In Conversation With Payal Dayal, Partner. AKS Partners

Payal, would you please walk us through your early years of education and the decision to become a lawyer?

I did my schooling from Bluebells School International, New Delhi. My tryst with law as a career materialized purely out of destiny, as I had no real aspirations of being a lawyer growing up. Since my late grandfather had harbored ambitions of being a lawyer, I thought of giving it a shot and appeared for only one law entrance exam and got admission into Amity Law School. It was the idea of fulfilling his ambitions that nudged me towards pursuing law as a career.

Admission into law school opened a pandora’s box of opportunities for me. Being a first-generation lawyer, this was a new world, one which was marked by an inquisitiveness to soak in all the learnings I could. So that’s what I did, I joined my law school’s moot court society and took part in as many competitions as I could. I soon found myself delving into aspects of Constitutional Law, International Law, Intellectual Property Law and Corporate law with a strong sense of keenness. Incrementally, the unfamiliarity associated with law as a profession started to metamorphize into a strong kinship for the subject.

Internships during this period presented me with avenues to get a practical sense of the applications of the statutes I found myself so fascinated with. It was at the end of my final semester of law school, while I was interning with a top-tier law firm, that I decided that I would be pursuing a career in corporate law.

Tell us about your roles and responsibilities at work, what does a day in your shoes look like as Partner, (Corporate Head), AKS Partners

My role as Partner, (Corporate Practice Head), brings with it a battery of functions and operations that require me to wear multiple hats. Most days I am occupied with issues concerning Corporate Due Diligence, Acquisitions, market entry advisory, investment advisory amongst others. A significant portion of my time is devoted to providing counsel to clients, gathering client feedback, engaging with prospective clients along with the administrative issues such as managing my team. Staying up to date with developments within the law is another activity that I regularly devote time to. Practicing corporate law requires one to stay updated with not only judgements but also notifications, circulars, master directions etc. released by various regulators such as the RBI, SEBI, CCI, IBBI and MCA, so as to provide accurate legal counsel to our clients. An average day for me comprises looking after several functions that overarchingly contribute to the success of our clients while ensuring that the highest levels of professionalism and integrity are maintained.

Can you tell us about one notable case you have been involved in during your career?

In the past 17+ years, I have many notable cases but one closest to my heart is when I worked in the aviation sector and represented the fuel farm operators/ the refuellers while being pitted against GMR led consortium. The mandate was to create unique workable joint venture structures between refuellers and owner of Hydrant Infrastructure – GMR for each of the Airports particularly Delhi and Mumbai for it was these SPVs which were to enter into various contracts with third party service providers.

What is your success mantra and what advice would you give to others wanting to tread a similar path?

My success mantra is being passionate about what I do. I am a firm believer in the notion that if you truly enjoy what you do, work ceases to feel like work and that creates the necessary conditions for achieving excellence.  One thing which I always tell my junior colleagues is that there is no shortcut to success. You have to work hard, you have to burn the midnight oil, you have to read, you have to know the law. You have to go into the root of each matter. Eventually it’s your reputation and your track record which gets you more work and also recognition.