Rahul Rai is a Partner and Co-founder of Axiom5, a premier boutique practice specialising in competition law and policy. He is widely recognised for his expertise in handling high-stakes antitrust investigations, contentious competition litigation, and strategic merger control within the Indian market.

Rahul’s professional trajectory is defined by his leadership of the competition law practice at a leading top-tier Indian law firm in Mumbai between 2012 and 2019. Following this, he furthered his advocacy expertise by serving for three years as counsel in the Chambers of Mr Gopal Subramaniam, the former Solicitor General of India. This rare combination of senior-level law firm leadership and elite courtroom experience enables him to provide clients with a sophisticated, dual-perspective approach to regulatory challenges.

His subject-matter expertise spans the full spectrum of antitrust enforcement, including merger control, complex cartels, abuse of dominance, and vertical restraint investigations across a diverse range of industries. By drawing on his extensive experience with the Competition Commission of India, academic engagements, and various stakeholders, Rahul assists clients in navigating an increasingly fast-evolving competition policy landscape in India.

Rahul was appointed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in 2023 to an expert panel tasked with drafting the landmark Digital Competition Bill, cementing his role as a key contributor to the future digital regulation in India.