Gigi (Geeta) Tewari is a U.S. New York bar qualified lawyer with over 15 years of experience in contract law. She specialises in drafting, negotiation, and reasoning, striking a balance between empathy and practicality. Additionally, she teaches contract and business law and has designed an intensive corporate social responsibility course at Widener University Delaware Law School. Her expertise extends to real estate and ESG, and she has been invited to speak on various ethics and diversity topics across the U.S.
Gigi holds a passion for collaboration and problem-solving, using her legal expertise to achieve efficient, effective, and inclusive resolutions. Her unique interdisciplinary background in law and literature offers innovative and creative insights for client solutions. When she is not teaching, writing, or sharing her contract law expertise with the Cleveland & Co team, she enjoys playing tennis or pickleball with her daughters.
- Contract Drafting and Negotiation
- Corporate and Commercial
- Corporate Social Responsibility
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Employment
- D.C. Office of the Attorney General
- Media Engagements: CNBC, CNN-affiliates, Delaware Public Radio, New York Times
- New York City Corporation Counsel
- New York State Department of Labor
- New York Women’s Bar Association
- Admitted to the Bar, New York, United States
- J.D., Fordham University School of Law
- B.A., Cornell University
- M.F.A.; Columbia University School of the Arts
- Can I Speak Now?!: The Need for Marginalized Voices to Shape ESG Advising for Corporations in Global Supply Chains (forthcoming book chapter, American Bar Association)
- The Ethics of Gender Narratives for U.S. Corporate Boards, 16 N.Y.U. Journal of Law and Business (2019)
- Law and the New Urban Agenda, co-editor, with Nestor M. Davidson (Routledge 2020)
- English
- Conversational Hindi
Leela Fair has grown with Cleveland & Co and quickly proven her capabilities becoming the Acting Managing Director of our UK office in early 2021. She oversees business development, client relationships, and all staff needs as well as supports the CEO on the day to day working of the business.
Leela has risen to senior management very quickly through her drive and invaluable experience in financial service. Leela’s experience covers private equity, traditional fund, and hedge fund sectors and includes advising and assisting a range of services providers within the asset management industry including investment managers, investment advisors, administrators, brokers, custodians, introducers, regulatory platforms, pension funds and placement agents.
Leela is a determined and ambitious professional who is adept at working in varied and fast paced environments. Leela’s motivation, versatility and unflappable attitude, make her a highly valued member of the Cleveland & Co team. When she’s not inspiring us running the day to day at Cleveland & Co, you can find Leela reading through a cookbook and planning the weekend menu!
- Leela has developed a variety of skills namely in relation to:
- ACD Arrangements
- Administration
- AIFs
- Appointed Representative Arrangements
- Authorised funds (ACS, AUT, ICVC, UCITS and NURS)
- Broker Agreements
- CISs
- Commercial Contracts
- Custody
- Distribution
- EIS/SEIS
- Hedge Funds
- HR & Employment
- Institutional
- Intra-group Agreements
- Introducer Arrangements
- Listed Investment Companies
- Pooled Pension Funds
- Private Equity
- Real Estate
- Regulation, including: Capital Adequacy, Competition Law, FCA Rules & Guidance, GDPR, MiFID II, Prudential Requirements, SM&CR.
- Research Payments
- Service Agreements
- Sponsorship Arrangements
Qualified in England & Wales
- Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Limited: reviewing all documentation related to prospective investments (private equity, infrastructure, private debt, alternatives), managing side letter and MFN processes.
- Capital Group: carrying out an impact assessment, advising and updating legal documentation for MiFID II.
- Commodities World Capital: preparation of marketing documents, negotiation of all legal documents entered into between service providers and the AIFM, and liaising with Cayman and US counsel in relation to the launch of their Cayman fund.
- Fullerton –creating a global travelling portfolio policy and an assessment report advising on the impact of Capital Adequacy Requirements.
- Hambro Perks: reviewing investment documents for EIS/SEIS investments.
- Investment Association – reviewing member guidance, advising on regulatory issues such as MiFID II, Benchmark Regulations and the Market Abuse Regulations, and assisting with the launch of the IA’s Velocity FinTech Accelerator.
- J Stern: carrying out an impact assessment on research arrangements, advising and updating legal documentation for MiFID II and GDPR.
- Kin Capital: assisting with reviewing and updating appointed representative agreements, custodian terms of business and subscription and shareholder’s agreements.
- Mainspring: managing all custody agreement negotiations with their EIS/SEIS and private equity clients.
- Association of Women Solicitors
- Mentor, Amos Bursary Programme
- The Professional Skills Courses (Kaplan Altior, London)
- Litigation Programme (Kaplan Altior, London)
- Legal Practice Course (BPP Law School, London)
- Bachelor’s degree in Law (King’s College University, London)
- English
- French
- Conversational Italian
