Foreign law firms are not permitted to establish business in India. This issue was considered by the Bombay High Court in a judgment delivered in 2009 reviewing the judgment delivered on the so-called Lawyers Collective Case (W.P. 1526/1995) at the direction of the Supreme Court. In 2009, the Court ruled that the correct interpretation of the Advocates Act 1961 was that the 'profession of law' must be interpreted to include non-litigious as well as litigious areas of work and consequently both would be reserved to Indian Advocates. The Court therefore upheld the original 1995 judgement that the licences granted to three foreign law firms in 1991 by the Reserve Bank of India to establish representative offices were unlawful. This was later affirmed by the Supreme Court of India in Bar Council Of India vs A.K. Balaji case in 2018. A priori, the Advocates Act 1961 also provides for foreign lawyers to practice in India under reciprocity condition [similarly to chartered accountants]. However, this might be limited to the right to practice of the profession under specific circumstances, and not extended to their right to establish law practices in India as indicated per the above rulings.


"CHAPTER III - ADMISSION AND ENROLMENT OF ADVOCATES [...]
24. Persons who may be admitted as advocates on a State roll.―(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, and the rules made thereunder, a person shall be qualified to be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if he fulfils the following conditions, namely:― 
(a) he is a citizen of India:  
Provided that subject to the other provisions contained in this Act, a national of any other country may be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if citizens of India, duly qualified, are permitted to practise law in that other country; 
[...]
CHAPTER IV - RIGHT TO PRACTISE
29. Advocates to be the only recognised class of persons entitled to practise law.―Subject to the provisions of this Act and any rules made thereunder, there shall, as from the appointed day, be only one class of persons entitled to practise the profession of law, namely, advocates. 
[...]
33. Advocates alone entitled to practise.―Except as otherwise provided in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, no person shall, on or after the appointed day, be entitled to practise in any court or before any authority or person unless he is enrolled as an advocate under this Act
[...]
CHAPTER VI - MISCELLANEOUS [...]
47. Reciprocity.―(1) Where any country, specified by the Central Government in this behalf by notification in the Official Gazette, prevents citizens of India from practising the profession of law or subjects them to unfair discrimination in that country, no subject of any such country shall be entitled to practise the profession of law in India. 
(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (1), the Bar Council of India may prescribe the conditions, if any, subject to which foreign qualifications in law obtained by persons other than citizens of India shall be recognised for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act. [...]" (The Advocates Act 1961, as amended)
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"CHAPTER - III (Conditions for right to practice) (Rules under Section 49 (1) (ah) of the Act) [...]
2. An advocate shall not enter into a partnership or any other arrangement for sharing remuneration with any person or legal practitioner who is not an advocate. [which includes not locally licensed lawyers].[...]" (Bar Council of India Rules 1975, as amended)
The Advocates Act 1961, as amended
Bar Council of India Rules 1975, as amended
[<a href="https://www.indiacode.nic.in/handle/123456789/1631?sam_handle=123456789/1362">Act</a>],[<a href="https://upload.indiacode.nic.in/showfile?actid=AC_CEN_3_46_00001_196125_1517807320172&type=rule&filename=BCI%20Rules,%20Part-V%20to%20IX.pdf">Rule</a>],[<a href="https://www.ibanet.org/document?id=ITILS-Asia-2019">Other</a>]