THE ROLE OF LAWYERS IN INDIAN WEALTH

PLANNINGINTERVIEW WITH ABHIJIT JOSHI – FOUNDER OF VERITAS LEGAL

ABHIJIT JOSHI

Abhijit Joshi is the Founding Partner of Veritas Legal.

He was the senior partner and chief executive officer (CEO) at AZB & Partners until November 2104.

He has been involved in some of the major landmark deals, such as the Rs 5,150 crore Tech Mahindra - Satyam Computer Services merger, Usd 2.6 billion Tata -Docomo transaction among many others

Mr Abhijit Joshi started his journey with merely 15 lawyers at AZB which has now grown into an organization that has over 200 lawyers.

INTRODUCTION

Azb & partners has a significant presence in the practice areas of wealth planning and estate planning, says Abhijit Joshi in an interview, even if this isn’t visible to the wider public.

Pointing out the rich experience of senior lawyers at azb, Joshi says that trust coupled with seniority is a powerful combination in the wealth planning domain.

“Wealth planning is all about sensitising the target audience as to why estate planning or wealth planning,” he explains, adding that the most important step is to understand the facts and background of each client.

Some of the factors to be considered include: group structure; generations involved in the business; the acceptable level of complexity in structuring; age of the patriarch; and his plans for the future.

INTERVIEW INSIGHT

Joshi says that while tax structuring and product pushing exist as part of Wealth planning, his personal opinion differs.

“Tax is always a consequence of income and therefore the focus has to be on income first and then on tax planning,” he says.

Explaining further, Joshi adds that one should not get into structuring with the fear of estate duty, but should rather structure wealth with enough scope to plan for estate duty.

Indian clients generally approach firms like azb & partners to execute what they have decided on.

In reality, it is important to get in touch with the lawyer to first understand the complete picture, to get an idea of what can be done and the different options before deciding on a final plan.

THE RIGHT APPROACH TO WEALTH PLANNING

Experience is the key factor that differentiates one law firm from another, says Joshi.

Wealth planning in India is not more than 15 years old, making experience count.

Further, the industry is not commoditised, so a clear understanding of individual cases is essential.

“Doing enough homework and conceptually talking through propositions leads to a higher strike rate rather than bombarding clients with a general 15-page presentation”, says Abhijit Joshi.

THE RIGHT APPROACH TO WEALTH PLANNING