Former HSA Advocates exec to join Indialaw as M&A partner

“Dutta is joining the Delhi office to develop the Indialaw’s M&A, PE and corporate commercial practice,” said a person privy to the development. “Besides, she will also be an independent member of the internal complaints committee for sexual harassment of women for various companies.”

An alumnus of Symbiosis Society’s Law College, Pune, Dutta had started her career as an associate at HSA Advocates in 2007. She quit the law firm in 2016 as an associate partner to be on her own.

Indialaw has offices across Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Cochin, Ahmadabad, Navi Mumbai and Pune. The firm has 10 partners and about 150 lawyers. The move was first reported by LegallyIndia.

“More and more law firms are looking to hire M&A and transaction advisory lawyers,” said a Mumbai-based founder of a legal search firm. “Partners with 12-15 years of experience, who can move along with their teams are in demand.”

Recently, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co had promoted its M&A and private equity advisory partner Raghubir Menon as regional practice head for the western region. Menon and two other partners, Natashaa Shroff and Ekta Gupta, had relocated to Mumbai along with a team of associates.

The law firm had also poached five partners and over 30 lawyers from smaller rival BMR Legal to ramp up its M&A and deal advisory practice in Mumbai, besides other geographies.