5 Top Benefits of Blogging (for lawyers)

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August 14, 2016

A Law Students Musings After The First Internship At A Court

This post is anonymous because while I wanted to share the expressions of a very young law student, I did not want him to face any troubles because of this. It is a heartfelt observation of a very young mind, which we should read to understand how our court system destroys the idealism in young lawyers, and take this in a positive spirit. – Ramanuj

I had interned in the District Court in Bhopal this summer break. In the previous semester we had a course of Legal Method in which we were taught as to how the law should be applied and how in actual cases it is applied. It was a kind of introduction to the jurisprudence of law. That course taught me a lot of things as to how flawed the application of the law is and it sometimes made me wonder that the injustice they show in the movies in courtrooms actually happens that blatantly. I had a strong notion that our justice system was pretty good and the power and politics as shown to us might all be a bit too hyped. However, in that course where the evolvement of justice system from a very basic level to a much more complex level as we have now was discussed, it opened my perspectives about the application of laws in practical situations. And my internship in this summer break furthered those notions even more when I saw everything going around myself.

The biases of judges was one thing that had just been stuck in my mind from the first few classes of the courses. “How can a judge make a totally unbiased decision?” was the question that I used to ask myself very often and I don’t have an answer yet. And this question holds more gravity than ever now that I have seen judges from actual courts make actual decisions affecting people’s lives. I thought that the theory taught in the course was a bit too critical on the justice system. Afterall, it is a system which has been prevalent for centuries now, a judge will decide the dispute of two parties. But now when I think about this, I just cannot help myself from thinking about the reason behind these judges in deciding the cases.

I think that every thought that we have is a result of the activities happening around us, and we base our reasons for everything based on these thoughts only. So the question boils down to how can a judge take out this background on which he based the reason of his decision and come to a decision in a totally unbiased manner. Sure there are universal notions regarding many issues, but even those universal notions can be inapplicable in many cases. Justice is not something very objective and it has different notions for everyone.

I also learned about how flawed the lower court system is. The bigger the lawyer, the better chances of your winning the case. Even the judges are more favourable to those lawyers in certain instances just because they are in good ‘personal terms’ with them. Isn’t the whole concept of justice ensuring equality? Doesn’t the so called ‘justice system’ comes crumbling down by this? Even though this has been reiterated number of times in the critique of the justice system, there is a need for change in the basic units of justice like these district courts so that people who can’t afford big lawyers who ensures you winning rather than ensuring justice are at least given an opportunity at par with people who can.

Should You Become a Campus Ambassador? What Should You expect?

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August 14, 2016

A New Trend - Should You Become a Campus Ambassador? What Should You expect?

Do you want to become a campus ambassador? Does it help a student?

Here is an article by Anupam from RMLNLU, Lucknow. What happened when he became a campus ambassador of MTV? Over to Anupam.

One summer evening I got a call from a person who told me he was calling from MTV. He asked me if I would like to become their campus ambassador in my college. I was surprised because it was out of the blue and to an extent flattered. I had never applied to them. And they offered incentives such as goodies, invitations to MTV parties and meeting with VJ’s. Even though I had my doubts about the genuineness of the offer, I agreed. I could see no potential harm.

These days the internet is full of Campus Ambassadors offers. It is the latest marketing technique and almost every brand is trying to make the most of it. Of late even political parties have used it as a tool to promote themselves among the youth. It’s a not at all expensive and gives a personal touch to the social networking promotions by these brands. So far, so good. But what about the campus ambassador? Does it help the poor guy doing the running around?

There is no straight answer to this. If you see the job from the lens of a student, the job might seem full of hardships. It for sure eats into your time, which can be better utilized for academic assignments. There have been times where I had to choose between the two. And that has lead me to overshoot deadlines and face the wrath of my handlers (obviously I can’t let my grades suffer). The college administration offers no relaxation as they don’t really care about the roles you pick up which are not concerned with college. Being in a student committee can at least get you attendance in case you are falling short. Also no</span> one is grateful enough for the work you do. Hardly anyone

Also no one is grateful enough for the work you do. Hardly anyone cares, unless you are distributing freebies and the most that will happen is some fellow students despising you for landing such an opportunity. But it also helps keep you busy for the times when there is nothing to do. I had of such moments when there was absolutely nothing to do (there is always an option to sleep but I was tired of that too).

But if you keep the role of a student aside, such opportunities have a lot to offer. If you look at the bigger picture it teaches you some qualities that never go waste. For one it teaches you how to control and make optimum use of the resources at your disposal. You may be given a task without a modus operandi and you have to figure out on how to go about it. There is almost total autonomy. Time management and prioritization are of essence. Sometimes some of your activities might suffer, so you end up finding creative ways to mitigate the damage. Making difficult choices might not seem difficult anymore. The feeling that you are a part of a big organization always makes you feel good. In my opinion it teaches you qualities that one can only garner through practical experiences.

Initially I was frustrated by the lack of clear communication with my handlers and thought my fears of it being a sham are coming true. But with time I got a hang of how things are to be done. Often I am rewarded with goodies and invitations to their parties. They also invite me to their shooting sets (unfortunately the sets are in Mumbai; too far for me to go). All in all, my experience as a campus ambassador has been very rewarding.

A Simple Guide For Law Students To Improve Public Speaking

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August 14, 2016

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A Simple Guide For Law Students To Improve Public Speaking

Nikunj Agarwal from RMLNLU writes about how to improve your public speaking skills. This would be really helpful unless you are already a very good speaker. Over to Nikunj.

Oratorical skill, public speaking, and the like. Perhaps a perfect match to give a few, horror of their lives. Let’s accept this straight. Many amongst us suffer from, what is technically called, Glossophobia i.e. Fear or Anxiety of Public Speaking. The magnitude of this ‘social<!–more–> phenomenon’ can be outrageous. According to some sources, fear of Public speaking outranks the fear of Death in North America. It only evidences the fact and scale of ubiquity of this phenomenon.</p>
<p>So, if you are one amongst those experiencing this ‘social phenomenon’, you absolutely need to do two things. First, sit in your chair calmly and breathe! Second, read through this article.

Before I begin writing any suggestions on ‘How to improve your Oratorical skills or Public Speaking drastically’ I need you to ask yourself one question – Are you willing to give yourself to a cause? Are you committed to one of the most demanding responsibilities: the responsibility of transforming and excelling your own self?

Before attempting anything new, one should always keep in mind that every big goal has a small step towards its realization; as they say in China ‘ a journey of thousand mile begins with a single step’.

As the title suggests, I am going to focus on how we can use the time while we are in college for the purpose of improving our Oratorical skills. The reasons are many. College time is one of the most productive and reformative periods of our life where we are consciously and unconsciously involved in developing our own selves. The learning curve remains on a gradual rise. Thus, the college period is probably the period when time is most ripe for challenging yourself and pushing yourself to the limits. This period is also unique in two different perspectives: opportunity and convenience.

College time is probably the only time wherein the forum on which you can challenge yourself would be available in plentitude. No month in the calendar would go with a scant of competitions or other forum where you can participate and develop your oratorical skills. Ranging from the traditional and general platforms like debating competitions, literary events to more specific and subject oriented platforms like Seminars, presentations and additionally ,in case of law students, Moots. All these opportunities are platforms where you can test yourself and develop yourself.

The other reason, which I called the reason of ‘convenience’, is the fact that college time is in some way an ‘entrepreneurial time’ of your life. This is the time period where success and new initiatives, if successful, are rewarded in various ways. The best part is that even failures leave you with an experiment, an experience which can again be a guiding light, a lesson for you to improve yourself in very many ways. Remember, third time is a charm!

All these reasons give a golden opportunity that might be available again only when pigs fly. Thus, buckle up to push the limits right now.

Ask any personality developer and he will suggest that ‘Smart work trumps hard Work’. And certainly, you would not want to push the wall tirelessly without moving it an inch!

Logic would tell us that before attempting an answer it is prudent to ascertain the question. Sounds axiomatic? Indeed it is. But what many fail to analyze is the cause of their misery, the reason which gives them sleepless nights and uneasy stomachs and keeps them on pins and needles.

Every person hesitant with public speaking has either of the two issues: first, a lack of understanding of the subject on which speech is to be delivered or second, a psychological barrier such as fear, anxiety, social embarrassment or the like. But, the good news is that whatever it might be of the two, the solution is available and it is absolutely not a rocket science!

Consider a situation, If Mr. Melodious, a prodigious singer, was told to deliver a speech on ‘analytical evaluation of problems in cryogenic engines for space flights’ to an audience comprising of friends, relatives, musicians, scientists what do you think the situation would be ? Mr. Melodious has done many many stage performances and stage fright or Glossophobia would be the last thing perhaps you would expect him to be afraid of. Still, why would Mr. melodious, a man of average intelligence in this information age, will hesitate to face the audience? Is it because of the audience? Probably not, there are acquaintances there. Is it stage fright? No. What would put Mr. Melodious out on a limb is not the fact that he is glossophobic but the more generic cause: ‘Lack of familiarity with the subject’. At this moment Mr. Melodious, howsoever confident he might be in terms of psychology and personal motivation, would face difficulty in delivering this speech either to the public or to a friend at an informal conversation because of his lack of knowledge on the issue at hand. The problem here thus, is not about public speaking but about the subject. Change the topic and Mr. Melodious may astound you with his brilliant oratory.

We need to realize that ‘human computers’ and’ ‘walking internets’ exist only in utopia and even the most brilliant among us can come to face with situations where the lack of familiarity with the topic can be an impediment in a speech irrespective of the platform or forum.

The main focus thus, should be on that situation in which the impediment is not any external factor but is something more personal, specific and psychological. It is something which arrests our ability or propensity to face the audience and muster the courage to deliver the speech.

A simple Google search would reveal the galaxy of resources which would reiterate the same proposition: Fear is the cause of your problem (e.g. http://zenhabits.net/fear-not/). I would prevent this article from becoming a repetition of the same high and loud words suggesting the need for having an ability of public speaking; it’s relevance in the contemporary age and time. I would also not reiterate just how willpower can be a driving force to a annihilate your problems (you may like to check the book THE WILL POWER INSTINCT by Kelly McGonigal on this point) or how you can learn almost anything in just 20 Hours (See : http://first20hours.com/)

I would come to the core straight. But before that, from personal experience, I would suggest a few things, when you go to the stage or the podium etc. from where you have to deliver the speech just take a deep breath and be relaxed. Do NOT take your audience to be your enemies or cause of your sorrow. Be relaxed and engage the audience to what you are speaking. You can be as interactive as possible or can keep your speech as monologue as you want it to be (remember how the speakers at TED keep the whole affair). The point in both these situations is to engage your targeted audience.

‘When in Rome do what Romans do’, keep your speech as comprehensive as possible. Set the standard in reference to your audience. When a technical or an audience aware with the idiosyncrasies and nuances of the subject comes across the jargon, it may be a daily affair. But, to a more generic audience it would always be suggested to put across your point in such a manner that your audience can interpret, comprehend and appreciate the point. Someone indeed said ‘write not to be understood, but in such a way so that you cannot be misunderstood’ but, at the end of the day, a successful conversation is one which is engaging and effectively communicates the point across the audience. Remember it is your ATTITUDE which will keep you off the hook.

Now, coming to the issue at hand, what all can be done to ‘drastically’ improve your ability of public speaking. Well as the maxim goes, variety is the spice of life, the best possible way to improve on your public speaking skills is to diversify and try your hand at different types of activities.

It would be improper in facts to propose that there are different types of speech. It all essentially boils down to one thing- Speaking your mind out. Your dedication and effort is your seed capital.Yet, depending upon the stylistics, occasion, and method, there may be different activities or different platforms which would embellish one particular sphere of the ability of public speaking (this is not to suggest that any event would improve you in singular way. The remedying effects of even one particular type of activity can be multifarious!). Following is an enumeration of those opportunities which are generally available to every student at college and which can be grabbed to work upon your ability to public speaking.

College literary or Debating Committees

Every institution actively involved in debating or literary competitions would have one such committee. Such committees can be very helpful to a person who wants to improve upon their public speaking skills. If you join one such committee it has added advantage. You not only come across people who are actively engaged in public speaking but you might also be able to make friends with a few people and in the process get a mentor to encourage and guide you in improving public speaking skills. Membership of such a committee will give you an omnipresent ambience of speaking and related activities. It would also go a long way in learning and mustering confidence towards oratorical skills. I remember a senior who taught me the nuances of parliamentary debating and introduced me to logical fallacies etc. which could be used to improve the quality of my argumentation.

Membership of NGOs or Volunteering for a Social Cause

Public speaking is not just about academic orientation. It is much more than that. It is a practical skill which enables you to face the counter opinion and logically put forth your arguments. Volunteering for a social cause can provide you with opportunities wherein you have to interact with the general lot of masses and, may be, also to interact with people familiar to or working in the field. This exercise will have a considerable impact upon your ability to communicate effectively with a diverse lot of audience.
Remember, public speaking is not just about speaking your mind out in a controlled environment but also in situations where even expressing yourself would require patience and mental acumen.

Debating Competitions

Ask anyone that what is the first thing you can do to improve your oratorical skills and ‘Debating competitions’ may come forth as a tacit reply. Debating not only puts you in a situation where you have to speak your mind out, rather it puts you in a situation where you have to logically evaluate the arguments and have both argue and counter argue. For the moment I assume that the reader is aware of debating and its nuances so I would not elaborate upon the topic.

One thing I would suggest that by participating in debating competitions both as a participant speaker and as an adjudicator, there is a lot one can learn. Every debating competition is a great platform to interact with debaters, adjudicators. It can be a great learning experience both in terms of debating and also speaking skills. The manner and method of putting forward your arguments, how to make a serious proposition look humorous etc. As they say, ‘experience is the best teacher’, you will learn a great deal by actively participating in such events.

Literary competitions such as ‘just a minute!’; ‘Turncoat’

For a brief introduction, turncoat competitions are the ones wherein you propose an argument in favor of a particular proposition and then subsequently you contradict or demolish your own argument. Such competitions are great in terms of allowing you to think on foot and also embellish your cognitive abilities and your ability to think on foot.

Seminars, Paper PresentationsPublic speaking is not just about an informal conversation to a cheery audience. It is also about your ability to put across your argument to an audience of every description. Seminars and paper presentations are the platforms where you can learn how to improve your oratorical skills with respect to the technical formalism of your subject. So, if you are giving a presentation on a technical issue to an audience comprising of academicians, students etc. your speech and stylistics would be much different from what they would be when you are participating

Public speaking is not just about an informal conversation to a cheery audience. It is also about your ability to put across your argument to an audience of every description. Seminars and paper presentations are the platforms where you can learn how to improve your oratorical skills with respect to the technical formalism of your subject. So, if you are giving a presentation on a technical issue to an audience comprising of academicians, students etc. your speech and stylistics would be much different from what they would be when you are participating at a debating competition or a literary fest.Abovementioned activities are just a drop in the bucket, if we count the multifarious ways in which you can develop your speaking skills. Every change comes gradually and it is for the best. You only need to be focused and persistent with your efforts. Improvement in you public speaking skills can even be done in more subtle ways than you may think of. Even asking an effective and intelligent question to a teacher in a class can be, in some proportions, an act of improving public speaking skills. As the adage goes, ‘where there is a will there is a way’, probably, for the issue at hand, there are very many ways to count. It all starts at one

Abovementioned activities are just a drop in the bucket, if we count the multifarious ways in which you can develop your speaking skills. Every change comes gradually and it is for the best. You only need to be focused and persistent with your efforts. Improvement in you public speaking skills can even be done in more subtle ways than you may think of. Even asking an effective and intelligent question to a teacher in a class can be, in some proportions, an act of improving public speaking skills. As the adage goes, ‘where there is a will there is a way’, probably, for the issue at hand, there are very many ways to count. It all starts at one thing-your determination and unfailing efforts. All the best. Happy Speaking! Also, remember this one thing: speak your mind, not to impress.

How To Make Courtrooms More Accessible To Visually Challenged People

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August 14, 2016

A Visually Challenged Law Intern Writes About How To Make Courtrooms More Accessible To Visually Challenged People

This article has been brought back from the archives on popular demand. It was first published in now defunct A First Taste of Law. The author, Turab Chimthanawala, is a 3rd year student at Dr. Ambedkar College, Nagpur. He is visually challenged, but does not shy away from rigourous internships at district courts. He is currently interning with iPleaders. We asked him what changes should be made at courts to make them more accessible, and this is what he wrote. Read on, over to Turab.

Make COURTS ACCESSIBLE TO VISUALLY IMPAIRED

Visual impairment is a setback and such people are looked down upon as inferior to other so-called normal people. However such people if given the suitable environment and support, by using their other senses can rise above normal people.

This also applies to visually challenged lawyers and litigants.

Sadly the law courts and legal system in India has turned a blind eye to this fact. This calls for suitable modifications in the Law courts.

Modifications for Visually Challenged Lawyers

Accessibility:

The law courts should be heavily lighted with huge bulbs put up at every corner of the court building. All staircases and the entire structure of the court room should be fitted with neon light to enable better navigation in court room.

A system should be put into place where the impaired lawyers should be informed in advance about the approximate time of different cases in different courts, removing the hassle of repeatedly checking up the boards outside court rooms where things are written so faintly that it is difficult for sighted people. Such updates can be given by SMS. Devices can be set up at the court doors which speak the name of the court as soon as one enters.

Submission of documents:

For the sake of convenience visually handicapped lawyers should be allowed to file documents online.

Proceeding in court:

The martial and peons in courts should be more cooperative and helpful to impaired lawyers and assist them in all prospects instead of taking bribes from them and harassing them.

The impaired lawyers should have the freedom of using PPT while arguing cases especially in High courts and Supreme courts.

The cross examination process should be reformed and modified for visually challenged persons as such processes rely a great deal on facial expressions of the witness which are difficult for the impaired lawyers to comprehend. When the impaired lawyers are conducting cross examination the witness should be allowed to take the help of others .The judges should observe such cases more carefully.

For better output from impaired lawyers there is a need to educate others dealing with such lawyers so as communicate more through words then through actions and expressions.

Every court must have a Website where the lawyers can check the status of their case for e.g.: whether the defendant has filed a written statement. This would be of great benefit to visually challenged lawyers.

E-library:

For the benefit of impaired lawyers the libraries in courts should have e-learning facility and all computers should have soft wares like MAGIC and JAWS installed to help impaired lawyers.

Books especially Bare Acts should be available in Braille.

Modifications for visually challenged litigants

The court is temples of justice and easy and quick justice is the right of every citizen. Thus the courts need to be more sensitive towards needs of visually handicapped litigants.

Accessibility:

The courts need to be more lighted with neon lights put up on staircases and the entire structure of court room. Machines should be installed which speak aloud the name of the court and the judge as one enters the court. The outlay of the court building should be shown through an enlarged map on every floor. In some of the larger courts help desks should be present at the entrance.

Registration of cases:

The persons employed in courts should be more cooperative and sensitive towards the visually handicapped litigants while registering cases. If possible online filing should be introduced.

Notarisation:

The process of notarisation should be reformed where the impaired persons should be given access to an online process.

Proceedings in court:

Suitable amendments should be made in Evidence Act so as to enable blind litigants to give testimony without difficulty. The judges also should ensure that the atmosphere in the court is made suitable for visually impaired litigants.

Documentation:

Visually impaired persons should be permitted to draft documents like wills, gift deeds, agreement to sale etc. electronically and attest them using digital signature as this would lead to their independence and reduce chances of their being cheated.

Conclusion

Hence , by making such alterations in courts and changes in the legal system ,visually handicapped lawyers can bridge the gap and practice to the same extent as full sighted lawyers with utmost zeal and enthusiasm. Such changes would play a pivotal role to make such lawyers independent. It also will allow visually handicapped persons who although passionate about practicing law but apprehensive because of their handicap to do so, may take up law as a career.

As for the visually impaired litigants, such changes will allow them to realise the right to access courts and perform other legal transactions independently and without being duped. It will enable them to live in a democracy like normal citizens.

Blogging @ NALSAR

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August 14, 2016

Some of the top law blogs in the country came from NLSIU and NUJS graduates. Do NALSAR students and graduates blog much? A NALSAR student writes about it. This article has been recovered from archives of now defunct A First Taste of Law.

NALSAR is a small place. From classes at 9 in the morning to dinner at 7 and beyond there’s a uniformity to the pattern of activities engaged in by its inhabitants that may at times be diametrically opposed to each other but are part of the same wavelength. One of the consequences of having a small population and being located in the middle of nowhere far from the city is that everyone knows everyone. Its milling inhabitants keep tabs of each occurrence, snake in the BH, guy in the GH, awesome 4th year placement, new surreptitiously formed moot team, ugly break up, new relationship on the cards, drunk folks at one of the many dhabas outside college, you get the gist. Living in the locales of not so glamorous Shameerpet there are 400 exceptionally diverse souls yet there is a commonality of living, a certain unity of culture. A common mode for the outpourings of so very many young and bright minds would be the blogging sphere and NALSAR has its fair share of the same.

The most renowned blog run by NALSAR students known outside of NALSAR is undoubtedly Clat Gyan a CLAT coaching website cum blog initiated by Mohammad Asadulla Shareef and co. In a cyberspace with CLAT preparation websites sprouting hither and thither it may not be a stretch to say that Clat Gyan is the leader of the bunch. What has made it stand out more so than others though isn’t simply the unmatched quantity & quality of preparatory material made freely available. The Windows section featuring posts by examination toppers and current law students (an overwhelming number of them from NALSAR) see real people share experiences with CLAT aspirants that provides a personal touch. For many of the contributors who once followed CLAT Gyan when preparing for CLAT themselves it is a lot like coming full circle. Blogs such as CLAT Gyan though typify multi author blogs with a large number of contributions that are quite professionally edited and managed.

Some deft Google searching and careful inspection throws up a whole tranche of blogs of a decidedly more personal character. Take 2013 passout Abdaal Akhtar’s blog Sleeping Pill one of the smartest people I’ve ever had the chance to meet or 2010 pass out Manav Kapur’s blog Of Life & Lurrve presently an assistant professor at NALSAR. A glance through their blogs puts you in a time capsule as you see up close their tumultuous journey from their first year (sometimes even before) and random reflections on life until the inevitable passing out from college which in more cases than not is accompanied with intense nostalgia (no, not the teary kind). Such blogs typify a genre where the college features in a peripheral manner and the blogs themselves are more informative about the writer and people than institutions.

Another digital media forum not widely known in public but with a fanatical following within NALSAR is Aap NALSARite Hain. Based on Facebook it is an eternally aflame beacon lambasting all that is wrong (and that which could’ve been) with NALSAR. With a cult like following amongst NALSARites it is tough for outsiders lacking the wealth of institutionalized knowledge and lore known only to those part of the tightly knit student fraternity to follow the same. Whilst this holds true across each college the extent to which non NALSARites can feel lost is akin as much to a Hindi speaker attempting to decipher the Russian script.

Further exploration sees one comes across blogs with a very law specific focus as well. Aditya Swarup’s blog ‘A Social Blog’ & ‘Let’s talk about the Law’ run by multiple authors all passouts now come to mind. These burned bright initially but slowly fizzled out and a visit today show the visitor the long span of time since an update was made. Whilst I cannot claim to speak for all of them the ones that I do know of didn’t continue for a couple of reasons. A prime reason was the increasing academic workload as the years progressed and in other cases successful placements induced a reprioritization of the manner in which students chose to allocate their time. Another blog yet active and aptly titled ‘Still in Law School’ is run by various students from the batch of 2016. Featuring some monthly articles regularly it would be interesting to see whether the blog can continue to exist beyond the batch’s final years at law school if at all till its conclusion.

For a college like NALSAR so absorbed in its internal affairs and everyday life the lack of much online expression as to life inside the college and the engagement with the courses of study may seem peculiar to some. I personally do not find that to be the case for the simple reason that NALSAR is a very competitive place and everyone knows that and is imbued in that culture. Each student is driven and their activities are goal oriented. Not to suggest that students do not know how to unwind but in such an environment opportunities for self reflection or sharing of non purposive experiences is something not very high on a student’s priority list. Alternately it may well be the case that there is missing space that needs filling in. Either way it’s a matter of perspective and which one reigns ultimately is something that only time shall tell.

Why Do You Need An FIRC?

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August 13, 2016

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In this blog post, Dhiren Sehgal, who is currently pursuing a Diploma in Entrepreneurship Administration and Business Laws from NUJS, Kolkata, writes about the concept of FIRC and highlights it’s importance in the economic world.

What is FIRC?

FIRC, also was known as Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate is a documented proof or a testimonial document for all the payments or remittances which are entering India from foreign countries. This document or certificate for that matter can be used as a proof by an individual of payment which has been received by the individual, which is in a foreign currency and is coming from outside the country. This document is regarded or treated as a document of an evidentiary value by most of the statutory bodies, as a means to confirm the validation of the transaction of foreign currency received by the beneficiary. When the money or payment is received from a foreign country, the amount payable is credited to the account of the person receiving the payment, by a body such as banks which have been authorized by the Reserve Bank of India for making that transaction. This sort of a transaction can’t take place when the beneficiary doesn’t have an authorized bank account; this authorization is to be done by the Reserve Bank of India.

The money you’ll be receiving as a remittance will be converted into Indian currency and then transferred into you authorized bank account. The banks arrange for Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate, which contains the following details- original currency, equivalent Indian currency, transferor bank details, etc. According to the procedure, this certificate comes to your account address within 15 days from the date of funds being credited to your account.

A Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate is deemed as a very important document of proof as it serves a lot of purposes. For example, if there are some numbers of shares which have been issued in the name of a beneficiary and the company which has issued the shares exists outside the country, then the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate acts as an evidentiary proof of the money received and also validates the transaction made. The Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate also acts as a testimony in those cases where an Indian resident transfers or sells his shares to a person who’s a non-resident Indian or some foreign entity. Then, the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate can be used as something that will testify that the share purchase consideration has been received by the resident seller in the case. It’s an extremely crucial document which is submitted to the Director General of Foreign Trade in cases of export promotion capital goods and advanced licensing requirements.

In cases where the services are exported, there is no service tax levied on those services which have been laid down in the rules of exporting of services. Also, in similar sort of cases, the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate acts as an important and indispensable proof of the export of services being carried on and the remittances being directed into the country by exporting the services and the remittances received in lieu of carrying these trading of services. There are different subtle elements which are incorporated into FIRC. FIRC conveys the recipient’s name, method of installment i.e. whether the foreign cash currency has been deposited to the account of the recipient or money has been given to him, address and name of remitter, Check/DD/TT no., accurate measure of foreign currency, measure of cash when changed into the currency of the country of recipient, name of the individual in whose support the sum has been sent, reason for the receipt of remittance and rate of trade which is currently prevalent.

Details contained in FIRC

A Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate contains the following details-

Beneficiary’s name
Whether the money has been paid by cash or by crediting the account of the beneficiary
Name and the address of the person being remitted
Name and address of the authorized bank remitting the amount
DD / TT No / Cheque No
The foreign direct investment amount in the foreign currency
The equivalent amount in rupee (should be in figures as well as words)
The name of the person in who’s favor the amount has been remitted
The prevalent exchange rate which has been applied
What the purpose of the respective remittance is as stated by the beneficiary

After these details have been filled out, the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate is then signed by the authorized signatory of the authorized designated bank and is further countersigned by one more person. According to the procedure, the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate has to be issued to the address of the account holder, which normally has to be within a period of not more than fifteen days from the date on which the funds which were to be remitted were credited to the beneficiary’s account in the authorized bank. A Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate is very important to document and if lost, then getting a duplicate certificate issued is an extremely complicated and time-consuming procedure.

There exists confusion as to which bank is authorized and has the jurisdiction to issue a Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate in cases where the inward remittance has been transferred into the beneficiary’s account through more than one bank account. However, as per the clarifications sent out by the RBI notifications and circulars as well as the provisions under FEMA, the first that receives the inward remittance in convertible foreign currency must issue the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate first as it would have the requisite details of the overseas bank which have remitted the foreign exchange.

Conclusion

Therefore, as it has been explained above, the Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate is of great importance when it comes to remittances received from banks which are overseas and not in India. Thus, it is indispensable and necessary that the beneficiaries make it a point and priority to follow up with the banks and get their Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate issued as soon as possible after the inward remittance has been credited. Also, a specific detail and attention needs to be paid for the purpose of foreign direct investment, as any error in the mentioning of this has serious implications and consequences when it comes to remittance, its usage, and accounting of the same.

Securities Issued By A Company To Raise Investment

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August 13, 2016

In this blog post, Gopalakrishnan Arjun, a student of the National University of Advanced Legal Studies, Kochi, who is currently pursuing a Diploma in Entrepreneurship Administration and Business Laws from NUJS, Kolkata, writes about the kind of securities that can be issued by a company when it raises investment.

The following kind of securities can be issued by a company when it raises investment:

Shares:

A share is a type of equity security. The owner of the share owns one part of the capital of the company which has issued the shares in question. A right which accompanies an allotment of the shares is the right to take part in the decision-making of the company. In a situation where the Company earns a profit, the owners of shares will receive dividends. The amount of the dividend is decided upon by the shareholders at a General Meeting of the Shareholders.

Bonds:

A bond is a form of debt security. On the purchase of a bond, one will have no right to participate in the company’s decision-making but will be entitled to the reimbursement of the principal and the interest. The repayment can be made in several ways. The companies may decide that the principal is paid in regular annual instalments or on the maturity of bonds. The refund of the instalments could be made in a fixed amount or may even be variable depending on the inflation rate or the foreign currency. The issuers pay the interest once every year or once every half-year depending on the coupon maturity date.

Open-end funds:

An open-end fund involves a diversified portfolio of securities and similar investments, which are chosen and professionally managed by a fund management company. The fund does not have fixed capital and is rather ‘open ended’. This is the reason why it grows together with new investors joining and thus funding it. These open-end funds can invest in domestic as well as international securities, in either share, bonds or other investment vehicles. The fund’s risk and returns vary by the portfolio.

Normally, these open-end funds are not traded on exchanged. There are only a few exchanges worldwide where open-end fund shares can be bought, but there are exceptions. These open-end funds are usually bought through fund management companies. The trading in open-end fund shares on an exchange involves no entry or exit fees for investors. Broker’s fees only bind them. Investors invest in the fund through a postal or standing order, being charged with an entry fee upon each new purchase and with an exit fee when they decide to sell their fund units. The other option that is exercised by the investors is to buy through a brokerage firm.

Index open-end funds:

In the case of an index open-end fund, the fund management companies allot the investors’ assets to a basket of securities making up a chosen index that tracks the yield of the mentioned index. The big investors invest directly in the fund and the minor investors only trade in fund shares on stock exchanges. Since there is a possibility of arbitrage, the market price of index open-end fund shares does usually not stray from its NAV for more than 1%.

Before the purchase of an index open-end fund unit, a declaration of accession must be signed. After this, the assets are transferred to a special fund account, open at a custodian bank. The fund, upon each purchase, charges appropriate entry and exit fees which can be a maximum of 3%. The fund investors are also charged a management fee of 0.5% of the average annual fund NAV and the costs of custodian services, which is 0.1% of the average annual fund NAV. Each purchase or sale within the fund on the primary market results in a changed number of index open-end fund shares. This, in turn, affects the changes in the size of fund’s assets. The index open-end fund shares are purchased and sold at NAV, as calculated by the management company.

The minor investors can buy index open-end fund shares on the exchange at the price that forms on the market, without entry or exit fees, being charged brokerage fees solely. Exchange trading of index open-end fund shares does not affect the size of capital; while the owners of index open-end fund shares change, the fund’s assets remain unaffected.

Close- end funds:

A close-end investment fund invests its capital in securities by other issuers. The Investment Company is managed by a management company which decides which securities to include in the fund’s portfolio. The investment company pays the management company a management fee. The value of shares of the close-end funds is closely correlated to the value of the company’s shares.

Investment certificates:

Investment certificates are debt securities issued by a bank and are designed to offer the investor an agreed yield under pre-defined conditions stipulated in the prospectus. Issuers are mainly large banks, and an important criterion in selecting the bank in whose investment certificates you would like to invest is its credit rating. Investment certificates represent an investment directly linked to an index, share price, raw material price, exchange rate, interest, industry, and other publicly available values. The holder of an investment certificate does thereby not become an indirect owner of the assets underlying the certificate.

Warrants:

Warrants are options issued by a joint-stock company, which give holders the right to purchase a certain quantity of the respective company’s shares at a pre-determined price. After a certain period, the right to purchase shares terminates.

Incorporation Of A Subsidiary In India By A Foreign Company

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August 13, 2016

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In this blog post, Kavinesh RM, a student of Lloyd Law College, Greater Noida, who is currently pursuing a Diploma in Entrepreneurship Administration and Business Laws from NUJS, Kolkata, writes about the procedure for incorporation of a subsidiary in India by a foreign company.

Introduction

India is the largest democracy and one of the most promising emerging markets in the world. In this article, we look at the ways for incorporating a subsidiary company in India by any foreign country. There are certain rules and procedures which must be followed. The Companies that are incorporated outside India are known as Foreign Companies. As per the 2013 Act, a ‘subsidiary’ is an entity of which the holding company controls more than one-half of the total share capital (either directly or indirectly) or controls composition of the board of directors[1].

Subsidiary Company as per Companies Act, 1956

As per Section 4(1), (b) (ii) of the Companies Act 1956, if a company holds more than half of the nominal value of equity share capital of another company, then such another company is a subsidiary of the first mentioned company.

There is an interesting case on the above subject. In the case of Oriental Industrial Investment Corporation of India vs. Union of India (1981)51 Com Cases 487(Del), the effect of Section 4 and Sections 255, 256 and 257 came up for consideration.

In this case, the High Court observed, inter alia, that the contention of the counsel for the Union of India that “the control of Oriental over the composition of the Board of Poonam Hotels which they exercise by virtue of their agreement dated August 1975 is in contravention of the provisions of Sections 255,256 and 257 of the Act which overlooks the important fact that Section 255 excludes from its purview cases which have been otherwise expressly provided in the Act. The words “save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act” used in Section 255(1) (b) are of commanding significance. Section 4(2) is an express provision for the appointment of the directors on the Board of Subsidiary. This provision is not hit by Section 255 because it is expressly excluded.”

The High Court also observed that “there is no denying the fact that the right of the members of a public company to appoint directors of their choice at a general meeting is greatly abridged when there comes into being a relationship of a Holding and Subsidiary Company. But this restriction is inherent in the definition of the Holding Company. It is firmly embedded in Section 4 of the Act. The ability to control the conduct of the Subsidiary is the hallmark of the Holding Company. The Holding Company is the controlling company. The controlled company is called a Subsidiary.”

Incorporation procedure

For incorporating a subsidiary, the following requirements must be fulfilled.

Two directors are required to apply for DSC (Digital Signature Certificate).
All the directors are required to apply for DIN (Director’s Identification No.).
The applicant is required to apply for the name of the company in Form INC-1.
After obtaining name approval from ROC, an applicant is required to file form INC-7 (Application for Incorporation of Company (Other than OPC)), form DIR-12 (Particulars of appointment of directors and the key managerial personnel and the changes among them) and form INC-22 (Notice of situation or change of address of the registered office of the company) along with Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Company.
After filing of the incorporation documents, ROC fees and Stamp duty is required to be paid online (This is based on the authorized capital of the company).
After the payment of ROC fees and Stamp Duty, ROC verifies the filed documents. Form INC-22 and DIR-12 are approved through the Straight Through Process (STP) and INC-7 form is verified in detail. ROC may suggest some changes in the form or attachment. We will have to make changes accordingly.
Once ROC is satisfied, Certificate of Incorporation is sent through email.

Required documents

The following documents are needed to incorporate a subsidiary in India.

Office address

Address proof (electricity bill or rent agreement and latest electricity bill in case of rented accommodation)

Indian National

PAN Card (mandatory)
Address Proof (Electricity Bill, Telephone Bill, Bank statement or passbook or rent agreement and latest electricity bill in case of rented accommodation)
Photo ID Proof (Passport, Driving License, Voter ID or Aadhar Card)

Foreign National

Passport (Mandatory)
Address Proof (Indian Consulate must certify electricity Bill, Telephone Bill, Bank statement or passbook or rent agreement and latest electricity bill in case of rented accommodation. Document)
Photo ID Proof (Any government license or document containing name in full, photo and date of birth. Document must be certified by Indian Consulate)[2]

Setting up as a Foreign Company

Foreign Companies can set up their operations in India through:

Liaison Office/Representative Office
Project Office
Branch Office

Such offices can undertake any permitted activities. Companies have to register themselves with Registrar of Companies (ROC) within 30 days of setting up a place of business in India.

Liaison Office/Representative Office

Liaison office acts as a channel of communication between the principal place of business or head office and entities in India. Liaison office cannot undertake any commercial activity directly or indirectly and cannot, therefore, earn any income in India. Its role is limited to collecting information about possible market opportunities and providing information about the company and its products to prospective Indian customers. It can promote export/import from/to India and also facilitate technical/financial collaboration between the parent company and companies in India. Approval for establishing a liaison office in India is granted by Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Project Office

Foreign Companies planning to execute specific projects in India can set up temporary project/site offices in India. RBI has now granted general permission to foreign entities to establish Project Offices subject to specified conditions. Such offices cannot undertake or carry on any activity other than the activity relating and incidental to the execution of the project. Project Offices may remit outside India the surplus of the project on its completion, general permission for which has been granted by the RBI.

Branch Office

Foreign companies engaged in manufacturing and trading activities abroad are allowed to set up Branch Offices in India for the following purposes:

Export/Import of goods.
Rendering professional or consultancy services.
Carrying out research work, in which the parent company is engaged.
Promoting technical or financial collaborations between Indian companies and parent or overseas group company.
Representing the parent company in India and acting as buying/selling agents in India.
Rendering services in Information Technology and development of software in India.
Rendering technical support to the products supplied by the parent/ group companies.
Foreign airline/shipping Company.

A branch office is not allowed to carry out manufacturing activities on its own but is permitted to subcontract these to an Indian manufacturer. Branch Offices established with the approval of RBI may remit outside India profit of the branch, net of applicable Indian taxes and subject to RBI guidelines, permission for setting up branch offices is granted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).[3]

Conclusion

The Indian economy poses as an attractive investment arena to the rest of the world. Amongst the various forms of business organization recognized under Indian law, it is not uncommon for most multinational corporations to establish their presence in India by way of incorporating a subsidiary.[4] The Companies Act, 1956 (the Act) governs the legal framework applicable to companies in India, as some of them have been mentioned above. Hence the steps to incorporate a subsidiary in India by a foreign company are cleared in the article.

Footnotes:

[1] http://cacareerupdates.blogspot.in/2015/05/subsidiary-company-under-companies-act.html

[2] http://trak.in/tags/business/2015/04/06/incorporate-a-wholly-owned-subsidiary-india-process/

[3] http://www.dbatra.com/setting-up-business-in-india.html

[4] http://www.supremecourtcases.com/index2.php?option=com_content&itemid=1&do_pdf=1&id=22264

What Employees Should Know About ESOP Deals

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August 13, 2016