This article is written by Suman Chatterjee, Team LawSikho.

Do you know ONE area of law that attracts the fancy of most law students, especially the ones who chant “M&A” day and night?

It’s deal-structuring—especially mergers and acquisitions, financing and investments—where millions of dollars change hands every day.

This smokin’ legal niche gets written about in the books, shown in the movies and occupies the innocent imagination of thousands of starry-eyed young lawyers in India.

Big fancy offices with glass windows.

Armani suits and Bonobos pants.

A sleek combed hairstyle, with a hint of dashing attitude.

Corporate law is all about power and style.

Or, so they think.

We don’t mind if you idolize Mr Specter from the ‘Suits’ BUT…

What we have seen in many LawSikho students and other legal aspirants is that while striving to connect with those lofty perceptions being propagated in the books, movies or elsewhere, they develop unreal expectations about the corporate law world, especially the deal-making niche.

Where the legend starts becoming the truth.

And we at LawSikho do not condone that. We believe in reality and REALITY alone. 

So, in this article, we are going to bust the most common myths that revolve around M&A.

Myth #1. M&A transactions happen only in BIG organizations

I would daresay that this originates because of how corporate law is projected to be…in movies, books or TV.

Yes, if we are speaking about mergers and acquisitions, they get featured because of mammoth-sized deals and the popularity of the companies involved. 

The $180 billion Vodafone-Mannesmann acquisition or the infamous Reliance-BP deal comes to my mind.

But wait! Even startups need to raise loans, right?

Transactions between mid-cap companies do happen often. 

Pre-transaction due diligence, for both big and small companies, is a staple job for corporate lawyers.

Startups and small businesses still need a corporate lawyer to draft a shareholders agreement, manage private placements or even get acquihired.

Corporate law is what you do, and not where you do it.

Myth #2. Corporate law is high-level legal “stuff”. Not for newbies

I have interacted and advised hundreds of law students and even advocates, and most of them concur on one thing: 

M&A is not for new entrants into the legal field.

This cannot be farther than the truth.

The thing is, these students and lawyers are imprinted with what they come across in the media. How can they tackle a Rs 950 crore worth takeover deal right out of law school, right?

But corporate law is not just about mergers and acquisitions.

The corporate transactional practice is also about drafting LoI and shareholders agreements.

It is also about dealing with regulatory authorities like Competition Commission, RBI, SEBI and MCA. 

It is also about strategizing how income can be repatriated back to a foreign investor.

It is also about creating encumbrance on Indian assets to procure External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs). 

It is also about dispute resolution in joint ventures and managing exit mechanisms.

Remember, corporate law spans from M&A to institutional finance to investment laws. 

And you don’t need to waste 5 years under a senior lawyer to learn the tricks of the trade and manage the majority of the day-to-day tasks of a corporate lawyer. 

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In fact, if you join a course like LawSikho’s Diploma in M&A, Institutional Finance and Investment Laws, it might take merely 12 months to acquire hands-on practical knowledge and expertise, commensurate with that of 1-2 years of real-world corporate law experience. 

On to number three then…

Myth #3. Corporate law is being able to digest all sections of the law. Thoroughly

Whoa! Stop right there.

Most students think that to become a corporate lawyer, all you need to learn are the “corporate-related laws” – Companies Act, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, Foreign Exchange Management Act, Competition Act, SEBI Act, and so on.

Unfortunately, it’s not so.

The first thing that you need to learn is how a business works in the real world. Having a strong grasp over accounts and finance is often not a luxury but a necessity for corporate lawyers. Try drafting a post-money cap table in a shareholders agreement with convertible instruments and you will get the point.

Being able to express oneself clearly, concisely and persuasively matters a lot. You are going to have to draft a LOT of agreements and orally negotiate a LOT of deals on a daily basis. Prepare beforehand.

Networking and presentation skills might come in handy since, at the highest level, the corporate world relates strongly with the famous quote by Gordon Gekko: “If you’re not inside, you’re outside.”

Once you got these right, the rest will fall into place. (If you join our course, we will make sure of that.)

To become a successful corporate or M&A lawyer, you need to first understand what they actually do.

As per the Chambers Associate practice guide, the primary responsibilities of a corporate lawyer is as follows:

• Identify your client’s commercial goals.
• Figure out the legal questions around a transaction.
• Conduct legal due-diligence on both sides.
• Advise and partake in negotiating deals.
• Fathom the tax implications of a particular deal structure.
• Ensure compliance with governmental and third-party regulations.
• Overcome anti-trust issues with the governing bodies.
• Draft the contracts and agreements.

It can be directing and supervising an M&A deal.

It can be deciding the investors’ exit rights and their enforceability.

It can also be about facilitating inter-corporate loans. Many companies struggle to structure intra-group transactions in a way which works beneficially for them in terms of taxation and compliance. 

If you are still interested in corporate law, especially M&A laws, institutional finance and investment laws, we have something special for you.

We bring to you our Diploma course in M&A, Institutional Finance and Investment Laws, whereby you will learn:

• Are mergers and acquisitions really the only two kinds of transactions that happen in the M&A world? Or is it much broader than that?

• How does a startup go about scaling up and securing that much craved first round of funding?

• What is the right way to secure FDI in an eCommerce company, especially if it is a cross border one like the Walmart-Flipkart deal?

• How to deal with promoter earnouts, promoter exits and non-compete fees in corporate acquisitions?

• What is the best way to structure an international deal with tax havens and special purpose vehicles (SPVs)?

• What are the important sections of a Due Diligence Report? What is the role of assumptions? How best to suggest action points?

And much more.

With 24/7 online access to course study materials, regular assignments, personal feedback, live classes and doubt clearing sessions, job mentoring and place assistance…

Our course will handhold you through the real-life, practical aspect of M&A, Institutional Finance and Investment Laws, and make you ready to start your corporate law practice once you get the certificate in your hand.

Want to build a career in corporate law? Read the course details here.

(NOTE: Enrolment closes in next 3 days.)

Still thinking?

Wondering how we can bring the industry’s best practices to you?

Why not come and see the
LawSikho team live in action?

Come and join our special M&A workshop to be held at the Powai campus of MNLU, on 14th and 15th March 2020 from 10:00 A.M. onwards. 

This 2-day workshop is being held in collaboration with Maharashtra National Law University and International Chamber of Commerce – International Court of Arbitration.

Experience the amazing interactions and insights from the experts.

See the LawSikho team in action.

Have a taste of how our courses may feel like.

It’s a once-in-a-blue-moon chance to be in the midst of many law students, lawyers, in-house counsel, M&A experts, and of course, the LawSikho founders. 

Don’t miss it!!

To register, all you need to do is send us an email to the following event supervisor:

Komal Shah, Co-Founder and Content Head, LawSikho

Email: [email protected]

So, what are you waiting for?

Comment below right now and register your seat for this exclusive workshop.

We will be waiting for you.

P. S. All our premium courses are covered by a 30-days full money-back guarantee. Don’t hesitate and try our courses 100% risk-free!