Practice area
Real Estate & Infrastructure
Land acquisition, development structures, RERA compliance and project documentation across the Telugu states and Karnataka.
The Land and Development Framework
Real estate in India is governed state by state. Title derives from a chain of documents interpreted under local revenue law and recorded in state land records systems — Dharani in Telangana, Webland and the Andhra Pradesh Land Titling framework, and Bhoomi and Kaveri in Karnataka. Two adjoining parcels can require entirely different diligence.
Layered over title are the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 and the state rules made under it, municipal and development authority approvals — GHMC and HMDA, APCRDA, BBMP and BDA — building bye-laws, land ceiling and agricultural conversion rules, and environmental clearance where the project crosses threshold size.
Title diligence in this sector is not a formality that precedes the deal. Encumbrances, unrecorded family partitions, tenancy claims, endowment and assigned land restrictions, and pending land acquisition proceedings are the ordinary findings, not the exceptional ones.
How We Support You
We run title investigation and prepare title reports, structure acquisitions and development arrangements, draft and negotiate the full documentation set — sale deeds, development and joint development agreements, agreements to sell, leases and licences, construction and consultancy contracts — and handle the registration and stamp duty position for each.
On the regulatory side we advise on RERA registration and the developer obligations that follow it, layout and building plan approvals, occupancy and completion certificates, and the compliance calendar that attaches to a registered project. We also act in the disputes that arise: allottee claims, RERA proceedings, specific performance suits and construction arbitrations.
Who We Act For
Developers and construction companies, landowners and family groups contributing land into development arrangements, institutional investors and lenders in real estate credit, corporate occupiers taking commercial space, and industrial buyers acquiring land for plants and warehouses.
What We Handle
The work inside this practice. Each has its own page setting out what it covers, how it is sequenced and where it is heard.
Title Investigation and Due Diligence
Chain of title review, encumbrance certificate and revenue record searches, litigation and land acquisition checks, verification of the seller's authority and capacity, and a written title report identifying defects together with what can and cannot be cured before completion.
Read moreAcquisition and Disposal
Agreements to sell, sale deeds, conveyances and gift and partition deeds, structuring for stamp duty and registration efficiency within the applicable state law, power of attorney arrangements, and completion and mutation of records.
Read moreDevelopment Structures
Joint development agreements and revenue or area sharing arrangements, development management agreements, landowner and developer allocation mechanics, and the security and step-in rights that protect each side if the project stalls.
Read moreRERA and Project Compliance
Project registration, promoter disclosures, allottee agreement drafting compliant with the state rules, the separate account and withdrawal discipline, quarterly updates, extension applications, and representation in proceedings before the authority and the appellate tribunal.
Read moreLeasing and Occupancy
Commercial, retail, industrial and warehousing leases, leave and licence arrangements, fit-out and rent-free periods, lock-in and exit provisions, maintenance and CAM structures, and registration and stamp duty on lease instruments.
Read moreInfrastructure and Project Documentation
Concession agreements and public-private partnership documentation, EPC and construction contracts, operation and maintenance contracts, land aggregation for linear projects, and right of way and easement arrangements.
Read moreReal Estate Disputes
Specific performance and injunction suits, allottee and consumer commission claims, construction and delay arbitrations, partition and inheritance disputes affecting project land, and writ petitions against acquisition or approval decisions.
Read more
How the Work Is Sequenced
Indicative stages and what each produces. Timelines depend on the case. Where we can give a realistic range, the FAQs below say so.
Preliminary title check
A short-form review of the core documents and encumbrance position before you commit to diligence costs or pay an advance. Often the point at which a parcel is ruled out.
Full title investigation
Chain of title over the statutory period, revenue and litigation searches, physical and record verification, and a title report with defects classified as curable or not.
Structuring and documentation
Acquisition or development structure chosen with stamp duty, registration and tax consequences priced in, followed by the transaction documents and the payment and possession milestones.
Approvals and registration
Layout and plan approvals, conversion and NOCs, RERA registration where applicable, stamp duty payment and registration before the Sub-Registrar, and mutation of records.
Project phase and handover
Construction contracts, ongoing RERA disclosures, occupancy and completion certificates, allottee conveyances, and formation and handover to the owners' association.
Jurisdictions, Forums and Regulators
Where cases in this practice are heard, filed or determined.
- Real Estate Regulatory Authorities of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, and the Appellate Tribunals
- GHMC and HMDA; APCRDA; BBMP and BDA
- Sub-Registrar and Registration and Stamps Departments; revenue authorities under Dharani, Webland, Bhoomi and Kaveri
- Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions
- High Court of Telangana; High Court of Andhra Pradesh; High Court of Karnataka
- State Environment Impact Assessment Authorities
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Frequently Asked Questions
General information about how this practice works. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship.
What does a title investigation actually cover?
The chain of ownership over the statutory period, encumbrance certificates from the Sub-Registrar, revenue records and mutation entries, pending litigation and land acquisition notifications, the seller's authority to sell, and any statutory restriction — assigned land, endowment land, ceiling surplus, or tenancy. The deliverable is a written report that says what the defects are and whether they can be cured.
How long does title diligence take?
A single parcel with clean records and a cooperative seller, one to two weeks. Aggregations across many owners, or land with family partitions and unrecorded transfers, commonly take four to eight weeks — nearly all of it spent obtaining documents rather than reviewing them.
Is RERA registration required for our project?
Generally yes where the land exceeds five hundred square metres or the project has more than eight apartments, subject to the state rules and the exemptions for renovation and repair. Phasing matters: each phase is treated as a standalone project for registration. Marketing or accepting money before registration is itself a contravention.
Can a general power of attorney be used to complete a sale?
It can, but it needs care. The instrument must be properly stamped and registered where the law requires it, must actually authorise the specific transaction, and must be verified as subsisting — a power of attorney terminates on the principal's death. Purchasers relying on a GPA transaction should expect closer diligence, not less.
Who pays stamp duty and registration charges?
By statute the liability is usually the purchaser's, but it is contractually allocable and rates differ across Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, as do the concessions for particular instruments. We confirm the current rate and the market value guideline for the locality before the document is finalised.
We are buying agricultural land for a factory. What else is involved?
Conversion or non-agricultural permission under the applicable state law, ceiling limit checks, verification that the land is not assigned or endowment land, layout and building approvals from the relevant authority, and environmental and pollution control clearances where the activity and size require them. The conversion step usually drives the timeline.