Sahil Kanuga

Sahil focuses on internal investigations, white-collar crimes and cross border disputes and has about 20 years of experience.

He regularly advises foreign and domestic clients on internal investigations into compliance and policy violations, matters pertaining to whistle-blower complaints and ABAC and regulatory compliance matters for corporations and financial institutions. He also has considerable expertise in advising on corporate governance, cross border disputes, financial crimes, fraud related issues, and regulatory and governance issues.

Relevant Experience:

Internal Investigations / ABAC / Compliance:

• Advising one of the world’s largest manufacturers of industrial tools on an internal investigation into its Indian subsidiary concerning potential non-compliances with applicable laws, including anti-money laundering laws, customs regulations, and company policies.
• Advising a Denmark-based biotechnology company on an internal investigation into its Indian subsidiary concerning a potential leak in its supply chain leading to unauthorised sale of its goods and infringement of its intellectual property. Simultaneously, advised the Client in relation to protection and enforcement of its intellectual property rights.
• Advising a U.S. based global proprietary high-frequency trading firm in navigating multi-agency investigations into its operations in India.
• Assisting and advising an Italian company with an internal investigation into one of its Indian subsidiaries regarding a cyber-fraud incident and provided strategic advice on the post investigation steps and recommendations.
• Advising one of the largest U.S.-based manufacturer of protective coating materials in an internal investigation and liaising with the Central Bureau of Narcotics and Customs Department officials to acquire an NOC for export of controlled substance. Simultaneously, advising and representing the Client before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court in a Writ Petition with respect to the release of its goods seized by Customs officials belonging to its Indian subsidiary.
• Advised a publicly listed Indian company on its obligations under ongoing contracts/POs following the inclusion of the counterparty in the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list (“SDN List”) by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”). Assisted the Client in drafting comprehensive contractual terms to account for sanctions compliance.
• Advised a leading energy and environment solutions Indian company on its obligations under ongoing contracts/POs with a subsidiary of Russian state-run oil company following it being sanctioned by the European Union.
• Advising Indian companies sanctioned by the US OFAC on the delisting procedure from the OFAC SDN list. Simultaneously, assisting the Client with the scoping of risks and associated costs with being placed on the SDN List.
• Advising a U.S.-based global e-commerce fulfilment company with an investigation regarding alleged employee misconduct.
• Advising a U.S. banking subsidiary in a sensitive litigation emanating from an internal investigation potentially having extensive ramifications globally.
• Advised a leading U.S. company in an ethics and compliance investigation initiated on the basis of a whistle-blower complaint covering issues such as governance and anti-corruption in India. Advised on gaps in the Client’s internal code of conduct as well as provided a policy framework to address governance and ABAC concerns and assisted in drafting a fair disclosure policy and practice guidance on internal controls, ethics, and compliance.
• Advising a global Business Process Management leader in an internal investigation into allegations of ABAC non-compliance, cross-border compliance issues and major corporate governance concerns, including employee misconduct, misappropriation, kickbacks from vendors and potential FCPA violations.
• Advised the Indian subsidiary of a multi-national pharmaceutical company in an internal investigation into certain allegations relating to bribery and corruption levelled against senior management.
• Advised a U.S. software company in two internal investigations in relation to allegations of bribery, corruption and ethical non-compliance against their employees and vendors.
• Advised and assisted one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies in an internal investigation into its Indian joint-venture entity pertaining to a former employee’s complaint on hostile treatment and retaliation.
• Advised a global non-governmental organization on a strategic internal investigation into its Indian operations.
• Advised an Indian technology company that provides cloud-based enterprise software and services in an internal investigation pertaining to non-disclosure of conflict of interest and ancillary issues.
• Advised a U.S. based company with regards to ABAC and AML checks as part of a due diligence exercise undertaken for acquiring a target company based out of India.
• Advised a reputed U.S. Company on issues emanating out of breach of fiduciary duties and a larger conspiracy by the Managing Director and other employees of its Indian subsidiary and related litigation.
• Advised a reputed listed U.S. company in an internal investigation pertaining to allegations about a toxic workplace and culture, in breach of company policies.
• Advised a reputed listed U.S. company in an internal investigation pertaining to allegations about misconduct and harassment by the Managing Director of its Indian subsidiary.
• Advised an Indian media house in a matter pertaining to a criminal investigation against the company and its shareholders, with allegations involving illegal gratification to public officials.
• Advising a multi-national corporation involved in the IT sector in an internal investigation into allegations of bribery, fraud, embezzlement of funds and anti-corruption law violations by an ex-employee.
• Advised on several large-scale internal and regulatory investigations in collaboration with international law firms and forensic teams, having potential ramifications under the FCPA and UKBA.
• Advised one of the world’s largest media-services provider, in respect of allegations of sexual harassment against a member of an affiliated media production company.
• Assisted a leading Bollywood production company with pre-litigation strategy relating to its cross-border investment in a foreign entity for film production.
• Advised a leading Bollywood VFX company on pre-litigation actions concerning its share subscription in a foreign entity.
• Provided strategic counsel to an international school brand on managing potential disputes and ensuring compliance in relation to POSH laws.
• Advised A-list Indian film actors on pre-litigation strategy relating to privacy protection and security concerns.
• Advised an Indian-promoted global company on whistle-blower allegations pertaining to toxic conduct by certain members of the senior management.

Corporate Governance and Advisory:

• Advised several listed and unlisted companies on corporate governance matters under company law, foreign exchange control laws and securities laws.
• Advising an international non-profit organisation engaged in community development projects in the education sector in an investigation into allegations of breach of governance, and ABAC non-compliance. Simultaneously, assisting the organization in implementing good governance practices and compliance frameworks.

Dispute Resolution & International Arbitration:

• Advising a Chinese pharmaceutical company in relation to an ongoing dispute arising out of the supply of APIs to a leading global pharmaceutical company in India.
• Advised a Jordanian infrastructure company in respect of enforcement of a Paris-seated arbitral award against an Indian entity.
• Advised a Japanese infrastructure company in respect of enforcement of a Singapore-seated arbitral award against an Indian entity.
• Advised and assisted a leading Japanese company in successfully enforcing a multi-million-dollar Singapore-seated SIAC arbitral award in India.
• Advised the minority shareholder of a reputed precious gems certification business in a global dispute which included litigation proceedings instituted in various jurisdictions including Mauritius and Dubai.

Memberships

• Member, Sub-Committee of the Ministry of Law & Justice, Department of Justice, Government of India, (dealing with implementation of Pre-institution Mediation and Settlement)

Awards & Recognition:

• ‘Key Lawyer’ in White Collar Crime by Legal 500, 2026
• ‘Notable Practitioner’ in Dispute Resolution; White Collar Crime by Legal Era 2025-2026
• ‘Future Leader’, Arbitration for Global Arbitration Review/Lexology Index (Formerly Who’s Who Legal), 2026
• ‘Litigation Star’ at Benchmark Litigation Asia Pacific Rankings 2025
• ‘Recommended Lawyer’ Dispute Resolution: Arbitration & Litigation for Legal 500 APAC Rankings, 2024
• Benchmark Litigation and RSG Consulting as ‘Client focused’ and ‘Solution oriented’