The 5th Edition of the Legal Era Awards 2015-16 (Indian Legal Awards) Organized by Legal Era Magazine – India’s no. 1 Magazine on Business & Legal World  Witnessed Strong Participation From the Legal-Business Community in India and Abroad.

The Legal Era Awards 2016, held at the Sea Side Lawn of Hotel Taj Land’s End, Mumbai, on Saturday, March 5, were a glittering affair, with a galaxy of stars from India Inc. descending upon the venue. Organized by Legal Era Magazine, the Awards were a grand culmination of the three-day Legal Era Gennext Counsel Congress & Awards, which saw extensive discussion and deliberation on the theme, ‘Business, leadership and law: Global exchanges on business trends and challenges.’

A welcome address speech by Aakriti Raizada Sharma, Founder Director & Managing Editor, Legal Era, ARA Legal Media Group, threw open the Awards while warmly welcoming everyone present – distinguished delegates, speakers, jury members, sponsors and partners from the Indian and international legal-business fraternity as well as members of the press. “At a time when there are several stereotypes of ‘dodgy lawyers’, we, at Legal Era, truly believe that through these annual awards, we are giving the industry some of its best practitioners, in-house teams and law firms who have redefined success without the slightest compromise on ethical standards. The Awards are our way to restore some of the great confidence in this profession,” said Ms. Raizada, while addressing the stellar audience.

“This year, like every year, our eminent jury, comprising CEOs, judges, senior law firm partners and GCs, has carefully reviewed the shortlisted parties and impartially weighed all pros and cons to arrive at the winners across categories. If I may add, we have raised the bar even higher for 2015-16, by including curated award categories based on intensive research. Today, it would not be an exaggeration to say that our Awards have reached a level of credibility where top international investors, business leaders, government officials and professionals bank on our surveys to gauge performance,” stressed Ms. Raizada.

Kapil Sibal, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, who received the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’, said, “This award does not signify my sunset. For me, it is the start of a new era of my life. Law is not about making money but it means to stand for justice.” While Dilip Udeshi, Udwadia & Udeshi, won the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award – Law Firm Partner.’

‘Star of the Millennium’ for ‘Outstanding Contribution & Excellence in the Legal Industry’ went to Justice B.N. Srikrishna, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India, whereas Justice A.P. Shah, Chief Justice, Delhi High Court, bagged ‘Legal Icon of the Year.’ A new award in the premier category, ‘CEO of the Year’, was picked up by Rana Kapoor, Managing Director & CEO, YES Bank.

Sujeet Jain, Group General Counsel & Company Secretary, Viacom 18 Media Pvt. Ltd., who took home ‘General Counsel of the Year (Male)’, struck an emotional chord by dedicating his award to his mother and proudly sharing it with his entire team. The Viacom 18 Media Pvt. Ltd. team was in very high spirits as they also won ‘Media & Entertainment In-House Legal Team of the Year.’ There was huge applause as Neera Sharma, Executive Director – Legal, MTS, walked up to the stage to receive ‘Best Female General Counsel’, for which, she thanked her husband and family for their undying support.

‘Up & Rising Law Firm of the Year’ (less than 3 years) went to Athena Legal, while Singh & Singh Lall & Sethi bagged ‘IT & TMT Law Firm of the Year.’ Anand and Anand picked up ‘Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year’, even as Lakshmi Kumaran & Sridharan Attorneys took home ‘Tax Law Firm of the Year’, while PLR Chambers received ‘Policy and Regulation Law Firm of the Year.’ Tatva Legal (Hyderabad) was the proud winner of ‘Regional Law Firm of the Year.’

Anand Pathak, Managing Partner, P&A Law Offices, walked away with ‘Competition & Regulatory Lawyer of the Year.’ It was a double whammy for both AZB Partners which won ‘Competition & Anti-Trust Law Firm of the Year’ and ‘Best National Law Firm of the Year (Overall)’, and Naik Naik & Co. Advocates which bagged ‘Media & Entertainment Law Firm of the Year’ and ‘Star Law Firm of the Year (laudable work in less than 12 years)’. Luthra & Luthra Law Offices took away ‘Best National Law Firm for Innovation, Strategies & Continuous Growth.’

In the international segment, ‘Best International Capital Markets Law Firm of the Year’ went to Squire Patton Boggs Singapore LLP, while ‘Best International Law Firm of the Year’ went to Kelley Drye & Warren LLP.

In the in-house segment, ‘Banking In-house Legal Team of the Year’ was received by State Bank of India, while ‘Insurance In-house Legal Team of the Year’ was won by Max Life Insurance Company Limited. Wockhardt Limited picked up ‘Pharmaceutical In-House Legal Team of the Year,’ while TATA Technologies Limited bagged ‘IT In-House Legal Team of the Year.’ ‘Telecommunication In-House Legal Team of the Year’ was conferred on Bharti Airtel Limited, whereas ‘E-Commerce In-House Legal Team of the Year’ was given away to Snapdeal (Dot) Com. Sharing the ‘FMCG In-house Legal Team of the Year’ were Godrej Consumer Products Ltd and Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd. Winning ‘Compliance In-House Legal Team of the Year’ was ITC Limited.

In addition to established names, the evening witnessed many up-and-coming lawyers find their place in the sun. Deepak Nambiar, Partner, Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, took home ‘Young Achievers Award of the Year Law Firm Category (42 years and below)’, while Lakshika Joshi, General Counsel & Head – IP & Licensing, Nucleus Software walked away with ‘Young Achievers Award of the Year In-House (42 Years And Below).’

With the Congress and Awards successfully concluded, Legal Era wishes to thank our eminent jury members including: R.A. Shah, Solicitor & Senior Partner, Crawford Bayley & Co.; Dr. Lalit Bhasin, President, The Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF); Ashok Raizada, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief, Legal Era Magazine and Managing Director, Aakriti Constructions; Ashok Barat, Managing Director & CEO, Forbes & Company Limited; Rupa Vora, Former Group Director and CFO, IDFC Alternatives; Hemant Kumar, Group General Counsel, Essar Group; Vineet Vij, VP & Head-Legal, Commercial, Regulatory & Compliance, HCL Technologies; and B. Gopalakrishnan, Advisor – Legal and Secretarial, Neterwala Group.