• NATIONAL

Legal outsourcing to India threatens more than 1,000 City jobs

More than a thousand City lawyer jobs could be be outsourced to India until the end of the year.

Soumitro Chatterjee of FoxMandal Little, India's largest law firm, stated .The boom could result in more than 3,000 corporate lawyers and administration staff in cities such as Mumbai and Delhi going on the pay roll of City firms and British companies in the next months. Indian law graduates are paid £300 to £550 a month, which can rise to £1,000 a month for lawyers with two years experience.

Oil Min siding with Mukesh: Anil tells PM

Reliance ADA Group Chairman Anil Ambani has asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to direct the Petroleum Ministry and the sector regulator to stop from "overtly and covertly" intervening in a commercial dispute his group firm has with Mukesh Ambani-run RIL. Sources said that in a letter dated July 15, Ambani informed Singh that his group was "not claiming any rights to the ownership of the KG-D6 gas fields, whether through any family settlement or contractual claims or otherwise."

The government, in its special leave petition before the Supreme Court on Saturday, sought a direction to declare as "null and void" the Ambani family settlement, as also to stay a June 15 Bombay High Court order asking RIL to supply gas to Reliance ADA Group firm RNRL.

Tax collections signal 'recovery': CBEC

The Finance Ministry said that customs duty collections at about Rs 18,000 crore in the first quarter of this fiscal and initial reports on steel and cement sectors point to a recovery in industry that would also benefit from tax cuts announced as part of stimulus packages. Customs collections are six per cent higher during April-June this year over the previous quarter, mainly on account of higher imports of raw materials and capital goods, Central Board of Excise and Customs Chairman P C Jha said.

"Our customs collections for the first quarter of (the) current fiscal are at Rs 17,858 crore. In the January-March period, the collections were at Rs 16,766 crore," he said. Stating that collections are higher on account of improved imports of raw materials and capital goods, he said, this certainly would lead to improvement in manufacturing sector, though the results would be seen 2-3 months later.

"This is a signal that the manufacturing sector will also improve. In imports, major components are raw materials and capital goods that means in future, (the) manufacturing sector will improve," he said.

Tax cuts in three stimulus packages announced since December last year had a consequential effect of Rs 52,000 crore, Jha said. "Last year 14 per cent excise continued till December. This year eight per cent duty is from the beginning... even at this rate the collection will be higher," he said.

SC declines to stay HC verdict on homosexuality

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to pass an interim order to stay the Delhi High Court verdict legalising gay sex among consenting adults. The apex Court said it will wait for the government to come out with a definite stand on the issue. We are not for stay as there is no threat of any consequences. We will hear the government, what is their stand," a Bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justice P Sathasivam said."Why not wait till government takes a definite stand," the Bench said before posting the matter for September 14. Attorney General G E Vahanvati said that the government has taken a stand and it will reconsider it again as three ministries are involved.

He said that it was not in favour of the stay of the High Court order .Vahanvati said that the government has taken a stand in the High Court and the judgement was of limited nature concerning gay sex between consenting adults.The apex Court refused to make any observation relating to the legitimacy of the gay marriages when a submission was made about it. The counsel opposing the High Court verdict wanted the court to say that such a marriage was not legitimate. When a reference was made about Section 377 of the IPC, the Bench said, "Cases under Section 377 are registered only with regard to paedophiles. People are being convicted but it has nothing to do with gay marriages."The apex court had earlier issued notice to the Centre seeking its response on the petition filed by a Delhi astrologer challenging the High Court verdict. Notices were also issued to Naz Foundation, the NGO, and other respondents who were parties before the High Court. Astrologer Suresh Kumar Kaushal has sought quashing of the July two High Court judgement legalising gay sex between consenting adults in private, which was earlier a criminal offence punishable with upto life imprisonment.

India reaping benefits of bank nationalization: Mukherjee

Noting that India is reaping the fruits of nationalisation of banks, Union Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said country's nationalised banks are staying healthy even during slowdown in global economy which has led closure of many private banks in Western countries. The nationalised banks in the country are making healthy progress and making profits while many private banks in the Western countries have either closed down or declared bankruptcy, Mukherjee said while distributing Kishan Credit Cards to farmers. Forty years ago, on this day, Indira Gandhi took the great step of nationalising banks in the country and today the people of the country are reaping its benefit, the Union Finance minister said. Mukherjee said when the UPA government had announced the loan waiver for the farmers in 2008 the critics had said that it would make the nationalised banks sick."None of the nationalised banks had become sick after the Rs 60,000 crore loan waiver for farmers was announced by the UPA government in its budget in 2008," he said while distributing the Cards to the 5001 farmers of North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Malda districts at a function of United Bank of India (UBI). 

• INTERNATIONAL 

Harvard Law tells students: Don't panic!

Harvard Law students preparing to enter their second and third-year this fall remain concerned, but not discouraged, Mark Weber, the school's assistant dean for career services, said in a Bloomberg interview. Harvard advises students to have a Plan B for their job search. They should not only plan to look for a job in D.C., but "also consider Baltimore or Richmond", Weber said in the interview. Students are increasingly worried about job prospect. In the last days, two major US firms Orrick, Herrington Sutcliffe and Morgan, and Lewis and Bockius announced that they will push back the full-time time date for the current summer class and suspend recruitment for summer jobs.

US law firms still flashing the cash for UK associates 

Despite salary cuts and freezes, newly qualified lawyers (NQs) in London remain among of the highest-paid graduates in the UK. Latham and Watkins pays its NQs £96,970, followed by US rival Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton with £92,000. New associates at Weil, Gotshal and Manges, another US firm in the City, will see their pay packet cut by 5.6per cent to a "miserly" £85,000. Meanwhile, all four magic circle firms have cut starting salaries. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Clifford Chance are paying newly qualified associates £59,000 (-£7,000 compared to last year), just less than Allen and Overy's £60,000 (-£5,000), and Linklaters' £61,500 (-£5,100).