Working with the Firm from Outside India

In short: the matter starts with a two-line message and any dated paper, the consultation happens by phone or video in Indian time, an attorney in India signs and appears under a power of attorney executed abroad, documents travel as scans, the fee is paid by bank transfer to the firm's Indian account, and a written note follows every hearing the same day.

How does a matter start from abroad?

With a message on WhatsApp to +91 70230 51275 or an email to contact@shubhamojhaandassociates.com. Three things make the first call useful: the matter in two lines, any notice, order or FIR with the date printed on it, and the village, tehsil and district. In Rajasthan the district decides which court and, at the High Court, which bench takes the matter, so the place matters as much as the facts.

How does the consultation happen?

By phone or video, at a time fixed in advance. The chamber's hours are 7 to 11 PM Indian Standard Time, which is afternoon in Europe, morning in North America and late evening in the Gulf and Singapore. The call is in Hindi or English as the client prefers. At the end of it the client is told which forum the matter belongs to, what the realistic course is, what papers are needed, and whether anything has a deadline running.

Who signs papers in India?

An attorney appointed under a power of attorney. The document is signed by the client in the country of residence, either before the Indian Embassy or Consulate or with an apostille under the Hague Convention, to which India is a party. Once it reaches India it must be stamped within three months of receipt, as Section 18 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 requires for instruments executed outside India. Where the power of attorney is to be used for a registered document, Section 33 of the Registration Act, 1908 lets the sub-registrar accept one authenticated by an Indian consul or vice-consul. The firm prepares the text so that the powers match the matter, neither wider nor narrower than needed.

What can be done without travelling?

Almost everything that happens before an authority or a court on papers: an application for mutation before the tehsildar, a partition suit, a suit or petition to recover property from a relative or caretaker, a writ before the Rajasthan High Court, appearances on every listed date, and obtaining certified copies of orders and revenue records. Two things need the client in person: giving evidence in a trial where the court requires it, and some registrations where the sub-registrar insists on the executant's presence. Both are known well in advance and planned around a single visit.

How are documents exchanged?

As clear scans or photographs on WhatsApp or email. A copy of the jamabandi, the sale deed, the will, the earlier order or the notice is enough to begin. Originals are sent by courier only when a court or registrar calls for them, and the client is told exactly which paper and why before anything is posted.

How is the fee paid from abroad?

By bank transfer to the firm's Indian current account, described as payment for legal services. The receiving bank issues a remittance certificate, and the firm issues its receipt. The firm does not accept cash, does not use any personal account, and does not send payment links from any number other than its own. The fee for any piece of work is confirmed in writing before it is paid.

What about time zones and updates?

After every hearing the client receives a written note the same day: what happened, in one line, and the next date. Orders are sent as soon as certified copies are obtained. Questions in between are answered on WhatsApp within a working day. The client is never left to guess whether the matter moved.

What the law says, in one place

Three rules decide most of the questions a client abroad asks. First, a power of attorney signed before a notary or an Indian consul carries a presumption of due execution under Section 85 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, now Section 89 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, which is why the consular signature matters more than any other formality. Second, a power of attorney is an authority to act, not a transfer of title: the Supreme Court in Suraj Lamp & Industries v. State of Haryana (2012) 1 SCC 656 held that a "GPA sale" conveys nothing, so property is transferred by a registered deed signed by the attorney, never by the power of attorney itself. Third, a mutation entry in the revenue record at the tehsil is evidence of possession for revenue purposes and does not by itself create or extinguish title, as the Supreme Court held in Sawarni v. Inder Kaur (1996) 6 SCC 223; a disputed inheritance in Rajasthan is therefore fought in the civil court or before the revenue courts up to the Board of Revenue at Ajmer, and at the Rajasthan High Court's Principal Seat at Jodhpur for the Marwar districts, not merely at the tehsil counter. For agricultural land, a non-resident Indian or an OCI cardholder may acquire it only by inheritance under the Foreign Exchange Management (Non-debt Instruments) Rules, 2019, which is exactly why most matters from abroad are about succession and possession rather than purchase.

Two cautions

• No advocate can promise the outcome of a case. What can be promised is that the matter is filed correctly, in the right forum, and attended on every date.
• Papers or money sent to anyone other than the firm's own number and email are not received by the firm. If in doubt, call the chamber first.