What Holds In The Future Of The Legal Profession And Practice In India?

Among the many industries that have been doing exceedingly well across the world, there have been a few that have been on a constant growth pedestal. It is amazing to know more about those sectors and how they have been contributing to the world, just like the legal profession has been doing in India. 

The legal profession is today not limited to a few areas of work but has grown into many and beyond the traditional choices like litigation. Different areas of work have emerged, like cyber-security laws, media laws, technology laws, and much more that are offered to fresh graduates of law. 

These youngsters choose to do work in the corporate law field rather than making a career in litigation that offers high competition and low pay. Hence, by selecting a legal firm, they work toward making more money.

Today, the law profession has grown widely, offering young law graduates varied dimensions and new areas that they can explore for practicing and get to the next level in their careers. There are different areas in the world of the legal profession, like cyber-security law, which is a result of the modern-day tech-based world, where everything is connected to the internet.

Lawyers have the opportunity to take cases regarding fraudulent money transactions, communication, data theft, cyber-bullying and much more and other areas like crypto, blockchain and the like. Mergers and Acquisitions is another area in the legal profession. 

Several multinational businesses continually expand, making mergers and acquisitions, and so they need astute corporate lawyers to oversee the same to protect their business interests. Intellectual Property Law refers to intangible properties created out of the creativity of the owner, like music, art, etc. 

To protect such creations, too, lawyers are needed who can seek actions against violations like stealing trade secrets, recreating a patented work and more.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy law is another area of practice. There are several non-performing loans in the bank and also a delay in the debt resolution; for solving such issues, insolvency professionals and corporate lawyers are needed. 

There is also Alternative Dispute Resolution, which is a technique to settle disputes and disagreements between parties through negotiations and discussions. Under this mechanism, all types of matters, like commercial, civil, industrial, and family, are included.

So what really holds in the future of the legal profession and practice in India is a question many have been wondering about. It can be safely said that everything is gradually moving digital. The legal profession has also been thriving on the latest tech trends and developments, allowing lawyers to work for clients globally and carry office on their laptops. 

Virtual courts is one development which has been achieved through various tools and software. India is well on its way to adapting to this new system largely. Especially during the pandemic, this system was adopted widely, which improved the flexibility of the judicial system that worked for 24/7, resulting in faster adjudication of the cases.

Recently, the Supreme Court of India embraced many AI tools and, in April 2021 had, launched an automation platform called Supreme Court Portal for Assistance in Courts Efficiency (SUPACE) that could read scanned documents and can extract relevant facts. AI is now a part of many leading law firms as well, which has automated work in the industry, offering people faster litigation procedures.

Looking at how things are fast moving up the ladder of growth and how new areas of work have been introduced in the industry, it won’t be wrong to say that the future of the legal profession runs around modern tech. 

It has also been noticed how young lawyers are preferred and approached more, especially in law firms, as they pave the way for more innovation. They have a better social understanding knowing the latest trends in the modern world and also have a better peer understanding. 

They are more available as, in the beginning, they have fewer clients, and focusing on their cases more means more availability. Also, they are great at adopting new technologies and thus are ahead in the field.

Having said that, older clients still choose senior attorneys because they need the experience of more senior lawyers. However, no one can deny that the legal market in India is truly on a massive growth pedestal.

The author, Vikalp Singh is Co-founder of CSK partners