Zia Mody

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Zia Mody is an Indian corporate lawyer and businesswoman who is the daughter of Soli Sorabjee, a former Attorney General of India. She is the founding partner of AZB & Partners (Indias one of the leading law firms), which was set up in 2004. Zia Mody is one of Indias leading corporate attorneys. Ms. Mody has worked with Tata Group, Reliance Industries, Aditya Birla Group, the Vedanta Group, and General Electric. She also provides legal advice to big private equity firms including Bain Capital, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and Warburg Pincus. Zia Mody is known for her exceptional contribution to the legal arena, both in India and internationally.In 1984, Zia started her law practice in Mumbai, and she started her own law firm Chambers of Zia Mody. In 1995, she merged with other legal ventures to form AZB & Partners with Ajay Bahl and Bahram Vakil (AZB & Partners) as partners. This legal firm, which kickstarted in 2004 with only 12 lawyers, is one of the largest law firms in India. Mody is the managing partner in AZB & Partners. This venture has offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Banglore, and Pune with 400 legal professionals. Zia Mody with AZB & Partners (Ajay Bahl and Bahram Vakil).In 2004, in the first year of setting up the partnership under the leadership of Zia Mody, AZB was invited to offer its services for Tata Steel to advise on its $500 million purchase of NatSteel, a Singapore-based Mining & Metals company.In 2008, AZB & Partners guided Tata Motors on the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover for the US $2.3 billion. At that time, Sunil Mittal (the founder and chairperson of Bharti Enterprises) was planning to purchase Zain Telecom, a South African mobile telecommunications company (2005-2010), for over US $9 billion, he hired Zia Mody as the legal advisor.In 2013, in a conversation with a media person, Zia Modys friend Shanoor Forbes (an official with an Airline company in India) recalled that Zia always had a strong or habitual liking for selecting the ill-tempered horses. Shanoor said, Zia took one horse that none of us would ride on because he was very temperamental. He used to startle easily. But Zia always liked that horse and won many races with it. Zias favorite was named Sacrius, known for toppling its riders. She bagged several trophies at the Amateur Riders Club. Zia Mody with her horse, Sacrius.On 13 January 2013, Zia Mody, the managing partner of AZB & Partners, had received the award for Outstanding Woman Business Leader of the Year at CNBC-TV18s 2013 India Business Leader Awards. During a ceremony at the Trident Hotel in Mumbai, the award was presented by her father, senior counsel Soli Sorabjee. Zia Mody while receiving an award from her father, Soli Sorabjee, in 2013.In 2014, in an interview, speaking on entrepreneurship and starting up, Ms. Mody said the things in India were growing up because of the governments liberalization policy, which opened a lot of opportunities for foreign companies to set up in India. Zia said, At the council, you are not really on your own. You are somebodys junior. I wanted to do something on my own and the timing was right in the early 1990s. Things were growing in India because of liberalization. A lot of foreign companies were looking to set up shops in India. India was really the buzzword that time. Zia added that passion, commitment, and hard work were mandatory for a successful budding entrepreneur because you need to keep yourself updated with the changing rules and laws of the government. She said, Why would anyone come to the chambers of Zia Mody instead of going to a blue-chip firm like Mulla & Mulla? But I started at an exciting time in India when many changes were being made in the laws. We had to keep ourselves constantly updated. Even though we were small, we did a good job of convincing clients. We were right up there in terms of timing and commitment. Those were the times when responsiveness would get you a premium. And we tried to differentiate ourselves by being responsive and working hard. Our reputation started to grow, and we started getting more and more work..In an interview, Ms. Mody said that her initial years as a young lawyer had been significantly impacted by Obed Chinoy (a Pakistani-Canadian journalist, filmmaker, and activist) and Norman Miller (an American journalist). Zia regards Obed Chinoy and Norman Miller as her mentors.In 2014, in an interview, while talking about her children, Zia said her daughters brought a spark to her eyes. She explained what professions her daughters chose in Mumbai. She said, I did not spend enough time with them when they were young, though I have spent quality time. My husband was very supportive. I now have time to be with them, but they are very busy. My first daughter has her own furniture design store in Mumbai, called Josmo. My second daughter is studying law. She will be graduating this year. My third daughter works with Wildlife Conservation Trust. Zia Mody with her three young daughters.Clients of Zia Mody often praise her officially by saying that she is one of Indias foremost corporate attorneys. She is a problem solver and meticulous. She is a result-oriented and thorough personality and she has a quick grasp. In an interview, Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries, praised Zia and said that she was much more than just a lawyer. He said, One of the things that impress me is Zias ability to distill a business issue and offer an integrated point of view. In an interview, Cyrus Mistry, former Chairman Tata Group, while talking about Zia and her work commitments, said, Modys accessibility round the clock is a huge value-addand something that no one should ever take for granted from their lawyers. In an interview, Ronnie Screwvala, an entertainment entrepreneur, praised Zias work and said that Zia always acted as an advisor while working for him. He said, She is a plus-plus lawyer who always acts as an advisor..