Powerful Journey of Zia Mody – Fearless Lady Who Excelled Corporate World.

Powerful Indian Lady Zia Mody – India's Best Female Corporate Lawyer

Zia Mody is a well-known Indian businesswoman, foremost corporate lawyer and the daughter of former Attorney General of India – Soli Sorabjee. Zia is the founding partner of one of India's leading law firms – AZB & Partners. She has worked with over a half dozen big enterprises like Tata Group, Reliance, Vedanta, Aditya Birla Group, etc. Her ability to deal with business issues and deals is commendable. Let's get to know the life story of this brilliant and fearless woman through this article.

Wow Fact – Zia Mody was continuously featured in 25 Most powerful businesswomen in India by Business Today from 2004 to 2011.

Zia Mody – Key Highlights

Full Name – Zia Mody
Date of Birth – 19 July 1956 (65 years)
Place of Birth – Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Profession – Corporate Lawyer, Businesswoman
Alma Mater – Cambridge University, Harvard Law School
Designation – Founding Partner of AZB & Group
Marital Status – Married
Spouse – Jaydev Mody (Chairman of Delta Corp Ltd)

Zia Mody – Personal Life

Zia was born in Mumbai in a well-educated and reputed family to Zena and Soli Sorabjee. Her mother is a philanthropist, and her father was the former Attorney General of India. She married an Indian business tycoon – Jaydev Mody (chairman of Delta Corp). The couple has three daughters – Anjali, Aditi, and Aarti.

Note – In 2015, Zia Mody was awarded Lifetime Achievement Award by Euromoney Asia Women in Business Law Awards.

Zia Mody Success Story – Career Timeline

Early Life Zia studied at Elphinstone College, Mumbai, before studying law at Selwyn College, Cambridge. She also has a master's degree in law from Harvard Law College.
Attorney Mody qualified for the New York State Bar examination and worked as an attorney in Banker & McKenzie in New York for five years.
Fun Fact – In 2018, Zia was recognized as the Top 13 female Acritas Star by Acritas Star.
Founded AZB & Partners Mody came back to Mumbai in 1984 and started her practice. She founded AZB & Partners by merging twice with the other firms. Zia's company is one of the largest and most reputed law firms in India.

Zia Mody Bio – Awards and Achievements

Zia Mody is one of the leading corporate lawyers in India. She has won several awards and achievements for her outstanding work in this field. Some of them are as follows:

She got recommended for Securities Law, M&A, Project Finance, and Private Equity – By RSG India F-Report, 2017
She got recognized as Leading Lawyer – By IFLR1000 Women Leaders, 2018
Mody classified as Leading Individual for Banking & Finance, Investment Funds, Corporate and M&A – By Legal 500 Asia Pacific, 2018
Professional of the Year – By UK India Awards, 2017
Market Leader (Mergers & Acquisitions) – By IFLR1000 Financial & Corporate Guide, 2018
Market Leading Lawyer (Corporate/M&A) – By Asia Law Profiles, 2016, 2018
Leading individual for Finance, Banking, M&A and Corporate and Investments Funds – By Legal 500 Asia Pacific, 2016
Star Individual for M&A and Corporate, Brand 1 lawyer for Private Equity, Brand 1 lawyer for Banking & Finance – By Chambers and Partners Global, 2016
Financial Express Knowledge Professional of the Year – By Financial Express, 2011
India's 100 Most Powerful CEOs – By The Economic Times, 2004 – 2006
Economic Times Award (for Corporate Excellence) – By Economic Times, 2010
Top 50 Most Powerful Women – By Fortune India
Influential Women in Business – By Forbes Magazine

Zia Mody – Affiliations and Memberships

Deputy Chairman and Director – Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation, Hong Kong

Member of Governing Board of ICCA (International Council for Commercial Arbitration.

Foreign Arbitrator – Panel of Arbitrators of China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC).

Member of the CII National Council.

On the panel of an expert committee – By Law Commission of India (for Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996)

Member – Reserve Bank of India Committee (for Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low-Income Households)

Member – Godrej Committee (for Corporate Governance set by the mInistry of Corporate Affairs)

Member – World Bank Administrative Tribunal

Vice President and Member – London Court of International Arbitration

Deputy Chairman and Non-executive Director – HSBC Asia Pacific Board.

Zia Mody – Philanthropy

Zia Mody is also an active philanthropist and believes in donating a part of her wealth to the poor and underprivileged of society. She mainly donates to the Baha'i Fund and also contributes to the Jai Vakeel Foundation.

Note – Zia was recognized as India Managing Partner of the Year by Asian Legal Business (Thomson Reuters) in 2016.

Zia Mody – Top Female Global Lawyer

Zia Mody is one of the first female lawyers in India who has excelled in the corporate sector. It is one of those sectors that used to be mainly dominated by males, but Zia proved herself and paved the way for other women. She is an inspiration for all those budding female lawyers who want to pursue their careers in the corporate field.

Swati Chandra

I am an English Honours graduate from Delhi University and writing is my passion. I like writing sweet, fun, action-packed mysteries. My characters are clever and fearless, but in real life, I am afraid of basements, bees, and going upstairs when it is dark behind. I have 2+ years of experience in this field and have worked with several websites as an intern.

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