How do I become a corporate lawyer?

I am a Class XII student. I have taken maths. How can one become a corporate lawyer? How lucrative is this career in terms of working conditions and pay as compared to engineering? Which is the best law college in India? Will taking the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) get me into the best college? My family wants me to get into the IIT.
—Anonymous

With the globalisation of the Indian industry and with multinationals streaming into the country, lawyers dealing in corporate law and international collaborations are much sought after.

Every business organisation, big or small, working in a global marketplace requires lawyers to define the rules, advise business houses, work out mergers and acquisitions, and generally enable companies to work within the law.

Moreover, with businesses growing in size and new business enterprises opening up every year, which compete fiercely for customers, often treading on each other’s toes, contravening agreements, side stepping contracts, overlooking patents, ignoring trademarks, etc., there is a growing need for corporate lawyers to advise their clients, draw up contracts and argue cases in court.

Today, following the economic boom, corporate law has become one of the most lucrative of legal practices. As a specialisation, it has definitely brought more glamour and money into the legal profession, and the fat salary packages promised to graduates from the top law colleges puts them on a par with the best MBAs.

Corporate lawyers working in private law firms or in companies’ legal department usually work for long and irregular hours, meeting clients, researching and reading about new developments, drafting contracts and agreements or preparing briefs. The work requires strong memory, reasoning ability, analytical skills and excellent communication skills.

University, Bangalore (www.nls.ac.in), WB National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata (www.nujs.edu), NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad (www.nalsarlawuniv.org), National Law University, Jodhpur, (www.nlujodhpur.ac.in) and several others. For a detailed list of institutes and information on the law entrance test, log on to www.clat.in.

However, the choice of a career, whether engineering or law must not be taken on the basis of how well it pays, but on your interest in the field and your ability to succeed in it.
 
I am a maths (Hons) student at Delhi University. I want to be a news anchor, specifically in a business channel like CNBC-TV18. I also want to do my MBA. Can I do my MBA first and then try for anchoring? Which are the good institutes teaching news anchoring in India? Is MBA necessary to be an anchor with a business channel? 
—Jyoti  

To become a news anchor, you need some training in journalism or mass communication. Moreover, to handle business news you do not require an MBA. To handle business news on TV, your maths background with a strong interest in business and commerce, along with a PG diploma in mass communication should help you qualify.

An MBA degree is better suited to those who wish to get into a career in business, working with business houses and international corporations in marketing, finance and other specialisations.

While you can get into news anchoring for TV after an MBA programme, to be successful in this field, you need to have good communication skills, the ability to express ideas concisely and with lucidity, have wide-ranging interests in general and in the business world in particular, stamina, a willingness to work hard at irregular hours and be good at inter-acting with all kinds of people.

Author: Usha Albuquerque

Date: 30th Sep 2009

 

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