Shipping law is at the core of the practice at Bose & Mitra & Co, which is a sizeable boutique firm undertaking the full gamut of contentious and non-contentious shipping matters. In addition to advising on traditional shipping matters, such as arrests, collisions, maritime regulations, piracy issues as well as contamination claims, the practice is adept at assisting with complex personal injury, death compensation cases and sector-related white collar crime litigation. Key clients include leading international P&I Clubs as well as domestic shipping companies. The department is jointly headed by three practitioners: managing partner Amitava Majumdar, who often assists with transactional shipping matters (sale and purchase of vessels); commercial litigator Aditya Krishnamurthy, who specialises in admiralty matters involving the arrest and release of ships; and Medha Pradhan.
Shipping in India
Bose & Mitra & Co
Practice head(s):
Amitava (Raja) Majumdar; Aditya Krishnamurthy; Medha Pradhan
Testimonials
‘Lawyers respond very quickly and the quality of their advice is first class. It is clear, succinct and very thorough. They are very quick to grasp the issues and to render advice that deals with the issues thoroughly and comprehensively. ‘
‘B&M are a first class international law firm. Key leadership from Raja Majumdar provides sharp technical skills, excellent legal ability, and great commercial understanding. B&M have a straight talking and results driven approach. It is a credit to the firm that so many lawyers are dual qualified with practical experience in both English and Indian law and particular expertise in Indian Admiralty law with rights of audience in the key maritime states in India. B&M have successfully represented our interests in vessel arrest proceedings, allegations of collisions and defence matters generally.’
‘Raja Majumdar is down to earth, tenacious and extremely well connected. He is experienced in all aspects of Marine law. Aditya Krishnamurthy is diligent, hardworking and technical; a pleasure to work with.’
Key clients
The Great Eastern Shipping Company Limited
Seven Islands Shipping Limited
The North of England P&I Club
Amlin Marine (formerly RaetsMarine) fixed premium club
Gard P&I Club
London P&I Club
West of England P&I Club
The Standard P&I Club
Vitol S.A
Navios Maritime Holdings Inc
Eastern Pacific Shipping Pte. Ltd.
Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd.
Thenamaris (Ships Management) Inc.
Ultrabuk A/S
Angelicoussis Group
Yieldstreet Management LLC
China P&I Club
Bunge S.A.
Pacific International Lines
Work highlights
- Acted for The Great Eastern Shipping Company Limited & Seven Islands Shipping Limited in filing a petition before the Delhi High Court to challenge the proposed regime revamping the cabotage regime in India which seeks to give preference to Indian built vessels over Indian flagged vessels.
- Assisted Bostomar Private Limited with the initiation of proceedings before the Delhi High Court against the Steel Authority of India to ensure the immediate payment of freight which was withheld under the guise of the COVID- 19 situation.
- Filed a substantial lawsuit on behalf of Oldendorff Carriers GmbH & Co. KG against the Vishakhapatnam Port and a private contractor for damage sustained to a vessel in their fleet resulting from extremely high-pressure underwater shockwave stemming from an underwater explosion.
BRUS CHAMBERS, Advocates & Solicitors
Advising on the entire range of admiralty and shipping matters, BRUS CHAMBERS, Advocates & Solicitors is recognised as a solid performer in dry transactional work, shipping-related infrastructure and port development issues as well as wet claims. On the litigation front, the group handles disputes involving collisions, cargo, mortgage and charter party claims. Ship arrest and release, commercial arbitration and ship finance are areas of particular activity for co-head Shrikant Hathi. Fellow department leader Binita Hathi brings considerable experience in marine insurance and shipping litigation, for which Pritish Das is another key practitioner to note.
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Other key lawyers:
Mulla & Mulla & Craigie Blunt & Caroe
Mulla & Mulla & Craigie Blunt & Caroe brings together a team of lawyers with cross-practice expertise in shipping and maritime law, as well as offshore logistics and subsea matters. In addition to excelling in shipping litigation and transactional work (financing, purchase & sale of vessels), the practice is also well equipped to assist with flagging, tonnage tax, regulatory registrations, and cabotage. Companies from the steel manufacturing industry and the oil & gas exploration segments often seek the team's support in relation to tenders, compliance issues, and chartering matters. Practice head Shardul Thacker is commended for his extensive 'expertise in international shipping finance and maritime laws'.
Practice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘It is the most experienced shipping firm in India with which I have worked for over 30 years. Shardul Thacker is the best shipping lawyer I have worked with in India. His knowledge of this often difficult jurisdiction is second to none.’
‘Well-known and long-standing firm with more than one shipping team in practice. Very solid and reliable.’
‘Shardul Thacker is a practitioner of substantial standing and repute in India and has excelled in both dispute resolution work and transactional work; something rare in India. He understands the entire process of shipping from ship sale and purchase to ship financing to corporate and tax work, through to chartering and carriage of goods by sea, insurance and the resolution of all manner of disputes.’
‘I deal with Mr Shardul Thacker and he has never failed to amaze me with his knowledge and know-how about the legal area. He is so knowledgeable in Indian & English law.
‘We have been working with Mulla & Mulla for over a decade. The firm’s client service in the matters pertaining to international shipping finance, their industry knowledge, expertise in maritime laws and wide experience in dealing with shipping & offshore industries in India gives them an edge over others. We are well satisfied with the services of the Firm and their good turnaround time which has helped us close our transactions within the defined timelines. To mention specifically, firm partner Mr Shardul Thacker has expertise in international shipping finance and maritime laws and he personally oversees each transaction giving a lot of confidence to the clients. The team is up-to-date in their domain and rises to occasion.’
Key clients
DVB Group Merchant Bank Asia Ltd
Tata Steel Global Procurement Company Pte Ltd.
Tata Steel Ltd.
Tata Global Beverages Limited
Total Oil India Private Limited
New India Insurance
MOL (Asia Oceania) Pte Ltd
Work highlights
- Assisting DVB Group Merchant Bank Asia Ltd (“DVB”) in the filing of a lawsuit in the Bombay High Court for the enforcement of DVB’s rights as mortgagees under loan agreements and for recovery of the loan amounting to $42m from GOL Offshore Limited (“GOL”).
- Acted for Halcyon Ocean Shipping Limited, a Hong Kong-based shipping company, in admiralty proceedings filed by Great Pacific Navigation (Holdings) Limited, another Hong Kong-based company, in relation to the arrest of the chartered vessel, M.V. Tongli Yantai.
- Advising the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China on acceleration of loan and enforcement of mortgage over a jack-up rig registered in Panama while in the territorial waters of India and operating under the ONGC charter.
ZBA
Specialising in commercial litigation and arbitration, ZBA is devoted to shipping, admiralty law and commodities issues. The firm demonstrates renowned capability in matters ranging from charter party disputes, enforcement of foreign ship mortgages and arbitral awards, as well as reinsurance claims and wet shipping mandates. The practice brings together practitioners with multi-jurisdictional experience, who are often sought after by shipowners, banks, cargo underwriters, insurers, commodity traders and P&I Clubs to handle a range of contentious matters. Overseeing the team is Zarir Bharucha who focuses on shipping litigation.
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Other key lawyers:
Work highlights
- Acting for Best Excellence Corporation as the Indian legal counsel in regard to the arrest of their Vessel M.V. Silvia Glory.
- Acting for M/s Arab Bank (Switzerland) Ltd (“ABL”) in a dispute regarding a trade finance agreement between ABL and M/s Phoenix Global DMCC (“PGD”), a company registered in the UAE engaged in the business related to agri-foods.
- Acting as the legal counsel to Godrej in a dispute regarding withholding of a delivery order of forged shells cargo.
Clasis Law
Clasis Law offers advice to a varied client portfolio, composed of ship owners, charterers, banks, P&I clubs as well as brokers and marine insurance underwriters (just to name a few) on an array of contentious and non-contentious matters. The team undertakes work pertaining to commercial disputes and cargo claims, aspects relating to the Marine Insurance Act, and often handles ship arrest/release issues before Indian High Courts. Shipping litigation is an area of specialty for Mustafa Motiwala who heads up the practice with Shwetabh Sinha, who is qualified to practise in India and England.
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Testimonials
‘The team has a good litigation team. Nihal Shaikh is recommended. The best part about the firm is the reasonable cost at which they provide their services which is important in the current market.’