Leadership/

Neil Hildreth

Neil is a founding member and the Managing Partner of the firm. Before setting up the firm, he was a Partner with Lumiere Law Partners, an EY-Law network firm.

He has over two decades of experience as a practising lawyer, with a focus on commercial, regulatory and labour law.

Professional memberships

Professional experience

• Advises clients on compliance on a pan-India basis, including labour law, company law, foreign exchange, environment, legal metrology, competition, consumer protection, and data protection and privacy.
• Advises clients on risk mitigation in cases of non-compliance with applicable laws, with a key focus on corporate law.
• Has advised manpower supply companies on labour law compliance and represented them before labour authorities.
• Advises extensively on corporate governance and compliance.
• Has advised clients in the auto, FMCG, pharmaceutical and apparel sectors on legal metrology.
• Advises clients across sectors on litigation strategy, commercial disputes and regulatory matters.
• Has advised and represented clients in white-collar matters arising under FEMA, FCRA and other regulatory enactments.
• Appears before the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts and tribunals across India.

Rahul Jain

Rahul is a Co-Founding Partner of Channel 1 Law Partners, with over 16 years of experience in corporate law and complex dispute resolution. He is a qualified Advocate-on-Record.

He was previously a Director at Lumiere Law Partners (an EY-Law network firm), where he represented government and private entities before courts across India. He contributes to Daily Jus and also serves as an Independent Director.

Professional memberships

Professional experience

• Advises and represents companies on labour law compliance, employment and labour disputes, arbitration and complex commercial litigation.
• Represents clients before arbitral tribunals constituted under institutional rules including SIAC, ICC, LCIA and DIAC; his understanding of engineering concepts is particularly relevant to EPC and construction disputes.
• Appears regularly before the Supreme Court of India and High Courts across the country.
• Advises on regulatory matters under FEMA, and has advised multinational corporations on Foreign Direct Investment issues in the e-commerce sector.
• Advises clients in the automotive, FMCG, pharmaceutical and apparel sectors on compliance and enforcement under legal metrology laws.
• Guides clients through environmental regulation and related disputes.
• Handles the full dispute lifecycle, from pre-dispute strategy and risk assessment through litigation or arbitration to final resolution.

Ashok Kumar Arya

Ashok has over 33 years of experience in the Indian Revenue Service, with deep expertise in Customs, GST and financial crime.

He has held senior positions including Principal Commissioner, Member (Technical) at CESTAT, and Senior Standing Counsel for the Ministry of Finance. He is the author of “Money Laundering: Combating the Menace in Global and Indian Context”, and has represented India at global forums, including the U.S. Multi-Regional International Visitor Leadership Program on combating international crime.

Professional experience

• Appellate Tribunal: served as a Member of CESTAT, deciding appeals on Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax.
• Tax advocacy: as Senior Standing Counsel for the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, represented the Department before the Delhi High Court.
• Enforcement: senior positions in the Enforcement Directorate and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, covering taxation, narcotics and foreign exchange.
• Government advisory: as Officer on Special Duty to the Vice President of India, provided inputs on the Union Budget, anti-corruption, anti-terrorism, legal affairs and rural development.
• Intelligence and investigation: led work on economic offences and financial fraud involving foreign exchange, customs, central excise, narcotics and money laundering.