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Avaantika Kakkar, Partner, Competition Law, Khaitan &Co., on challenges and landmarks of a career incorporate lawPosted by: Donnie Ashok in Featured Insights, Interviews, Partners, General Counsels & Senior Advocates 1 day ago Comments

Avaantika Kakkar, a 2003 graduate of Indian Law Society’s Law College, Pune, is

currently a Partner at Khaitan and CO., heading its Competition and Antitrust Law

practice. Soon after graduating, she published her book, “A Perspective on Product

Liability Law and Consumer Safety”, and she continues to take active interest in

academia, especially if it is linked to Competition Law. In this interview, she tells us

about:

The passion for indulging in research and how it helps build character;

Getting one’s work published;

The challenging path to success in a niche area like Competition law;

The nature of a corporate job; and

The importance of balancing personal and private life (with some great musical

recommendations to help students find the crucial balance).

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4/18/2016http://superlawyer.in/avaantika-kakkar-partner-competition-law-khaitan-co-challenges-...

How would you like to introduce yourself to our readers?

Simply, I am Avaantika.

What would you like to share with our readers about your timespent at ILS Pune, both within and beyond the classroom? Howdid the city itself play a part in your legal education?

ILS Pune has a fantastic library – that was my favourite hang-out. It’s a college that

allows you to be what you want to be and in my time, at least, we had a very supportive

and encouraging faculty. We had visiting professors who were practicing lawyers with

superb independent reputations, and they allowed us glimpses into what it would be

like to practice law.

One may miss the perpetual ‘internships’ that colleges in other cities offer, but at ILS,

the good part is that you have all that time for a real, college life, and you use your

vacations for internships and practical exposure.

About Pune – what can I say? I love the city and keep going back! It accommodates my

beautiful Alma Mater, in the heart of the city, with its own scenic hill-side (which

students and teachers of the college along with the residents of Pune have to defend

against the occasional threats of flyovers and by-pass roads!).

I lived on what constituted both sides of the city back then – ILS and CAMP area (the

cantonment). The city has expanded, and too much has changed, however there is

always FTII, MG Road, East Street, Marz-O-Rin and THoaks (Thousand Oaks, for the

uninitiated)!

During your time spent there, what, if any, extra-curricular or co-curricular activities did you take up? How did the same affectyour learning experience and prepare you for the legal sector?

Moot courts and debates, of course. But what I enjoyed most was writing – I finished

my book on product liability in India while I was in college. Of course, I felt it was ahead

of its time and was never the bestseller that I had intended it to be but, yes – writing it,

editing it, and finally, getting it published was a great learning curve. This has helped in

moulding the writer in me, and I remain deeply involved with the publication initiatives

at Khaitan & Co, and I type really fast!

Did you always have a passion for research or was it an acquiredtaste? What specific experiences or circumstances lead you towrite your book on product liability and consumer safety?

I always had a passion for research – still do.

I guess I wrote on the subject because, in my naïve-student-mind, I felt that this was a

subject on which very little had been written, and I was inspired with all that sparkle in

the law of torts.

What advice would you give our readers looking to enter academiaand publish their own work?

It really depends on what you are looking to publish. There are many opportunities

now, with online publications for short essays and articles that make it easier than it

was. I had managed some publications in international law journals that solicited legal

writing by students. There is also self-publishing, whether through e-books or

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traditional methods (but I would use that after exhausting all other options). Law book

publishers are always on the look-out for more subjects and good writing. In fact, they

still receive, read and respond to unsolicited manuscripts. Then, there is the Big 6 (or

whatever the number is now) and the option of publishing great reference texts or non-

fiction through them, but these would have to be extremely meaningful and insightful

works that interest the publisher commercially.

How would you say research publications impact one’sunderstanding of the law and the legal system? Further, how doesthe same impact one’s employability or desirability to prospectiveemployers?

Research publications help one dive deep into the subject – you become alert to

nuances and learn to articulate your thoughts. I think that ours is a field that will always

value clear-thinking individuals who are able to get to the depth of a problem (and also

out of it!). Quality publications (or writing) are often an ask of almost every practice,

including Khaitan & Co. and Nishith Desai Associates (where I worked for a brief

period).

Given your extensive work withCompetition Law in India, whatwould you like to share with ourreaders about the same as arelatively newer area of law inIndia?

Competition Law is exciting because it’s a

developing law in India. We are a nascent

jurisdiction and it is great to be so deeply

involved in the creation of precedent. The

really challenging (and thrilling) aspect of competition law is that it puts you in direct

touch with the conduct of, and incentive for, businesses across sectors. It’s a great

practice area for lawyers who like research – one aspect of this law is that both the

regulator and the practitioners look for precedent from jurisdictions that have been

around much longer.

About antitrust and competition law in general, what experiences,internships, or other activates would you say are essential toanyone looking to specialise in this field, during or after lawschool?

It helps to have studied the subject extensively (this is true for most practice areas,

actually). The challenge is that the subject is not always formally taught in Law Schools

so one has to look for online courses or specialised short courses, which are a good

start.

I also think that a background in M&A, general corporate and commercial laws, or

litigation experience, goes a long way in making a comfortable transition into this

super-specialised field.

How do you see the future of competition law in India as, and whatwould you advise those looking to enter the same field? To what

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extent do you see it as a niche area within the general sphere ofcorporate practise?

Yes, competition law could be a niche practice, but I think that the general sphere

constitutes an overlap of corporate practice (of course) as well as litigation, commercial

laws, data protection, and intellectual property laws, at the very least. I actually see the

practice of competition law as rather a melting pot of all of these practice areas. Also, it

is already becoming a standalone practice across the firms that were first movers in this

area and in the future, I see it as a very important constituent of full service law firms. I

also see a future for boutique competition law firms – in the more distant future.

When and how did you identify competition and antitrust law asyour specialization? How did your career path or trajectorychange after that?

(Avaantika worked earlier at Udwadia & Udeshi in their general corporate advisory,

and later moved on to broader corporate and commercial matters at Nishith Desai

Associates)

My varied background and diverse experience with complex corporate structuring,

advisory work on the commercial side, transactions on the secondary market, my

exposure to listing work as well as going private (delisting transactions) and the time

that I spent on structured finance and the contentious matters that I was involved with,

have all helped me work as a competition lawyer who has some value add.

I know that today, there is a strong emphasis on specialisation from the day that

students graduate – I think this is an unfortunate development of our times, and I was

lucky that I had mentors, great guidance and the opportunity to choose specialisation

when I had had at least 6 years of varied experience across practices.

My career path is largely in line with what one may expect. Competition law allows for

intellectual satisfaction and deep academic fulfilment.

What would you like to share with our readers about the generalwork environment and the demanding nature of a corporate sectorjob?

(As a partner at Khaitan & Co Avaantika has led multiple mergers and acquisitions,

and acted as an advisor on many transactions and joint ventures, etc.)

It’s the same everywhere, really. I don’t know of any job that does not demand a deep

mental and physical commitment from you. It helps if you let this great profession

define who you are. At some level, it impacts who you are as a person, which is not

always a bad thing.

Take some time off, read, get some exercise (or, watch a movie!), spend time with your

family, but be equally focussed and committed to your profession.

I haven’t really found the answer to how one copes with the demanding nature of a job

– the truth is, you just have to find balance whenever you can, and it isn’t a very precise

scale that you weigh your experiences on!

It is obviously great to cultivate hobbies and have interests outside of work but there

will be days, in fact, weeks and sometimes a few months, when it will be maddening!

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What would you like to say about the trade off, if any, between apersonal life outside the office and effort required to make it asan advocate?

Law is a bad wife. But, she makes a good mistress, right? You have to be there for her!

The law, the practice of medicine and at least a few other jobs (rather professions), do

require us to be on our toes, work hard, work smart and do what it takes to stay

relevant. This is a constant, unending process (I am sure most senior, successful

doctors and lawyers would vouch for this).

It helps to surround yourself with family (and friends) that support your passion and

your ambition – this is often tougher than finding balance at work (because we don’t

always get to choose our families!).

Having said this – prioritise your work. Prioritise your life. I don’t think that we can

lead a life without regrets, but regret is an avoidable circumstance! Some things are

pretty obvious – I, for instance, would take no pride in describing how I missed out on

important moments in my life or with my family. But, at the same time I take great

pride in my work and am unapologetic about its excruciating demands – my work

defines who I am – this is who I hold myself out to be – there is therefore, no scope for

any misrepresentations!

Finally, what would be your parting message for our readers, mostof whom are law students and young lawyers?

Work hard, work smart – most of all, enjoy what you do. Give in to the effort that it

requires, don’t feel sorry for yourself and try not to take yourself too seriously.

I love advising students to read (possibly listen to) Baz Lurhmann’s words. Also,

listen to The Gambler by Kenny Rogers – let it play in your head and guide you as you

make the choices that will come to define you, as an individual and as a professional.

Tagged with: COMPETITIONCOMPETITION ILSILS KCOKCO LAW FIRMLAW FIRM

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