Nishith Desai
Founder and Managing Partner, Nishith Desai Associates
Nishith Desai is an international tax and corporate lawyer, researcher, author and lecturer. He is founder of Nishith Desai Associates.
Nishith has substantial experience in the Fund sector, advising a large number of offshore investment funds and playing a seminal role in structuring several private equity funds, in addition to structuring several domestic venture capital funds. He has advised the Small Industries Development Board of India and the Department of Electronics, Government of India, on their domestic venture capital fund. Nishith serves as a Member of Advisory Board at Avendus Advisors Private Ltd. He is on the Advisory Board of the New York State Bar Association’s International Law Review. He is also the Chairperson of Taxation Committee of LAWASIA and a senior country correspondent for “Tax Notes International”, US. He is a member of the International Bar Association, American Bar Association, Inter Pacific Bar Association, LAWASIA, International Tax Planning Association, and Supreme Court Bar Association.
He has been voted ‘External Counsel of the Year 2009’ by Asian Counsel and Pacific Business Press and the ‘Most in Demand Practitioners’ by Chambers Asia 2009. He has also been ranked No. 28 in a global Top 50 “Gold List” by Tax Business, a UK-based journal for the international tax community. He is listed in the Lex Witness ‘Hall of fame: Top 50’ individuals who have helped shape the legal landscape of modern India. He is also the recipient of Prof. Yunus ‘Social Business Pioneer of India’ – 2010 award. In November 2004, he also was ranked as No. 28 in a global Top 50 “Gold List.” Nishith also holds a special license from the State Bar of California to practice Indian law.
