Naval Satarawala Chopra is a Partner in the Firm’s Competition Law Practice, involved with competition law since its inception in India.

He focuses on both contentious and non-contentious matters before the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and appellate forums. His prominent clients include Microsoft, Facebook, Monsanto, National Stock Exchange, Uber, VeriFone, DLF, PVR and Abbott.

Naval has been involved in some of the most prominent abuse of dominance cases in India. He successfully represented Matrimony.com in an abuse of dominance case against Google, where the CCI fined Google INR 136 crores. He is also advising National Stock Exchange in its defence against an allegation of predatory pricing by MCX Stock Exchange, HT Media against T-Series (a leading Indian music label) in an excessive pricing case involving minimum guarantees and Verifone Corporation against alleged unfair terms and conditions and leveraging in the supply of POS terminals in India. He is particularly skilled in advising on antitrust aspects of technology related matters, having successfully defended WhatsApp in relation to its privacy policy and allegations of tying, Microsoft Corporation in relation to licensing terms and Uber in relation alleged predatory pricing. Naval is also advising Bayer / Monsanto Company in several cases filed by seed companies in India alleging excessive prices, unfair terms & conditions and leveraging.

On the cartel enforcement front, Naval is presently involved in advising several global manufacturers in relation to ongoing international cartel investigations in the auto components sector as well as several other bid rigging cases in different sectors involving government contracts. He is also involved in challenges before the Delhi High Court to the CCI’s investigation in several cases on account of due process and natural justice issues.

On the merger control front, Naval has successfully obtained merger clearances in several prominent cases including Think and Learn’s acquisition of Aakash Educational Services, which is India’s largest ever education sector transaction, Avago’s acquisition of Broadcom, HP’s acquisition of Samsung’s printer business, the failed merger of Publicis and Omnicom as well as the conditional approval for Bayer AG’s acquisition of Monsanto Company, and the acquisition by PVR of DT Cinemas.

Naval has also authored the India chapters of the Global Antitrust and Competition Law Compliance Handbook (Oxford University Press), Private Equity Antitrust (American Bar Association), Evolution of Antitrust in the Digital Era (Competition Policy International), Interplay between Competition Law and Intellectual Property and Competition and Patent Law in the Pharmaceutical Sector (both Kluwer Law International). Naval also contributes to annual publications of the ABA Section of International Law – Antitrust Committee, as well as generally updates on the merger control and cartels space in India.

Naval worked closely with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and the CCI in the finalisation of the Indian merger control regime. He is also the course director for Diploma on Competition Law at ILS Law College, Pune which he has been teaching since 2014.

He is qualified to practice in India, New York and England & Wales and India. He holds an L.L.B. from ILS Law College, Pune and an L.L.M from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Prior to joining the Firm, Naval was an Associate in the India Group at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London for almost five years.