Business Law and Corporate Law

On 13 July 2026, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) imposed penalties exceeding ₹142 crore on HP India and several reselers under Section 27 of the Competition Act, 2002 (Competition Act) for cartelisation and bid rigging in the sale and supply of HP personal system products, including laptops, desktops, workstations and accessories (Computers Case), and ink and toner cartridges (Cartridges Case). The orders arose from lesser penalty applications filed by HP India under Section 46 of the Competition Act read with the CCI (Lesser Penalty) Regulations, 2009.

For years, M&A due diligence followed a familiar script. Lawyers reviewed contracts and litigation, accountants examined financial records, and IT teams assessed systems, licences and cybersecurity. Data protection often remained a secondary consideration. That is changing with the introduction of India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act) and the notification of the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 (DPDP Rules).

Employee stock options are designed to attract, incentivise, and retain talent. That is how they are presented to the board and described in offer letters. But the moment a company enters an M&A transaction, an arrangement built by the HR function becomes a term the deal lawyers have to price, and it is very often the last term anyone looks at.

The Income-tax Act, 2025 has introduced significant changes to the taxation framework for charitable entities, now classified as registered not-for-profit organisations (NPOs). This article examines how the Finance Act, 2026 has recalibrated provisions governing cancellation of registration for NPOs engaged in general public utility objects, comparing the new framework with the Income-tax Act, 1961 to reveal both intended alignments and unintended departures.

India's Ministry of Home Affairs has introduced sweeping amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act framework through the 2026 Amendment Rules, fundamentally transforming how NGOs and not-for-profits receive and utilize foreign funding. These changes establish purpose-specific and geography-specific registration requirements, enhanced disclosure obligations including ultimate donor identification, and objective benchmarks for organizational activity. Will these reforms strengthen accountability

India is perhaps one of the first countries in the world to make a robust and mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”) initiative which requires the corporations to contribute a portion of their earnings...

SEBI's review of India's SME IPO framework raises fundamental questions about how smaller businesses should access public capital. As the market expands, regulators must balance making listings commercially...

India's securities regulator has issued a comprehensive order against Varanium Cloud Limited and its key personnel for misrepresenting financial statements, diverting IPO and Rights Issue proceeds totaling Rs. 62.51 crore to related parties, and making false business announcements. The order imposes significant monetary penalties, disgorgement requirements, and market debarments ranging from one to seven years on the company, its managing director, intermediaries, and other key management personnel.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in its recent informal guidance dated 20 July 2026 (Informal Guidance), has clarified that Regulation 62A of SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, as amended (LODR Regulations), applies to outstanding unlisted non-convertible debentures, which was are transferred to a debt listed entity pursuant to any corporate restructuring or business transfer.

Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) by Notification dated 30.04.2026, published on 06.05.2026, notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Authorised Persons) Regulations, 2026 (“AP Regulations”).

The Bombay High Court's decision in Nayara Energy Ltd. v. M/s. Mahendra Sales Services addresses critical questions about arbitral tribunals' authority to override express contractual terms in dealership disputes.

Picture this - A medium sized investor in Mumbai invests in a seemingly lucrative business opportunity. The presentation is all spiffy - design, marketing material, a trademark registration number, a license.