Court-ing success

Updated on: Monday, March 30, 2009

As society advances and opens up newer avenues in our daily lives, the need for legal protection against the demons of modern society has

increased as well. With globalisation leading to relaxed trade norms, and the widespread use of computers facilitating cyber crimes, the scope of law has only expanded over the last few years.

Today, though recession is looming large over economies, threatening to stunt the growth of various industries and sectors, the legal profession continues to boom. Says Advait Sethna, professor of law, Government Law College, Mumbai, “The current economic downturn has, to an extent, impacted the legal profession.

However, law today, encompasses several emerging and challenging areas, such as technology, intellectual property, medicine and health sectors, for which the demand is on the rise. Hence, law as a career, also promises a bright future for aspirants.”

LEGAL ALTERNATIVES

A law student today, has innumerable specialisation options to consider. These include:

Intellectual Property Rights(IPR)

Reputed to be one of the most rewarding fields in law, IPR deals with the legal rights over intellectual creations of the mind, and deals with patents, copyrights, designs and trade secrets, to name a few. Most lawyers specialising in IPR, either work with legal firms that offer such a service, or work as in-house counsel for corporations.

Elaborating on the need and demand for IPR professionals, Rajni Divkar, partner, Little and Company, says, “IPR is a very vast and lucrative stream of law, and offers immense scope for specialisations, as companies need regular legal assistance for registration, as well as protection of their trademarks, product or process patents, and designs of machinery or equipment.”

Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO)

LPOs essentially provide services in litigation support, contract review, legal research, analytics, and patent and technical support services to clients — including law firms and corporates — across the globe. Though LPOs are a very recent phenomenon, according to the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) estimates, this segment is poised to cross the $6 billion turnover mark by 2010 and tower at $15 to $20 billion by 2015.

For more information visit : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Court-ing success

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