Indian law firm Saga Legal has continued its strategic expansion across key markets in the country, with the addition of former AZB counsel Atul N Menon as head of its dispute resolution practice in Bengaluru. 

The move follows the firm's launch of its Mumbai office in November of last year, and its relocation to a larger office space in Delhi. Menon’s addition brings the firm’s partner strength to five across offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. 

Saga Legal, founded in 2016, also picked up partner corporate partner Neeraj Vyas from Samvad Partners in Bengaluru in December 2023. 

Menon, who had been in AZB’s Delhi office since the start of his career in 2013, specialises in white-collar crime, telecom litigation, arbitration and writ jurisdiction, and appears across various Indian courts and tribunals. 

In a statement, Saga Legal said it was looking to expand further by bringing in top legal talent to the firm’s leadership team. 

“Atul’s onboarding is part of our plan to have talented individuals as a part of our leadership cohort, whether they specialize in our current practice areas or have the capacity to introduce new verticals to our repertoire,” said Sanika Mehra, the firm’s co-managing partner.

The trend of counsel moving from the top-tier Indian law firms moving to partnership positions at smaller outfits has continued into 2025, with the latter offering better designations, higher salaries, and leadership opportunities. 

Front and centre of this trend has been Trilegal, which has seen a spate of counsel-level exits in recent times, including Shringarika Priyadarshini to JSA earlier this year. Aseem Dhawan moved to Argus Partners while Prateek Batra moved to Tatva Legal, Hyderabad, in December. Pooranimaa Hariharan left the firm to join the partnership at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas in July, and Anurag Shrivastav moved to a partner role at JSA Advocates & Solicitors in May.