Press Release

We are delighted to announce the addition of Mr. Pradeep Ratnam who joins Kochhar & Co. (‘Firm’) as Senior Partner and the Co-Chair of the Infrastructure, Banking and Finance Practice of the Firm. Pradeep and his long-time colleague Ms. Parul Verma who accompanies him into the Firm as a Partner, will both be based out of the Firm’s New Delhi office.

Mr. Pradeep Ratnam : Pradeep obtained his Bachelor’s degree in law (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.)) in 1997 from the prestigious National Law School of India, Bangalore, followed by an LL.M. in 1999, as a British Council Chevening Scholar, from the University of Warwick, UK. Pradeep is dual qualified in India and the UK and has over 22 years of multi-jurisdictional work experience in the areas of Infrastructure, Government Contracts, Procurement, Project Finance and PPP. Additionally, Pradeep advises his clients on Restructuring, Stressed and Opportunistic M&A and Private Equity in Infrastructure and allied sectors.

Prior to joining Kochhar & Co., Pradeep had a distinguished career in Infrastructure and International Law with global firms including Herbert Smith LLP, Allen and Overy and White and Case LLP in London and in Singapore. In the last decade since his return to India, Pradeep oversaw the legal function as Director (Legal) in IDFC Alternatives (the erstwhile alternative assets platform of IDFC Bank), and was thereafter Group General Counsel in Infrastructure Leasing and Financing Services Ltd. (IL&FS), followed by private practice in the areas of Infrastructure and Banking in New Delhi.

Ms. Parul Verma: With post qualification experience of over a decade, Parul specializes in Infrastructure, Project Financing, Fintech, Financial Regulation and Real Estate. Prior to joining Kochhar & Co, Parul worked in top tier Indian law firms and in marquee in-house corporate positions in India.

Pradeep and Parul advise infrastructure companies, domestic and international banks and their borrowers, Indian NBFCs, multilateral and development financial institutions, asset reconstruction companies, and investment and credit funds in transactions in Infrastructure, Banking and Real Estate.

Mr. Rohit Kochhar, Founding Member and Chairman of Kochhar & Co. extended a warm welcome, and said: “Pradeep and Parul will be pivotal to the Firm’s outreach and deep commitment to Infrastructure and Banking, which, post pandemic, are more critical to India than ever before. Pradeep’s advisory and transactional skills, derived from years of diverse work experience in top tier firms and in coveted and highly challenging inhouse roles, are a perfect complement to the Firm’s strategic vision for the future. Equally, Parul brings a decade of solid deal experience in Project Financing, Core Infrastructure and Real Estate. I am delighted to welcome Pradeep and Parul in to the Firm and wish them the very best for the future.”

Pradeep responded with the following message: “I am tremendously excited to be joining Kochhar & Co. and look forward to contributing to the Firm. I am deeply impressed by Mr. Kochhar’s vision, his institution-building abilities, and the searing mastery and acumen that he demonstrates over a wide repertoire of legal matters. I am pleased to join an exceptional community of lawyers working across both core and emerging areas of legal practice.”
Parul responded, “I am delighted to be on board as a Partner in Kochhar & Co.’s Infrastructure, Banking and Finance Practice and look forward to contributing to the Firm.”

With the addition of Pradeep and Parul, Kochhar & Co. now has over 52 Partners and more than 200 lawyers. Kochhar & Co. is one of the leading and largest corporate law firms in India, with a full-service presence in the six (6) prominent Indian cities including New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Gurgaon and Hyderabad; and overseas offices - in Dubai, Singapore and Chicago.