Nivedita Nivargi is presently a Partner at Samvad Partners, Bengaluru (earlier known as Narasappa, Doraswamy and Raja (NDR)) and has been a part of the firm for more than ten years. She has extensive experience in the areas of mergers & acquisitions, private equity and venture capital investments, as well as on general corporate matters.
Prior to joining Samvad Partners, she was an Associate with Ashira Law, where she gained experience as a litigating lawyer.
She has a B.S.L, LLB Degree from ILS Law College, Pune, from where she passed out in 2004.
She has generously agreed to share with us her experience through these years and guide law students through the recruitment process.
1) How would you like to introduce yourself to our readers? If you could answer this by guiding candidates on how they must answer when asked this question.
There is really no hard and fast rule on how an introduction should be made. Having said that, one may highlight his or her interests and achievements in the introduction. Also, the introduction acts as an ice breaker between the interviewer and the candidate, so it is important to speak confidently.
2) How would you describe your student life at ILS Law college, Pune? How did it benefit you?
We had a great faculty at ILS which made learning interesting. Also, each batch was sizeable and had students from all over the country and abroad as well. We therefore got to meet and interact with students from different cultures and backgrounds which has played an significant role in broadening my outlook and perspective.
3) You had a brief stint as a litigating lawyer at Ashira Law? How would you describe your experience? What made you shift to corporate law post that?
I had joined Ashira Law fresh out of college and it was a great learning experience for me, not only professionally but also on the personal front. Since Ashira Law was a fairly new set-up at that point of time, I got the opportunity to be involved with not just client work and deliverables but also with aspects of office management.
While at Ashira Law, in addition to being a litigating lawyer, I got to also deal with general corporate matters, which piqued my interest in corporate law. This gave me the impetus in giving corporate law a try and I really enjoyed it, finally leading to the shift.
4) You have been associated with Samvad Partners for over ten years? How did it contribute to your growth as a lawyer?
I was the first associate to join Samvad Partners (then known as Narasappa, Doraswamy and Raja (NDR)) and was lucky to be presented with the opportunity to work extensively with all the partners of the firm and be mentored by them. I must say that this has contributed a great extent in honing my skills as a lawyer and ingrain the core values of the firm in me. From the very beginning there was a lot of emphasis placed on building a solid technical knowledge base which has benefitted me a great deal.
5) What is your advice to students who want to make a career in the field of corporate law?
My advice to students would be to consider their options carefully and think about what they want to finally do. A lot of law schools offer specialised credit courses these days, so it is helpful for students to take up and gain basic knowledge in their areas of interest. It also helps to pick internships with firms that have practices relevant to the areas of interest of candidates.
6) What is the work environment like at Samvad Partners? What is the process of recruitment?
At Samvad, we have a very open and nurturing environment. We typically prefer candidates who have interned with us, as that gives us the opportunity to assess them based on the work that they have done while with us. This in turn also provides candidates with an insight (based on their internship with us) on the work atmosphere and culture of the firm.
7) Does Samvad Partners prefer candidates that come through reference? Is there a college preference while recruiting?
We do not have any such specific preferences. The key is to have an interesting resume. This could be in the form of academic success, participation in any extra-curricular activities or any interesting prior work experience.
8) What according to you is a good CV? That of an all-rounder or one that boasts of extracurricular achievements such as moot court, paper publications etc?
There is really no template of a good CV in our books. Anything that sets the candidate apart would do the trick. As I mentioned above, academic success, participation in any extra-curricular activities or interesting prior work experience would help us in picking the right person for the job.
9) What do you expect from a candidate during the recruitment process? Is there any answer that you have been particularly impressed with?
It is important that the candidate makes an effort of finding out about the firm he / she is applying to. If there is a cover letter that the candidate intends to send with the resume, it is best to keep it simple and crisp. The candidate should know their resume well and should be able to give specific details if asked about any specific contents of the resume.
10) What is your advice to interns at Samvad Partners? What would make them worthy enough for a call back?
Show genuine interest in the work assigned to you. We also expect interns to proactively seek out work from the lawyers and diligently work towards providing quality and research driven output. This in our mind leads to the creation of good recall value.
11) Is there an opening at Samvad Partners presently? Where should candidates looking for job/internship opportunities contact?
We are not actively recruiting at the moment but we do keep an eye out for the right candidates. Those interested may send their applications to recruitment@samvadpartners.com.
12) Any other words of advice to law students gearing up for the recruitment process?
Be sincere and earnest. Every project or matter is a learning opportunity, so embrace it and give it your very best.
