A&O-YouGov Survey on Liberalisation of Indian Legal Market 96 want Indian legal market to be liberalized 63 want liberalisation within 2 years

According to a report published by independent research agency YouGov in association with Allen & Overy, 96 per cent of the people surveyed believe that there should be some form of liberalization of the Indian legal market..According to a report published by independent research agency YouGov in association with Allen & Overy, 96 per cent of the people surveyed believe that there should be some form of liberalization of the Indian legal market..The research sought the opinions of 301 major stakeholders in the liberalisation debate. Respondents included 100 C-suite executives and 100 general counsel from India’s largest companies, as well as 101 partners and associates from India’s top 50 law firms..Interestingly, only 4% of the respondents believed that the Indian legal market should not be liberalised at all. There seems to be complete consensus amongst the stakeholders who participated in the survey to open up the Indian legal market..The topics covered in the survey included:.The quality of legal services provided by Indian law firmsThe extent of liberalisationThe impact of liberalisationThe impact of other legal changesThe timing of liberalisationThe conditions of liberalisation.The results of the survey throw up some interesting figures, namely:.78% voted for partial liberalisation as opposed to complete liberalisation of the market,98% of Indian law firm partners feel that the market should be liberalised;90% either “Strongly Agree” or “Agree” that liberalization will lead to easier access to international legal expertise;71% of Indian business leaders feel that liberalisation will make their business more globally competitive;79% of respondents say foreign law firms should be allowed to employ and go into partnership with Indian lawyers, and merge with Indian law firms, to practise both Indian and foreign law;63% of respondents believe this should happen within two years;89% “Strongly agree” or “Agree” that liberalisation will lead to more career opportunities for Indian lawyers; and80% agree it will improve pay and work conditions for lawyers in Indian law firms..The survey also showed that the support for liberalisation is not, however, because of any perceived shortcomings in the local legal market itself – 89% of respondents believe the quality of legal services provided to large corporations by Indian law firms is either good (56%) or very good (33%)..Jonathan Brayne, Chair of Allen & Overy’s India Group in the press release said, “This research confirms that as India’s corporate champions continue to expand and compete globally, they see a need for greater choice of legal services at home to ensure their success overseas. It also shows that India’s leading lawyers welcome the opportunities that liberalisation would present for both their clients and their own careers.”.Brayne added, “The possibly surprising outcome of this research is the large level of agreement among the major stakeholders in the liberalisation debate in India. They believe liberalisation should happen, that it will have a positive impact and that it should happen sooner rather than later.”.Allen & Overy developed this research with YouGov in order to understand the views of all Indian stakeholders in the liberalisation debate..Bar & Bench is also conducting a survey on liberalization of Indian legal market. You can read the initial impressions of the survey here.