AVIATION LAW: IS IT FOR ME?
Addressing your query:
Vikrant Pachnanda
​
An Advocate-on-Record, Supreme Court of India & Aviation Lawyer at Pachnanda Law offices with offices in New Delhi and Chandigarh.
Completed his LL.M in Air and Space Law from Leiden University.
​
ALWAYS START WITH BUILDING YOUR KNOWLEDGE IN THE SUBJECT
AM I A SUITABLE
CANDIDATE?
Pursuing a law degree opens you up to a vast variety of career opportunities. While some fields are relatively common, some remain unexplored to an extent.
​
One such field being aviation law which is a branch of law that concerns flight,air travel, and associated business and legal concerns including contractual obligations.
​
This segment will focus on the importance of having an advanced degree before pursuing this career path and if you decide to do so, how should you go about it.
PURSUING AN ADVANCED DEGREE
While a degree is not mandatory however it always gives you an edge over others.
1. Prior knowledge required?
Pursuing an advanced degree doesn’t require any prior knowledge of the subject. It’s true that some people who pursue the said degree usually have some work experience in the field but a large number of students, pursue the degree right after their graduation.
​
Also, the course at Leiden University is structured in a manner with the assumption that you are a beginner in the field. So in the end what really matters is your interest in the said subject.
If an individual has an interest in aviation law then definitely I would recommend such students to pursue an advanced degree in the subject to gain the required knowledge and build up their networks which will help them in the long run.
2. Significance
There’s a lot of aviation attorneys who don’t really have a master’s degree. Nonetheless, education never goes to waste. While having a degree in aviation law isn’t mandatory, the benefit of having one is that you become a part of a vast network of aviation lawyers around the globe, be it general counsels of airlines or other stakeholders in the industry. Such networks can really assist you while building your own practice by helping you find prospective clients or inviting you to contribute articles on the said subject in the journals where people you interact within your network could be on the advisory board or speak at conferences which is very helpful in the long run.
Apart from that, an LL.M in aviation law is a structured program including subjects like public and private international airline law, finance, and competition law in aviation, to name a few. Also while focusing upon a particular industry it’s always important to know how that industry works in general because knowing the law is one thing but knowing the industry is really important to succeed.
​
However, it doesn’t matter if you have a specialized degree or not in aviation law to become an aviation lawyer. So it’s always open to undergraduate students to become an aviation lawyer without an advanced degree.
Being an undergrad in this profession
As far as undergrads are concerned, they should always start with building their knowledge in the subject by either writing some articles on aviation law, attending conferences on this subject in order to get an idea what aviation law is all about, participating in aviation law related moot courts and if possible, do an internship in aviation law to get a first-hand experience what it would be like to be in the aviation industry.
​
Furthermore, I would suggest such students go for an advanced degree after some years of experience in the industry to make the most of their degree. As for the opportunities for aviation law in India, they are comparatively lesser because it’s still a developing sector in the country but nonetheless, internships and experience go a long way in succeeding if one is interested in this field
No matter what,
Always follow your dreams. Dreams are what keep you awake which in turn will help you work towards it in order to turn your dream into reality. In the end, patience and perseverance are keys to one’s success.