The Counsel(lor): Advocate Niranjan Reddy

Over the past few weeks, The Recruiters has covered Partners at some of the country’s largest law firms. The idea behind these Q&A series is to assist fresh law graduates or young lawyers interested in pursuing a career in a corporate law firm..The Counsel(lor) follows roughly the same path, with interviews of senior counsels from different parts of the country. Each counsel is asked questions related to one’s growth and development in the legal profession..This time around, we have advocate Niranjan Reddy in the hot seat, and this is what he had to say..Bar & Bench: How does one choose a senior? Trial Court or appellate Court?.Niranjan Reddy: Rather than opting to choose a senior to work with, it would work better if one chooses the kind of work that one would like to learn or work on. One can thereafter choose the office or senior practicing in that area of work..It would be helpful to choose and join an office that has sufficient work and also believes in delegation. While it would be advisable to do trial work for a short period, it is not imperative..B&B: Can one negotiate a salary?.NR: In litigation it would be advisable not to negotiate a salary particularly while interacting with a person above 40 years of age. People above the said age are trained in the philosophy that the amount paid by a senior is to be treated as allowance/ stipend/emolument rather than salary..Rather than negotiating a salary, it would be helpful to do a background check on the kind of salaries paid to the junior colleagues by an office, before making an application..B&B: What are the mistakes most commonly made? How do I avoid them?.NR: Being lost in one’s own perspective of the matter or case and failing to realize that such views are extremely subjective and each person views the case differently and from different points of view..How to avoid: One needs to be aware of this and constantly remind oneself..B&B: Should I clerk with a Judge? Does that help my future prospects in litigation?.NR: A clerkship with a Judge would expose a person to a wide spectrum of issues on the litigation side and will also give a ringside view of the working of the legal system..However, in my view, it does not, by itself, ensure better future prospects. The knowledge gained, though, could surely be put to great use as a litigation lawyer..B&B: Does a Post Graduate Degree/Doctorate help a litigation lawyer?.NR: No. However a PG degree and Doctorate in a specialized area would increase the comfort level of a litigating lawyer when dealing with and aruguing cases in that particular branch of specialization..However, one needs to be wary of being an academic exhibitionist and showing off one’s deeper acquaintance of learning in that law..B&B: What is the networking/PR exercise a litigation lawyer must cultivate?.NR: Networking/PR exercises in litigation, if that is the correct expression, would have to be nuanced and subtle. One has to do this without being in breach of the ethics prohibiting soliciting of work. All that a lawyer is required to do is to let his acquaintaces and people know by holding out information that he is practicing law in a particular court or branch of law without soliciting work directly. This would help the prospective client recall the lawyers name if and when he requires any legal assistance in that particular court/branch of law..B&B: What are the personality changes a litigation lawyer may have to adapt as a court room strategy?.NR: One needs to be extremely malleable in a court room as the strategy would change from court to court and judge to judge. Even within the same court/Judge one needs to be adept at assuming a different personality depending on the judge’s initial disposition to the case. One therefore needs to be conscious and aware of the necessity of being a different person each time rather than arguing as a force of habit..B&B: Why litigate?.NR: The practice of litigation affords an opportunity to deal with varied branches of law. The challenges, the unpredictability, the excitement and the adrenailine rush are what most litigation lawyers count as reason for their continuance in litigation.