Law is a highly rewarding and respected profession, and may young people, inspired by the top lawyers in India, aspire to one day become successful lawyers. The number of students graduating from law schools has shown a significant increase in the last few decades.
Law school students, nearing completion of their course, start looking for a good-paying job with a top law firm in India. To land a job with a top flight law firm, candidates need to have got good grades in their law school, specialized training, and internship experience. In a fast changing economic environment where the world has become a global village and international business and trade is rapidly expanding, demand for lawyers with specialized knowledge, such as business law, mergers, and acquisitions, taxation, etc. have also increased significantly.
Fresh law graduates looking for a job at a law firm have to take into account many aspects of their career growth in terms of knowledge, culture, and remuneration.
Remuneration
Law firms offer highly attractive pay packages to deserving candidates. Remuneration includes basic salary plus various perquisites and allowances. Salaries depend on various factors, such as qualification, knowledge, work experience, academic performance, and the institution from where the candidate has attained the law degree. In the US, as per the Bureau of Labour Statistics, attorneys, on average, earn more than $125,000 per annum. Top lawyers in India too, are paid a handsome salary by law firms. Listed below are some of the top paying law firms in India.
Khaitan & Co
One of the oldest law firms in India, Khaitan & Co is regarded as one of the top law firms in the country. Established by Debi Prasad Khaitan in 1911, the firm has offices in four major cities- Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, and Bengaluru. It is has over 550 associates and 115 partners. It also has an international presence with offices in a few important cities. The firm offers its services in many areas of law, including Banking and Finance, Capital Markets, Antitrust and Competition, Dispute Resolution, mergers and Acquisitions, Intellectual Property, Energy, Real Estate and Construction, Taxation, and many more.
Khaitan & Co. is the top salary paying law firm in India. According to a 2015 report, the firm paid its new recruits an annual basic salary of 14.5 lakhs plus an additional 1.8 to 2.00 lakhs as performance linked bonus. Khaitan & co. is by far the highest paying law firm in the country.
Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co
Considered as the largest law firm in the country, it has offices in 8 major cities- the four metros and Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and Pune. As of 2013, the firm had more than 600 lawyers that included 85 partners. The firm is ranked as one of the top paying law firms in India with its annual package of 12 lakhs basic salary plus an annual bonus of up to 3 lakhs.
In 2015, the law firms split into two different firms namely, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.
S &R Associates
A highly successful law firm that was established in 2005, it earns a major chunk of its revenue from international operations. A unique feature of this law firm is its composition; it has an equal number of men and women partners at 6 each. The firm offers specialized services in the areas of Capital Markets, Private Equity, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Information Technology, Telecommunications & Media. In terms of remuneration, it ranks among the top 5 salary paying law firms in India with its annual offering of around 13 lakhs of basic pay along with bonus up to 3 lakhs. The firm is also one of the top recruiters from premier law schools in India.
Talwar Thakore and Associates
Founded in 2007, it operates at both, national and international levels with almost 60% of its revenue coming from international operations. The firm has collaborated with the globally acclaimed law firm Linklaters to take up cases of international significance, most talked about being the Reliance Industries and British Petroleum tie-up worth $7.2 billion. Its core areas of expertise are Banking and Finance, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Capital markets.
In 2015, the firm offered annual remuneration of around 18 lakhs that included basic pay of 13 lakhs and a bonus of up to 5 lakhs.
Kochhar & Co
Counted among the best and the largest law firms in India, it has full-fledged offices in seven major cities of the country. It also has an overseas presence with offices in Dubai, Jeddah, Singapore, and the US. The firm is highly regarded in the corporate world for its client centric approach and high ethical standards. It offers legal services in all the fields of corporate and business laws. The firm pays handsome packages to its lawyers, which is at par with other top Corporate law firms in the country.
Mentioned above are the top 5 law firms that pay the highest salaries in India on an average. However, the top lawyers in India earn much more than what has been indicated here.
