King & Wood Mallesons may have claimed the mantle of the best known Australian-Chinese firm, but who is the top Australian-Indian firm? A low key New Delhi and East Coast Australian operation is hoping to claim that title.

The firm is called Kaden Boriss and it has offices in New Delhi, Sydney and Canberra. The firm has also recently entered the Brisbane market with the acquisition of local firm MVM Legal, welcoming MVM partners Jamie McPherson and Damien van Brunschot into the fold.

The firm uses a verein structure and has 13 partners and about 100 staff. Five of those partners
are in Sydney and five are in New Delhi and the firm is also foreshadowed by the opening of a further office in Dubai. “We hope to open Dubai within six months, but we need regulatory sign off,” said chairman, Sunil Lal.

Lal, formerly a partner at Hunt & Hunt, joined forces with a contact in New Delhi in 2008 to establish the firm now known as Kaden Boriss. The Australian arm of the firm originally had a strong insurance focus while the New Delhi operation was a full service commercial entity. However, the Australian firm has since developed a reputation for assisting corporates – ranging from private investors through to blue chip ASX listed entities – to establish businesses in India. The Australian firm provides consultancy services in this context while the Indian firm takes over when legal advice is required.

It’s a reminder of how large emerging markets present opportunities for those with the knowledge and ambition to penetrate them. “The big end of town likes to boast of alliances, but really there’s no competitor in our space,” said Lal. However, he adds that the firm’s objective is not to compete with the large national firms. “We are here to provide simple, personal service. In India, it’s who you know that gets you through – there’s no textbook [on doing business in India],”  he said. “As someone who grew up here in Australia, I know both sides.”