Career in Leading Law Firms: Interview of Mr. Anindya Roy (Senior Associate, Khaitan&Co)

1) Sir, please introduce yourself to our readers.

Hello everyone. Firstly a big thank you to you guys for having me. My name is Anindya Roy and I currently reside in Mumbai. Originally from Calcutta, I completed my undergrad from Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow. Currently, I am working in the capacity of a Senior Associate with Khaitan & Co, Mumbai and am a part of the Funds practise. When I am not busy lawyering, I while away my time gardening, cooking, playing with my dog and watching movies with family and friends.

2) Please tell us about your law school experience and what are certain things which one learn during law school which helps him/her in professional career?

My law school experience is something that I look back very fondly upon as I learned very valuable life lessons there. For a boy who had never lived outside Calcutta, Lucknow was a very different experience and as a city, it holds a very special place in my heart. RMLNLU provides every student with the platform necessary to succeed be it excellent infrastructure facilities, the grand library or the excellent faculty. It is always upto you to utilize those resources to their fullest potential. While I did ok in that aspect, I managed to participate in many extra-curricular activities, be it cultural, literary or sports and kept myself engaged throughout the 5 years of law school.

So to whoever is reading this, my suggestion for you would be to utilize all the resources that your college or university has to offer, because this time that you are getting now will not come back once you start working. Train your mind and have the drive to succeed and be a better version of yourself. Always remember to have fun as well and make good friends as those memories will last forever.

3) What are the things which a law student should do, if he want to get placed into reputed law firm after college?

Please share your experience regarding your academic performance along with other co-curricular activities and internships which you did during your law school.

While there is no clear cut answer to this, first and foremost you must ensure that your GPA is high. Secondly, ensure you use your research and analytical skills and get a few publications under your belt. Thirdly, internships; You must learn to put your best foot forward when you do go in for an internship. Remember that it’s on you to engage with the lawyers at the firm. They can choose to not engage with you. If not you, there are thousands of kids who want that opportunity you have been given. Once you make yourself visible and show enthusiasm to learn and take up more work only then will they trust you with their matters. Try learning as much as possible at your internships, as law firms do take into account what prior experience you have accumulated throughout the years. Fourthly, participate in as many extra curricular activities as you can, be it mooting or debating or anything else that interests you.

I ended up having a very healthy GPA and ensured that my CV was well rounded throughout. Most of my internships were litigation internships bar a couple of corporate ones including one at Khaitan. I participated in various mooting competitions including Oxford Price Media Law Moot, GLC Kochi and KIIT amongst others, winning a lot of individual accolades. I was always more of a debater than a mooter and was active in the debating circuit and part of my colleges DebSoc. One of my last debates was your 6th CNLU debate of which I have very fond memories of, as we ended up as runners up. Being convenor of RML’s Debate and Discussion Committee helped me a lot in terms of honing my leadership skills and learning how to manage people and expectations and generally getting things done. I think people underplay the impact that college societies and committees have in our overall development. In addition to that I participated in quizzes, theatre, cultural competitions and even movie making! You could say I dabbled and tried my hand at almost everything.

4) How did you landed up as a consultant at a reputed International Law firm Clifford Chance Business Pvt. Ltd. in 2015 the same year you completed your graduation?

Up until my fourth year I was more inclined towards practising as an advocate in the High Court at Calcutta given that both my parents were practising advocates and I had that background to fall back on. However, in my fifth year, CCBS were one of the first recruiters that came for our college placements and I sat for it like many of my batchmates. I had a few seniors of mine who were already working in their Gurgaon office and they only had nice things to say about the working environment. Eventually after a few grueling sessions of interviews I received a placement offer and decided to take it up much to my father’s dismay. I wanted that work experience and initially law firms did not appeal to me.

5) You were already working as a senior consultant at Clifford Chance Business Pvt. Ltd.

What intrigued you to shift to Khaitan & Co as an associate?

So, this is an interesting one. I was working as consultant with CC’s Gurgaon office but then I received a secondment opportunity to go to the head office of Clifford Chance in London, after 2 years of working there. I took that up and had the opportunity to work with one of the best Funds teams and set of lawyers in Europe and probably, the world. I got to learn so much on my secondment while working on live deals for massive private equity firms and hedge firms based out of London and Europe. I made some excellent connections and formed good memories and I look back upon that experience as a game changer in my career.

6) How did you make your way into Khaitan and Co? Please share your entire recruitment process with us.

On coming back to India, I helped set up a team here which would assist CC’s global offices in cities like London, Amsterdam, Singapore and New York etc. on various matters.

Eventually I yearned to learn more about the funds regulatory regime here in India and I decided to apply to a couple of funds teams based out of Bombay. My interviews went well and I got a few offers. Eventually I ended taking up the offer at Khaitan and the opportunity to work with Mr. Siddharth Shah, who is one of the leading practitioners in the private funds space in Asia Pacific. I am truly grateful to my team for giving me this opportunity to work with and learn from them.

To whoever is reading this, from an interview perspective, you should be extremely honest and be clear about your strengths and try and drive the discussion towards areas you are comfortable with. Be confident, know your subjects and speak clearly. Read up about the firm and the team and the work that they do. It would go a long way towards creating a favourable impression.

7) Since, you have been working at Khaitan &Co as a Senior Associate, please enlighten us what does country's one of the most reputed law firm looks for while hiring a candidate?

One should be willing to put in the hard work when required. Goes without saying that you are expected to havean in depth knowledge about your work stream and practise. The foundation of your legal knowledge, i.e.your basics are expected to be exemplary. One should also be dedicated and be able to take ownership of one’s work. Attention to detail is paramount. Most importantly, you should be a team player and must be able to communicate effectively with team members who you may be working with on specific deals.

8) Mooting , Debating & Internships.

How essential these skills are as a lawyer and the importance they hold to pave your way into big reputed law firms ?

They are very important. While your GPA is the most important thing to consider from a CV perspective, mooting and debating skills go a long way in shaping you as the person that you will eventually become once you leave college. Ability to work under pressure, research skills, logical thinking and ability to communicate your thought process fearlessly and clearly are all skillsets that a lawyer must have. Also having a diverse internship experience always help make you stand out from the crowd. Ultimately given that you have the same scores, any employer would prefer having a candidate who has a more diversified skillset. Think of it as tie breaker in a quiz if you will!

9) Thank you so much sir for talking to us, please end it with an adage which will motivate our readers in pursuing the legal profession.

Be honest about what you want from life and your career. It is completely alright if you are confused and unsure. Balance out your priorities, keep your head down, put in the work and life will reward you. It has worked for me and hopefully it will work for you. Most importantly again, just enjoy your time in law school and try and have a holistic experience. This time will not come back again.