Taking the Pulse of the Real Estate Sector: In Conversation with Yudhist Narain Singh, Senior Partner, YNS & Associates

Yudhist, thank you for speaking with BW Legal World today. YNS & Associates is a young firm, with real estate comprising the core practice area of the firm. In the recent times when real estate has been at the centre of much clamour due to covid-19, how have things been for you? To name a few, there have been spikes in disputes between homebuyers and developers; landlord-tenant disputes; business exits from prime retail locations; and insolvency proceedings of the non-performing real estate assets.

How has this pandemic affected the Real Estate industry in India? What does a 30,000-foot view of the market and the legal framework look like right now? 

I think this pandemic has had an adverse impact on the real estate sector in India, both for commercial and residential real estate. Over the last year, we have seen a decline in transactional work and a clear increase in dispute-related work. The pandemic has not only had an immediate effect on the real estate market but has also made several businesses rethink how the role of real estate plays a part in their business model. For example, many of our co-working and technology-based clients are rethinking the office spaces that they have taken on lease across India. They have realised that work from home is in fact a sustainable, efficient and cost-effective model, and are actively downsizing their office spaces. Similarly, we have seen the closure of several commercial establishments in premium areas where the lease rents were high, and the lessors were adamant on refraining from re-negotiating leases. Moreover, the courts have taken a conservative view stating that the force majeure clause in agreements must be interpreted strictly in order to address the needs of all the parties to agreements. All of this has led to a clear stagnation in the market. That said, I believe the real estate market in India is very resilient and the moment this pandemic is over, I am sure it will gain positive traction immediately. The sheer volume that businesses demand, and the aspirations of a growing earning class (to own their own homes) always helps this sector bounce back. 

What is your view of the real estate disputes that are sub-judice in various courts at the moment?

We have definitely seen a change in the way the courts are approaching disputes in the real estate sector. I think the Hon’ble Supreme Court is spearheading this change. There is an attempt at rationalising the interests of various stakeholders in the real estate sector. Earlier the pre-dominant focus of the courts was to safeguard the interests of homebuyers, however, the courts have also realised that they need to incentivise bonafide developers who have a successful track record for project completion by addressing the market realities. Concerns raised by financial institutions, which play a pivotal role in helping the real estate sector sustain and grow are also being addressed in a similar manner. Each player has an important and co-dependent role in ensuring that the real estate market is sustainable in the long run. It is beyond any doubt that the Hon’ble Supreme Court has played an active role in cleaning up the existing mess of unfinished projects, and dealing with appeals brought before it in an expedient manner. The company law tribunals were also quick to ensure that no new insolvency litigations were initiated during this pandemic period and have tried their level best to resolve the existing disputes filed with them. The consumer forums and RERA courts shall continue to play an ever-increasingly important role in resolving builder-buyer, and real estate agent disputes. In my view, the common message of the courts is clear, disputes need to be resolved expediently and the markets need to be revived by infusing a sense of confidence and removing the general skepticism that had become associated with the purchase of immovable property.  

In my view, the common message of the courts is clear, disputes need to be resolved expediently and the markets need to be revived by infusing a sense of confidence and removing the general skepticism that had become associated with the purchase of immovable property.  

Yudhist, other than Real Estate, another focus of your practice is regulatory and compliance advisory. Interestingly, you regularly advise various multi-national companies that are facing unique issues in India. What has been your experience in this area of practice?

This area of our practice is particularly challenging. The very nature of global businesses is rapidly changing and ever-evolving. It is our objective to understand the complex business models of these companies and help them comply with regulations in India. These companies are keen on establishing themselves in India but face innumerable regulatory hurdles. Some companies which have already established a presence here must suddenly deal with new regulations which are brought into play. These regulations are often developed by the government without taking into account the unique business models or the global practices followed by these companies. It is ironic that on one hand, we are trying to move up the global ease of doing business index, and on the other front, we are making it harder for these companies to actively do business in India. I would say that while the overall responsiveness of government departments has increased tremendously over the past few years, their willingness to adapt, or to help businesses comply with the regulations at the ground level is lacking. For instance, the government in the past few months has introduced quality control order for toys and footwear products being imported into India. We have been actively involved in advising companies to help them comply with these orders. While these regulations appear to protect the interests of existing stakeholders who are involved in the manufacture of these products in India, it is not feasible for established multinational companies with retail outlets in India to comply with these regulations expediently. They source their products from various vendors across the globe and it is not possible for each such vendor to comply with Indian norms. Moreover, the process of compliance is quite in-depth and complex. These kinds of regulations appear to be increasingly unfounded and detrimental for the Indian economy, especially in the long run. In my view, if the government does not evolve quickly to help businesses grow in India, these companies may be limiting their activities in India very soon.

These kinds of regulations appear to be increasingly unfounded and detrimental for the Indian economy, especially in the long run. In my view, if the government does not evolve quickly to help businesses grow in India, these companies may be limiting their activities in India very soon.

How would you describe your journey so far in the profession? What led you to establish YNS & Associates?

After graduating from Symbiosis Law School in Pune, I started my career with well-established law firms in New Delhi. I was fortunate to work under some experienced partners on a wide array of matters, which provided me with a good overview of the different practice areas and what they entailed. As a young lawyer, I was also fortunate to be stationed with some leading international firms at their offices in London & Milan that helped me garner experience while working across different jurisdictions. Real estate has always been of particular interest to me right from when I was a law student, it was inevitable that as I gathered more experience in this profession, I gradually made this my area of specialization. I firmly believe that the real estate sector in India is at a transformative stage and has been steadily experiencing major regulatory and legislative changes. I saw this as a great opportunity and wanted to be ahead of the curve by setting up a boutique practice that would be able to cater to our clients’ specific needs on all three fronts— transactional, advisory, and dispute areas of work. While sharing this vision with some of my existing clients, I was surprised to receive their enthusiastic feedback and the fact that they were willing to come on board. That is how YNS & Associates was born, and I am happy to share that those valuable clients are still with us!  

There has been a seismic shift from how law firms traditionally operated in India pre-pandemic to now. Looking ahead, what’s your ambition and vision for the firm? 

I would describe my vision for the firm at this stage to be ‘focussed’. I realised early on that the landscape of the legal profession is changing and I wanted to build this firm from the bottom up, with a strong foundation. Work is getting far more specialized, and clients are not hesitant about migrating from much larger firms to cost-effective lawyers who can handle their work with special attention. For a firm of our size, there is no room for mere optics, we tend to provide clients with a candid and honest opinion on their matter. We tend to screen the kind and amount of work we take on at any given time. This way we can focus completely on the needs of our existing clients, doing complete justice to the tasks that we have been entrusted with. That is how I see the firm growing, we are not in any major rush to scale up.

What can law firms do today to ensure they survive in an era of disruption and competition? The last year has been challenging for legal professionals. How has your firm coped?

I think every lawyer needs to develop an area of specialization after a few years in the profession. While we cannot work in silos and must have knowledge of all practice areas, being an expert in a particular sector ensures your survival and growth.  The same goes for law firms. Law firms with genuinely skilled experts who are constantly endeavouring to be at the top of their game in their respective areas will always have work. Each team member supporting these professionals also needs to show the same level of dedication to their work. The last year was challenging and has clearly brought out the significance of technology. As a relatively young team, we were quickly able to use technology to our advantage and adapt to every challenge that we encountered. One practical way that I dealt with these rapid changes was to remove any budget restrictions on tech-related expenditure, and to ensure that the entire team had a sufficient level of training and support to resolve issues without any delay. We ensured that our entire team had access to multiple devices and online resources to ensure that we could not only appear in courts electronically, but also work with our clients seamlessly no matter where they were located. I can’t emphasize this enough - the use of technology is going to become increasingly important in our profession. It is the way of the future, and we need constantly adapt to fully utilize it.

One practical way that I dealt with these rapid changes was to remove any budget restrictions on tech-related expenditure, and to ensure that the entire team had a sufficient level of training and support to resolve issues without any delay.

What message would you want to share with younger lawyers joining the profession.

I think it is important for every young lawyer to completely immerse themselves in the profession. Take on any and all work and be completely committed to your client’s matter. It is important to learn from the ground up and your fundamental concepts should be extremely clear. They will always be useful. Also, it important to constantly keep reading and staying up to date with the latest judgments and laws. Even the best senior advocates in the country are constantly applying themselves, and it is safe to say the process of learning is unending. Sooner or later specialization is a must, and ideally, it should be in a subject that you are genuinely interested in. The beauty of this profession is that it is as challenging as it is rewarding (in the long run).  

In our discussion earlier you alluded to your passion for protection of wildlife. Not something one hears often. Could we please know more about these pro-bono cases that you are involved in? 

My wife and I are very fond of nature, and we regularly visit forest reserves. We have chosen to try and use our skillset to protect the wildlife in India. In the previous year, we played a role in protecting the Kali Tiger Reserve (along with Ms. Sreeja Chakrobarty and Mr. Vijay Nishanth) from the construction of a railway project which would have had a devastating impact, and also in preserving parts of Rajaji National Park which were to be used for organising the Kumbh Mela. We are happy to carry out this pro-bono work and hope to continue to do so in the future.

My wife and I are very fond of nature, and we regularly visit forest reserves. We have chosen to try and use our skillset to protect the wildlife in India. 

What do you do when you are not working? Any tips on how to avoid burnout in these trying times?

I feel that it is important to stay physically fit and incorporate small disciplines to safeguard your mental wellbeing. Self-checks, when one is not being able to give themselves completely to the task at hand, is a clear sign that rest is required. It is also important to take short breaks occasionally; travel provides a change of scenery, which helps in resetting. It is also important to keep a track of your fellow team members to ensure they are not unduly stressed. After a typical day at work, I enjoy some exercise and enjoy switching off with films and nature documentaries.