Adani makes first legal submission, asks court to defer ruling

Global law firm Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, on behalf of Gautam Adani and with the consent of his nephew Sagar Adani, asked the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York to delay its decision on the SEC’s motion filed on January 21. Adani’s lawyer and the US regulator, discussing a stipulation in the case, showed that the presentation had been reviewed by Mint.

A stipulation is a formal agreement between opposing parties in a lawsuit regarding a fact or procedure. This means that both parties agree on a fact or procedure and do not need to argue or debate it in court every time.

Adani’s attorney did not specify what the stipulation was discussed with the SEC.

The case comes after US regulators announced in November 2024 that Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani were also involved in Adani Green Energy Ltd. It concerns allegations that he bribed government officials in India to secure advantageous energy supply contracts for India. Regulators alleged that Adanis lied about the company’s anti-bribery policies when raising capital from American investors and failed to disclose bribes they allegedly paid by committing securities fraud.

Sullivan & Cromwell and Adani Group did not immediately respond to this question Mint‘s request for comment.

SEC case

SEC asks court for permission to send emails personally summons and a copy of the complaint to Adani relatives and lawyers, avoiding the procedure requiring them to serve these summons through India’s ministry of law and justice.

The US regulator claimed that the Indian government had twice rejected its request to serve subpoenas on the Adani lineage, citing procedural issues.

American law requires that a copy of the summons and complaint be personally delivered to defendants to inform them of the case against them.

The SEC claimed that because Gautam Adani had publicly commented on the case and both he and Sagar Adani had hired law firms to represent them, it could be assumed that they were aware of the charges against them. Therefore, the regulator asked the court for permission to serve the subpoenas via email and through its lawyers in the US.

Meanwhile, Sullivan & Cromwell was not among the law firms the SEC said represented Gautam Adani in its Jan. 21 filing. According to the SEC’s statement, Sagar Adani hired Hecker Fink Llp, while Gautam Adani hired two firms named Kirkland & Ellis LlP and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Llp.