When an Indian company, public-sector undertaking or bank becomes party to litigation or arbitration in another country, the natural first step is to engage local lawyers. That is necessary, but rarely sufficient. Foreign proceedings usually connect to contracts, assets, regulators and sometimes parallel proceedings in India, and each of these has its own advisers.
The risk of fragmented management
Without a coordinating point, the client’s in-house team ends up relaying information between foreign counsel, Indian counsel, experts and translators. Instructions become inconsistent, deadlines in one forum can be missed while attention is on another, and positions taken abroad may undermine the client’s case at home.
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The client deals with one coordinated team instead of managing separate legal teams in each jurisdiction.
What coordinated oversight involves
- Understanding the dispute and the client’s commercial objectives before strategy is set.
- Identifying and instructing suitable local counsel through an established network.
- Organising documents and translations, and briefing foreign counsel on Indian law and context.
- Running strategy conferences, tracking developments and keeping the client regularly informed.
- Considering related proceedings, contracts and regulatory issues in India as part of one strategy.
From first notice to enforcement
Coordination matters at every stage: pleadings, hearings, negotiations, the judgment or award, and finally recognition and enforcement, which may itself take place in a third country. A single point of oversight keeps the strategy consistent throughout.
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This note is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. For advice on a specific matter, please contact us.
