6 Asian Legal Business | January-February 2025 India’s legal landscape has bloomed with specialised firms this past decade, driven by global deals and complex regulations. While heritage firms lean on established networks and tested systems, newcomers navigate tougher waters, as clients heavily weigh reputation. A firm’s early handling of talent, operations, and market presence often shapes its future survival. Two fundamental assumptions I had to challenge after two decades at a top-tier firm were around fixed costs and talent scaling. Rather than following the traditional playbook of investing in premium office space and rapidly building large teams, we took a different approach. First, I recognised that high fixed costs in real estate and infrastructure wouldn’t add proportionate value to client experience. Choosing serviced suites and cloud-based encrypted systems not only reduced our administrative burden but freed up significant time and capital to focus on investing in knowledge management and technology thereby delivering premium, hands-on service, thereby enhancing client experience. Second, the conventional wisdom of building large teams needed rethinking in the AI era. While talent is relatively affordable initially in India, team costs compound significantly over time as associates grow and salaries increase. Instead, we maintain a leaner, more focused team where associates get intensive mentoring and faster growth by focusing on high-value work, while AI handles routine tasks, so we are essentially getting the bench strength without fixed costs. We started ThinkLaw right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. I believe adversity creates opportunity, and COVID-19 created the perfect platform for high-performing professionals. Clients quickly realised that it was the individual, rather than the firm, who was advising/representing them that mattered, as virtual meeting platforms were great equalisers. It was important to demonstrate to clients that we were here to stay, particularly during the uncertain COVID-19 environment. One expects client acquisition to be the toughest challenge for recently established law firms, but surprisingly, we found clients to be very supportive in this journey, with most of them choosing to continue their relationships with us. What was more challenging was establishing a clearly defined culture from day one, along with the things we wouldn’t compromise on. Mutual respect, cohesiveness, and a collaborative but merit-driven approach were some of the cornerstones we chose to define us. It was also pleasantly surprising that clients weren’t really interested in getting discounts as long as we provided high-quality and strategy-driven legal advice. When I started The Valid Points, my prior experiences taught me that financial success in a law firm was primarily driven by maximising billable hours; and the best way to grow the firm was by trying to serve as many different types of clients as possible. However, I learned the hard way that the long-term success of the firm has more to do with fostering a positive and sustainable culture that emphasised work-life balance, professional development, and long-term career growth. Being a completely virtual firm, we could introduce flexible hours, create greater opportunities for CLEs or skill building, and create a more supportive environment for personal wellness. Investment in culture paid off through loyalty and higher-quality client service. Being a generalist firm made it difficult to build a strong reputation or attract high-quality clients who valued deep knowledge in a specific area; and therefore, I made the decision to focus on key specific area of law (e.g., data protection) and position the firm as a leader in that niche. This involved refining our marketing strategy, developing specialised content, and building relationships within that sector. Teething lessons FORUM Shameek Chaudhuri founder, Avyakta Law Tushar Ajinkya founder, ThinkLaw Neeraj Dubey founder, The Valid Points Law Offices Reflecting on your firm’s early days, what were the most surprising lessons you learned about managing a law firm that fundamentally challenged your initial assumptions?
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