The Director General of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has power under the Competition Act, 2002 to search premises and seize records, and has used it to search several companies in one industry at the same time, as in the searches in the advertising industry in March 2025. What leaves the building is copies of mailboxes, chats and devices. From then on, the matter is a documents case, and the company either reads its own copy of the record first or answers questions blind.
Competition counsel argue the law, and I handle the evidence underneath it: preserving what the raid touched, making a parallel copy of what was taken, cutting millions of files down to the ones that matter, and reading them for exposure under privilege. Counsel can then decide on the facts whether to contest, offer commitments, settle or seek leniency, before positions harden.
During a search, I can attend to keep an inventory, raise privilege objections and preserve material in parallel. Before any raid, the work covers data maps, hold protocols, a response plan and training for the first hour.
An engagement can cover:
The work runs under counsel, usually the competition counsel already on the matter. If your company has been searched, or expects to be, do reach out and I will take a look.