved Re7.5 billion in acquisition financing by subsidiaries of Goldman Sachs and others. The team was legal counsel to the founder-promoter on the financing transaction, and deal counsel on the equity transaction. 

Key clients 

MedPlus Health Services, Waverly 

Corporate and M&A 

Work highlights 

Worked with The Times Group, one of India’s largest media conglomerates, to establish two joint ventures with Vice Media. The expectation is that the ventures will tap into India’s young audiences with fresh content. 

Key clients 

Aricent Technologies, EuroKids International, Medplus Health Services, Pacific Alliance, ReNew Power Ventures, The Times Group 

Dispute resolution  

Work highlights 

Successfully represented Global Asia Venture before the Supreme Court for enforcement of an arbitral award. The case has implications for other arbitrations, specifically reducing the backlog of arbitral awards, because it dealt with the impact of the Arbitration Amendment Act passed in 2015.    

Key clients 

Association of International Schools in India, Global Asia Venture, Interglobe Aviation, Peabody 

Investment funds 

Work highlights 

Advised US venture capital firm Sequoia Capital on the strategic, legal and regulatory challenges and opportunities in the investment and operation of cryptocurrency and block chain companies in India and oversees. 

Labour and employment 

Key clients 

Align Technology, EuroKids International, Rockstar Interactive  

Private equity 

Work highlights 

Assisted on the Re111 billion capital injection into HDFC by GIC, KKR and Premji Group. The team worked with sovereign wealth fund GIC’s Waverly. Use of proceeds should allow HDFC to keep its 21% stake in HDFC Bank and pursue opportunities in the health insurance industry. 

Key clients 

Emerald Media, GIC’s Waverly, Naspers Ventures, Nexus Ventures, Radiant Life Car, SoftBank 

Regulatory 

Work highlights 

Advising All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) on a regulatory framework for India’s gaming industry. To bolster legal reform, work includes drafting and discussing a white paper before the Law Commission of India. Another objective has been to establish AIGF as a self-regulatory organisation and litigate matters when disputes happen. 

Key clients 

Airbnb, All India Gaming Federation, Bocconi School of Management, EuroKids International, Republic of Mauritius, SDA Netflix, Smith & Nephew Healthcare  

Tax 

Work highlights 

Worked with a global social media company to restructure its advertisement sales model in India. The domestic subsidiary had booked sales and contracted with customers through Ireland, but it wanted to have a more direct relationship with local customers. The team designed a tax efficient structure aligned with foreign exchange control law. 

Key clients 

EuroKids International, HP Global Trading, Pacific Alliance, SDA Bocconi School of Management  

Client feedback 

“Vivek Kathpalia and his team were excellent on the deal. They were extremely responsive, even when dealing with some challenging deadlines, and their advice was always clear and commercially focused.” – Corporate and M&A  

“Highly customer-oriented, top class knowledge of tech industry and extremely hard working team, always kept client interest and sensitivities a priority, delivered very good legal bargains while negotiating an M&A deal.” – Corporate and M&A, Privacy and data protection, Regulatory, Tax 

“Nishith Desai Associates does an excellent job, and is very timely in their deliverables.” – Corporate and M&A, Intellectual property, Regulatory, Education 

“Nishith Desai Associates did an excellent job in turning around our firm's case before the arbitrator by putting together a very well-researched logical and comprehensive argument and submissions. Their key strengths include coming up with well thought-out strategies, research, well-drafted submissions before the arbitrator and briefs for the senior counsels.” – Dispute resolution, Investment funds 

“Articulate, responsive, very detail-oriented, fair pricing, qualitative inputs and practical knowledge, transparent.” – Competition/antitrust, Labour and employment, Regulatory, Tax