British commercial law major to expand to India

British commercial law major Beachcroft has announced that it is entering into a joint
venture in India as part of its international expansion plans.

Beachcroft is entering into a joint venture arrangement with the Indian business law firm Khaitan Jayakar Sud & Vohra, which has offices in New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.

The joint venture move is against the backdrop of the likely liberalisation of the Indian legal market sector in the coming years.

The firm said it had made the move in response to clients' increasing requirements for legal advice and services across international boundaries.

Martin Cannon, regional senior partner of Beachcroft's Birmingham office, said: "Increasing numbers of client companies have offices and strategic partnerships overseas.

These exciting new developments will help us to deliver a competitive, cross-border service focused on key European jurisdictions and key emerging markets.

"Our international capability will be founded primarily on close relationships with independent, 'best friend' partner law firms," Cannon said adding the firm's objective is to carve out a niche in day-to-day specialist functions with a concentration on our key client sectors, rather than looking to compete with existing global firms in major  transactional matters.

The company's expansion plans include opening of a new office in Dublin and a network of affiliations in Europe, he said.