Invest the time: Aditi Verma Thakur on building trust and partnerships

Welcome to the latest instalment of Managing IP’s ‘Five minutes with’ series, where we learn more about IP practitioners and professionals on a personal and professional level.

This time, we meet Aditi Verma Thakur, managing partner at Aishani Partners in India.

I am a lawyer and managing partner at Aishani Partners. At Aishani Partners, we focus on business-aligned legal services.

My workday mostly begins early in the morning, around 5 or 5.30 am, when I make my to-do lists, before taking a few hours out for my son’s school and my personal routine. Once the formal workday begins around 9.30 or 10 am, I move between assigning new work mandates, client meetings, discussions on complex matters, firm administration, team meetings and, at times, new thought-leadership initiatives. I remain involved in IP litigation matters and pleadings, reviewing intricate commercial arrangements and policies, and developing strategies related to IP protection, enforcement and rebranding.

Currently, I’m strategising and reviewing the pleadings in a copyright infringement suit filed on behalf of an international media and entertainment client before the Delhi High Court. Along with this, I’m also finalising a plan of action for an IP valuation exercise with our valuation team for a pioneering Indian technology enterprise.

I am almost always juggling multiple priorities, as are most of my colleagues. These include both client assignments and the many responsibilities involved in building and managing a growing legal practice. We try to undertake work in pipelines so that full attention is paid to each assignment at a given time. Sometimes, when timelines are pressing, we move assignments up the priority order and switch midway, depending on the client’s urgency.

I stay particularly close to complex or high-stakes work. The objective is to ensure senior involvement where it matters and that clients can rely on consistent quality and supervision.

The most exciting aspect of being a firm leader is the opportunity to work with high-performing professionals, entrepreneurs and organisations from across the world, and to build trusted relationships with them.

The demanding part is ensuring and maintaining quality while managing multiple things within short and often overlapping timeframes. Most of my work involves urgent instructions, time-sensitive discussions and unexpected developments that require immediate attention.

As a firm leader, my responsibility is also to ensure that each of our deliverables and pieces of advice remains legally and commercially sound, that quality is maintained, and that the team remains supported. Having a full pipeline of work is a privilege, and I’m ever grateful for the opportunities that come our way. It can, however, take a toll on work-life balance. Sustaining that pace requires discipline, staying calm under pressure and making a conscious effort to maintain balance.

Deep subject-matter knowledge and the niche expertise that one builds in their core areas are the most fundamental. Equally important is a vision to build and nurture trusted professional relationships, both locally and internationally. IP matters frequently require expertise across different disciplines, jurisdictions and sub-domains. A strong practitioner must therefore be willing to collaborate and contribute significant value. Finally, one must be prepared to invest the time. Expertise, reputation and relationships are all built over time.

The most common misconception is that IP is simply a filing or compliance task to be completed and then struck off a checklist. It is generally placed on the back burner while more immediate client-centric or operational issues receive attention.

In reality, IP should be an integral part of an enterprise’s asset-development and commercial strategy. If one thinks about it, IP is tied to product development, branding, internal processes, licensing, manufacturing, distribution, technology collaborations, customer relationships and even settlement discussions. In many businesses, IP is not merely a supporting element; it is the foundation on which value is created.

As a child, I was deeply inspired by my parents and learned much of my foundational work ethic from my father. During the early years of my career, I was blessed to learn from leaders who helped me sharpen my skills and shape my professional personality.

Now, I draw inspiration from people across different walks of life, particularly leaders doing distinctive work in their own fields. I generally try to recognise the positive qualities in the people I meet and try to incorporate them into my own life and leadership style.

I would be studying or teaching literature. In fact, my interest in protecting literary works and creativity led me to the field of IP rights in the first place.

Things do fall into place, though not always according to the timeline you have imagined. So, stay patient and continue doing the work.

Be patient, persistent and consistent. Progress may not always be swift or even visible, but consistent effort, together with discipline and purpose, brings results.