Samuel Mani

Mani Chengappa & Mathur is a boutique law firm which specialises in advising domestic and international businesses of all sizes on technology and outsourcing transactions, privacy and data protection, commercial transactions, employment law, intellectual property protection, commercialisation and licensing, and dispute resolution. We blend our legal skills with deep knowledge of business operations and risk management frameworks to provide clients with advice and representation that is practical and tailored to their unique needs while being legally sound.

The firm being has been regularly ranked over the last 7 years in the leading international legal directories for its capabilities in the TMT sector. The Chambers and Partners listing is available here and the Legal 500 listing is available here. The detailed Chambers and Partners profile of the firm, based on their internal research, can be found here.

We are regularly instructed by international law firms and corporations to assist on the Indian aspects of privacy and data protection. Our experience in working with companies which, and jurisdictions that, treat privacy very seriously allows us to advice our clients across the privacy, data protection and information security spectrum.

Our capabilities include:

• Adapting global privacy frameworks to the requirements of Indian law
• Understanding the need for data in the business
• Analysing privacy obligations from an Indian perspective in global/multi-jurisdictional business initiatives
• Auditing existing privacy frameworks to ensure suitability for business need
• Advising on suitable privacy and document retention policy options
• Drafting privacy, document retention and information security policies
• Dealing with data losses

Samuel Mani is a founding partner of Mani Chengappa & Mathur. A graduate of the National Law School of India University (Class of 1998), Samuel specialises in advising clients on technology and outsourcing transactions, privacy and data protection matters, general commercial transactions, early stage/growth capital and other start-up related matters, mergers and acquisitions, insurance, and dispute resolution. He has extensive experience in running complex high-stake matters but is equally comfortable assisting an entrepreneur in putting a business together. His advice draws extensively on his many years of experience as a business leader.

Recent transactions include advising multiple Indian banks on procurement of technology as well as data security and privacy, advising India’s leading payment and settlement system provider on commercial and procurement matters, advising multiple international clients on Indian privacy and data protection laws, data transfer impact assessments for various multi-national clients considering new technology and data transfer initiatives with an Indian component,  advising SaaS companies on licensing and go to market strategies for both the Indian and overseas markets, advising multiple fin-tech companies on the fin tech regulatory system and potential go-to-market models, over 50 early stage/growth capital transactions for either investors or investees, establishing the legal framework for an information technology accelerator, advising a major international bank on global outsourcing templates, advising clients on cyber-insurance coverage related matters, and advising a small group of HNIs on their angel investments in Indian start-ups.

Prior to founding the firm, Samuel was the global Head of Legal for Infosys Limited and all of its subsidiaries where he had overall responsibility for all legal affairs of the Infosys group with additional responsibility for Infosys’ privacy/data protection office and its liability insurance program. He was the primary lawyer at Infosys for a large part of its growth from 700 million dollars per annum to 7 billion dollars per annum. Samuel has also served as a legal advisor to Reliance Industries Limited where he worked primarily in the telecommunications space.

Samuel has been recognized a leading practitioner in the Indian TMT space by Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific and Who’s Who Legal from 2016 to 2019. In September 2010, Lex Witness Magazine named Samuel to its Hall of Fame as one of the top 50 people who are shaping the legal landscape of modern India.

He is also a frequent speaker at conferences and seminars on a variety of topics including technology and the law, insurance, and mediation/dispute resolution. Most notably, Samuel delivered the Annual Lecture to the Society for Computers and Law in 2010 in London, England.

Education

National Law School of India University: BA LLB (Hons) - 1998

University of Essex, England: LLM with Distinction in International Trade Law – 2000

Stanford University Graduate School of Business: Stanford Ignite Certificate Program in Entrepreneurship and Innovation – 2013.