India's Legal Services Liberalization Allows Foreign Lawyers to Set Up Shop in the Country

India is moving forward with the liberalization of its legal services to allow foreign lawyers to operate within its jurisdiction.

The UK government issued a statement following talks between Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and his British counterpart, Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne.

The discussion took place during the 8th UK-India Economic and Financial Dialogue in India last Jan. 19, Tuesday, where Jaitley and Osborne took part in a series of meetings together with UK-based fund managers and investors, CNBC’s Money Control said.

The move to liberalize legal services, which allows foreign lawyers the right to open shop in India, is meant to bring about a catalyst to improve international investment in the country, and to give local businesses access to global legal advice, the UK Treasury Department said.

Not only would the move bring in new opportunities for UK legal professionals, they will also be enjoying the same rights Indian legal firms currently operating in the UK possess, Economic Times reported.

Moreover, foreign lawyers who take advantage of the legal services liberalization may be able to enter into partnerships with existing Indian law firms, bringing in their own specialization and legal expertise into the country.

In a joint statement they issued following Tuesday’s Dialogue, Jaitley and Osborne said they had both conferred over the importance of shared legal sectors and opening up access to international legal services to better enable bilateral investment between both countries.

With a liberalized legal market already in place in the UK, several Indian law firms have already established their offices and practice in London.

Both Jaitley and Osborne have agreed to transform India, already touted to be the world’s largest common law jurisdiction, into an international legal hub, Legally India reported.

Among their discussions, financing infrastructure and cross-border tax evasion issues formed part of the economic cooperation talks between both parties Tuesday.

Tags

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, India, UK, legal services liberalization, UK India Economic and Financial Dialogue

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