Indian women have been an integral part of the legal profession and practice since the passing of the Legal Practitioners (Women) Act, XXIII of 1923. However, in a sector that has been mostly dominated by men for decades, women still hardly get any leadership roles. A passionate lawyer and staunch supporter of women empowerment, Meenal Maheshwari started her career as an M&A lawyer with Khaitan & Co, followed by being a dispute resolution professional where she argued in various courts and tribunals right from the city civil to the Supreme Court. After a solid and fruiting career in corporate and litigation practice, she later forayed as an in-house counsel and has been working in the same for the last eight years. Presently she is working as the Group Legal Director at Lemmatree group, advising the leadership of all Lemmatree ventures about key legal aspects while providing legal support for group functions.

In an exclusive interview with Women Entrepreneur, Meenal shares her early education as well as the prior industry experience she brings to the table, the various roles and responsibilities she plays at Lemmatree, and much more:

Tell Us About The Underlying Idea Behind Lemmatree And Its Most Unique Features.

Headquartered in Singapore, Lemmatree is a Temasekbacked venture-building organization that enables and supports businesses that provide trusted data ownership, complete control over data sharing, and secure data distribution. Being a pioneer in the world of secure data ownership and control, Lemmatree’s ventures leverage decentralized technologies to build different products and services. Currently, there are three ventures under Lemmatree, which are Affinidi, Trustana, and Good Worker. While Affinidi is the primary company that houses the decentralized technology, Trustana and Good Worker are two very diverse use cases for Affinidi’s technology.

Coming to the unique features, one of the primary goals of the firm is to empower users to own and control their data, and determine how and with whom it is shared. Lemmatree has the backing of one of the leading investors, Temasek, which has successfully invested in multiple innovative technology businesses.

The firm's biggest strength lies in its incredible leadership team led by our CEO Glenn Gore, a highly achieved and amazing leader. In my experience, empowerment enables people to take the highest level of ownership and accountability, and that’s the energy of this rapidly growing group.

Take Us Through Your Early Educational Journey. What Factors Motivated You To Foray Into The Field Of Law?

Similar to any other academically bent students in Kanpur, I also tried to get into IIT JEE but couldn’t make it through the mains. To re-attempt the exam, I decided to join some college as a backup. I wanted to join a college where it would be easy to navigate so that I could focus on my IIT preparation. Based on my father’s suggestion, I enroll in a law college as in Uttar Pradesh law was perceived as a subject for not-so-bright students and hence we were assured will be easy to navigate while I prepare for JEE. Due to my marks in the 12th Board, admission to one of the top law schools in the country was easy. However, I realized my love for law during my first moot court and started to trust this area of work, considered substandard in my state.

I was in the top 10 students amongst thousands of students that studied in the 23 law schools at the University of Pune. During my last two years, based on my academics, I got internships in top law firms in India through college. However, I remember not learning much during these internships as many lawyers in top law firms in India tend to be too arrogant to speak with interns.

When placements started, I wanted to get through AmarchandManagaldas, which was one of the top law firms in India, but could not clear the GD round. In the Amarchand GD round, what I remember the most, is not having the confidence to speak in a group. The other students not only had varied experiences outside of studies but also did not have inhibitions as I did.

I also remember being asked about the relationship between a partner and an associate, and my response was that the associates should not get friendly with the partner and should maintain a respectful distance from the partners to show respect. What I did not know then was that a few years later, my beliefs would change as I would navigate life and that some of my closest friends today are the seniors I have worked with in a professional capacity. After this heartbreaking rejection, I took the PPO that was offered to me by Khaitan& Co, during my last internship.

Tell Us About Your Prior Industry Experience That You Bring To The Table. What Are Some Important Features Of Your Expertise As A Legal Professional?

At Khaitan, I got the opportunity to work with multiple industry giants from different sectors, such as insurance, pharmaceuticals, food, technology, manufacturing, call center, and education on multimillion dollar deals. My first in-house role for Brand Capital, the investment arm of Times of India, gave me a deep sense understanding of how media businesses are run. Later, I took up a global role at Essar at the group level, which gave me hands-on experience not only in different businesses but also in different jurisdictions. Presently, I am with the Lemmatree group for the past year, where I have built the entire legal function for Good Worker and Affinidi from scratch. I have recently been appointed as the Group Legal Director for Lemmatree group.

"Mothers must ensure to raise their Sons to treat women as their peers And raise their daughters to be Independent and fierce"

I started out working in a specialized area of M&A and corporate laws at Khaitan& Co and some good circumstances and my curiosity led me towards what is considered the opposite – dispute resolution. As a dispute resolution professional, I argued in various courts and tribunals right from the city civil to the Supreme Court, which gave me a practical view of the paperwork and the human element involved in viewing the documents when they go to tribunals or courts. This deep connection between so-called diverse fields gave me tools to do critical thinking, strategic planning, and the need to visualize the many steps ahead. It taught me what to truly prioritize.

The strong corporate and litigation practice serves me as a foundation when leading complex and simple work as an in-house counsel. I deeply believe in up skilling which means learning about the different areas of laws that emerge or need thereof as a result of the evolving world which is different from following developments in the subject matter I am already versed with. Three years back or so I immersed myself in technology laws and I became a certified global privacy law professional and a certified data auditor.

Tell Us About The Various Roles And Responsibilities You Shoulder As The Group Head Of Legal At Good Worker. What Are Your Primary Focus Areas In Your Current Role?

Previously I was leading the legal functions at Good Worker and Affinidi, India at LemmaTree group and have newly stepped into the role of Group Legal Director. On a macro level, my role is to advise leadership on the legal aspects of key business decisions, collaborate cross-functionally and cross regionally with LemmaTree ventures, and provide legal support for group functions. My focus areas are to set the tone and culture within the legal team across ventures and with business leaders, to identify & remediate any potential exposure to reputational risks, and to drive a strong sense of compliance to the legal framework of each marketplace that the business operates in.

It is my responsibility to have a proactive engagement to develop a point of action to address changes in regulatory requirements and public policy across various countries of operations – Singapore, Berlin, Ukraine, India, China, Thailand, Malaysia, etc. As a part of the role, I will work to integrate legal technology such as matter management, contract AI, and workflow tools into the group, just as any cuttingedge in-house legal team should. Needless to say that managing external counsel and budgets are integral parts of the job.

What Is The State Of Women And Their Representation In The Indian Legal Industry? How Can We Improve The Number Of Women Leaders Across The Legal Landscape In The Country?

During my days as an arguing counsel, I was shocked to see close to no women on the scene, and for the ones remaining, there was a lack of respect. As in-house counsels, while you will see relatively more women, they are not really in leadership roles. Our profession is losing a lot of bright women, and it's high time we take action.

There is a dire need to create a sisterhood. Women in leadership positions must stop feeling special to be in leadership positions amongst a sea of men. There is an absolute need for women to self-promote their work. Women under-promote their work and feel awkward taking credit. We need corporations to understand the true power of gender diversity and change their very core.