Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co (SAM & Co) Competition Partner, Naval Satarawala Chopra, was named as one of the top 40 antitrust practitioners around the world in the “40 under 40” list released by Global Competition Review this December. Global Competition Review is the one of the most well-regarded international antitrust publications for antitrust lawyers, enforcers and in-house counsel, in the world. In its fifth edition, the coveted list (which is published every four years) profiles the brightest young talent in the antitrust world, marking out those who have demonstrated their unquestioned promise to be a part of the next generation of leading antitrust practitioners by taking on leading roles in antitrust in their jurisdictions. This list is a product of peer-review with selected lawyers being nominated by their peers at law firms, economic firms and enforcers. Past recipients of this honour include, Richard Whish, who is now a world renowned professor at King’s College, London; Paul Crampton, who is now Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Canada; Marc van der Woude, who is now a Judge at the General Court of the European Union; and Nicholas Green who is now a British High Court Judge.
Naval, 35, also earns the unique distinction of being the first ever Indian lawyer to feature in the GCR 40 under 40 list. “I am honoured on being selected in the GCR 40 under 40 list and being the first Indian lawyer to have achieved this. It is demonstrative of the growing importance of India on the world antitrust map. However this honour is equally a product of the faith of my clients, the dedication hard work of my colleagues and the opportunity provided to me by the Firm.” Commending Naval on this achievement, the Executive Chairman, Mr. Shardul Shroff added “We are very proud of this new feather in Naval’s professional hat and for bringing this honour to the firm. Given our constant endeavour to be best in class, Naval’s achievement will propel our competition practice even further.”
Now an equity partner in the 22 member competition practice at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co, Naval was elected to partnership in 2012 at the age of 32, after joining the firm in 2009. Before that, the first five years of his career at the India desk of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in London after completing completed his LL.B from ILS Law College, Pune and then his LL.M. at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. As one of the first few competition lawyers in the now growing antitrust bar in India, he has acted on some of the marquee cases in the last 6 years of competition law in India, across enforcement, mergers and compliance matters before the Competition Commission of India and the Competition Appellate Tribunal. In particular, Naval has built a formidable practice in the area of Abuse of Dominance and particularly, on issues interfacing intellectual property and information technology, for which he is sought out by international companies and law firms. His clients include Microsoft, Facebook, SingTel, National Stock Exchange, Uber, Singapore Airlines, HT Media, Bharat Matrimony, iBall and VeriFone.
In addition to his private practice, Naval also worked closely with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and the Competition Commission of India in the finalisation of the Indian merger control regime in 2011. He co-authored an article titled “The Curious Case of Compulsory Licensing in India” which was awarded the Best Article on Unilateral Conduct in the Business Category, at the Global Antitrust Writing Awards and Ranking 2013. In 2014, Naval instituted a diploma course on competition law at his alma mater, ILS Law College, Pune, where he teaches part time.
Naval has also been acknowledged by Chambers & Partners, 2015 as a “master strategist” who is known for his “very sound handle on Indian law” and his “ability to think out-of-the-box and find solutions by balancing the law and commercial considerations”. The Indian Lawyer 250 also recognised him as “a very impressive young lawyer”, who shows “a great level of responsiveness and client sensitivity”, particularly in merger control matters. He has also consistently featured in the international Who’s Who of Competition Lawyers and Economics for the last 4 years. In addition, the Firm’s competition practice is the only one to be featured in Band 1 for India, in the Chambers & Partners Guide.
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