To determine India’s most recommended lawyers,  India Business Law Journal  turned to thousands of in-house counsel in India and around the world – as well as India-focused partners at international law firms – and asked them to tell us which lawyers should make the cut.

Lawyers working at Indian law firms were not permitted to make nominations.

Respondents were invited to nominate lawyers to appear on the A-List, and provide a justification as to why each one should be included. They were invited to make nominations in the categories of A-List Lawyers and Legal Icons.

A-List Lawyers were defined on the nomination form as “Lawyers who are currently the star performers of India’s legal profession; the lawyers who are personally undertaking the country’s top legal work, crafting the most cutting-edge legal solutions to complex problems, and setting the highest standards in terms of quality, innovation and the ability to handle complex matters”.

Legal Icons were defined as “Lawyers who are the luminaries of India’s legal profession; the titans who command the respect of clients and juniors alike; the mentors who lead India’s most admired law firms and/or legal teams, and the country’s most prolific rainmakers”.

Almost 6,000 nominations and testimonials were received from professionals at a wide range of Indian and international companies, international law firms and other organisations, including: 3M, Aamby Valley, AB Volvo, Abbott Laboratories, Accenture, Adani Group, Aditya Birla Finance, Adobe, Afcons Group, Air Canada, Air India Express, Airport Economic Regulatory Authority, Airtel, Allen & Gledhill, Allen & Overy, Allianz Capital Partners, Amazon, ArcelorMittal, Nippon Steel, Axis Bank, Bain Capital, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, Bajaj Auto, Baker McKenzie, Baker Tilly, Balaji Telefilms, Bharti Airtel, BlackRock, Brookfield Advisors, Capgemini, Caterpillar, Citibank, Delhivery, Dell Technologies, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, FlightSafety International, Flipkart, Godrej & Boyce, Godrej Agrovet, Hindustan Unilever, ICICI Bank, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, Indiabulls Housing Finance, JNU, Johnson & Johnson, Kotak Mahindra Bank, L&T Finance, Levis Strauss, Magna, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mercedes Benz, Mondelez International, Moody's, Nestle, Ola Electric, PayPal, Paytm, PayU, Reliance Industries, Sahara, State Bank of India, Sembcorp, Stephenson Harwood, Union Bank of India, United Airlines, United Breweries, Visa, Walt Disney Company, Wipro, Zomato, ZTE Telecom, and thousands more Indian and international companies and international law firms.

As always, the A-List reflects the nominations and testimonials received, combined with thorough background research by India Business Law Journal ’s editorial team.