Team size: 50  
 
Could you share an example of a time when you came up with an innovation that improved how your legal team works and did not come at a large expense?  
 
This is about how we centralised the filing of criminal recovery cases against defaulting parties in India. I made it a point to encourage the importance of centralisation and the full automation of this case filing process to my team members. Over time, the case filing process became so successful, without the need to increase the size of the legal team that oversaw it, that the legal department became a victim of its own success. The efficiency gain led to the filing of cases many times over, and despite the cost per case significantly decreasing, the overall cost increased because the number of cases increased manifold.  
 
What are the most significant cases and transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?  
 
The most significant was the Arysta acquisition that UPL made in 2019. This was a US$4.20bn acquisition, and the target business spanned more than 75 countries. We completed the legal due diligence and the transaction documents in a record time of under 30 days. This transaction also included two underlying transactions, one was the debt financing of US$3bn, and the other was US$1.20bn equity financing by TPG and ADIA.  
 
If you had to give advice to an aspiring in-house lawyer or general counsel, what would it be and why?  
 
I would advise that you engage with the business and manage your internal stakeholders effectively. I would also emphasise the importance of being involved in transactions.