In recent years, India has opened up its markets to the world through continuing landmark legal and regulatory reforms affecting almost every aspect of its economy, from business, finance and foreign investments to trade, manufacturing and intellectual property.
As a result of these reforms, the climate for investment in India has never been better. With consistent GDP growth in the range of 6-8 percent, India’s markets offer companies, financial institutions and funds wide-ranging opportunities for growth, development and investment.
Despite recent progress, however, India’s rapidly changing business, legal and regulatory environment remains complex and presents unique challenges for market participants, particularly foreign investors. These challenges include market access barriers, an embedded culture of corruption, limitations on the repatriation of invested capital, restrictions on offshore lending (even to wholly owned subsidiaries) and paternalistic and discriminatory investment regulations, to name just a few. In order for businesses to succeed in this market, they will need to have a well-developed business strategy that takes into account the complex business, legal and regulatory environment and the diverse cultural nuances at play.
As a leading international law firm, Mayer Brown, early on, recognized the importance of the Indian marketplace. We have a multi-disciplinary team of practitioners, many of whom speak Hindi or other regional languages, that are dedicated to assisting clients in navigating the challenges of, and the opportunities afforded by, the Indian marketplace. We have considerable experience acting for a wide range of international clients in connection with India-related matters. This experience, combined with our extensive resources and local contacts, ensures that our clients are well-advised and thus well-prepared to participate in the Indian market. The clients of our group include international firms investing or otherwise doing business in India as well as Indian companies, which are increasingly active outside India.
Reflecting the firm’s full-service global platform, the India group has broad transactional and advisory experience in a wide range of business and legal matters, including:
India’s markets offer companies, financial institutions and funds wide-ranging opportunities for growth and development. If businesses are to make the most of these opportunities, they need to be well-prepared— and well-advised— by a firm that understands the diverse cultural and legal nuances at play.
- In 2009, Mayer Brown’s India group was ranked in the top 10 by Bloomberg, mergermarket and Thomson for M&A transactions.
- Recently, the firm was recognized for its work on Sanofi Pasteur’s acquisition of Shantha Biotech, named one of India Business Law Journal’s 2009 India Deals of the Year.
- Mayer Brown was named a “Significant Player” in 2008 by India Business Law Journal, a distinction recognizing the most proactive India-centric law firm practices.
