{{Short description|Indian lawyer}} {{promotional|date=May 2024}} {{Use Indian English|date=June 2014}} {{Infobox person | name = Zia Mody | image = Zia Mody at WEF.png | caption = Mody at the [[World Economic Forum]] | image_size = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1956|07|19|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Mumbai]], [[Maharashtra]], India | occupation = Corporate lawyer | organization = [[AZB & Partners]] (Founder & Managing Partner) | spouse = Jaydev Mody (Chairman of [[Delta Corp]]) | father = [[Soli Sorabjee]] | relatives = Hormazd Sorabjee (editor at ''[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]]'') | alma_mater = [[University of Cambridge]]<br />[[Harvard Law School]] }}
'''Zia Jaydev Mody''' (born 19 July 1956) is an Indian [[corporate lawyer]] and businesswoman. Zia is one of the founding partners of [[AZB & Partners]], an Indian premier law firms.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://rsg-india.com/rankings|title=RSG India - Law Firm Rankings|access-date=13 June 2018|archive-date=9 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809082144/http://www.rsg-india.com/rankings|url-status=dead}}</ref> She advises large [[Private equity firm|private equity houses]] such as [[Kohlberg Kravis Roberts|KKR]], [[Bain Capital]], and [[Warburg Pincus]].
==Early life and Education == Zia belongs to the [[Baháʼí Faith|Baháʼí]] family.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |author=Zia Mody |date=3 October 2014 |title=Zia Mody-My giving is determined by my religion |url=https://www.livemint.com/Specials/ncVyyo9guGGrQX5qy2YLoO/My-giving-is-determined-by-my-religion--Zia-Mody.html |access-date=8 August 2020 |publisher=livemint}}</ref> and was born to [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian]].<ref name=":3" /> She was born to mother Zena Sorabjee and father [[Soli Sorabjee]], a former [[Attorney General of India]]. Mody's initial education was at [[Elphinstone College]], [[Mumbai]].<ref name="Leaders">{{Citation|title=The Voyage To Excellence: The Ascent of 21 Women Leaders of India Inc|first1=Nichinta|last1=Amarnath|first2=Debashish|last2=Ghosh|location=Delhi|publisher=Pustak Mahal|year=2005 | isbn=81-223-0904-6|url =https://books.google.com/books?id=WjFR5qWYhMwC | chapter=A Mind of Intellect | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WjFR5qWYhMwC&q=Zia&pg=PT400}}</ref> She studied law at [[Selwyn College, Cambridge]], in 1978 and was enrolled as an Advocate with the Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa in 1978. She earned a [[Master of Laws|master's degree]] from [[Harvard Law School]].
== Career == After completing a masters from law school, she later was admitted as a member of the [[New York State Bar Association|New York State Bar]] in 1980.<ref name="harvard">{{cite journal |last=Perkins|first=Christine|title=Profile: A Passage in India |journal=Harvard Law Bulletin| date=Spring 2006|url=http://www.law.harvard.edu/alumni/bulletin/2006/spring/cn_02.php | access-date=26 May 2012}}</ref> She practices law in India and the United States. She worked for five years with [[Baker McKenzie]] in [[New York City]] before returning to India.<ref name="Leaders" /> She founded her own practice, Chambers of Zia Mody, in Mumbai in 1984 and practiced as counsel in the Indian courts for over a decade. She later merged her practice with other firms to form AZB & Partners.<ref name="Leaders" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Chambers & Partners - Zia Profile|url=https://www.chambersandpartners.com/Asia/person/31640/zia-mody|access-date=2018-06-13|website=Chambers & Partners}}</ref>
== Personal life == She has three younger brothers, Jehangir, Jamshed, and Hormazd. Her husband, Jaydev Mody, is an influential businessman who serves as chairman of the casino company [[Delta Corp]]. They live in [[Mumbai, Maharashtra]], and have three daughters, Anjali, Aarti, and Aditi.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Saxena |first=Aditi |title=Law bores me, says Zia Mody's daughter Anjali |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/law-bores-me-says-zia-modys-daughter-anjali/articleshow/45054265.cms |access-date=2020-11-25 |work=The Economic Times}}</ref>[[File:Zia Mody at IHIJ.jpg|thumb|Zia Mody in Japan]]
== Memberships and affiliations == She is an Independent Director (2018–present), Member of Audit & Risk Committee (2018–present), and Member of Investment Committee (2019–present) of Ascendas Property Fund Trustee Pte. Ltd.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.clint.com.sg/en/about-us/trustee-manager/board-of-directors.html |title=Board of Directors | Our Board of Directors - Ascendas India Trust }}</ref>
She has been or is a member of the [[Reserve Bank of India]] (2012), the [[Confederation of Indian Industry]] National Council (2015–present), the Committee on Corporate Governance formed by [[SEBI]] (2017), and Maharashtra's Economic Advisory Council (2023). She was the Vice President and member of the [[London Court of International Arbitration]] (2010–2013).
== Charitable work == She has contributed to the Jai Vakeel Foundation<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://jaivakeel.org/supporters|title=Supporters - Jai Vakeel Foundation}}</ref> and the Bahá'í fund.<ref name=":3" />
== In the Media == She was ranked No. 1 in [[Fortune (magazine)|''Fortune India'']]'s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business list in 2018 and 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |title=India's Most Powerful Business Women in 2019 |url=https://www.fortuneindia.com/mpw?year=2019 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220306072918/https://www.fortuneindia.com/mpw?year=2019 |archive-date=6 March 2022 |access-date=27 September 2019 |website=Fortune India}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mody, Zia}} [[Category:1956 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Parsi people from Mumbai]] [[Category:Businesspeople from Mumbai]] [[Category:Indian Baháʼís]] [[Category:21st-century Baháʼís]] [[Category:Harvard Law School alumni]] [[Category:Businesswomen from Maharashtra]] [[Category:Scholars from Mumbai]] [[Category:Alumni of Selwyn College, Cambridge]] [[Category:20th-century Indian businesswomen]] [[Category:20th-century Indian businesspeople]] [[Category:21st-century Indian businesswomen]] [[Category:21st-century Indian businesspeople]] [[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]] [[Category:20th-century Indian women lawyers]] [[Category:21st-century Indian lawyers]] [[Category:21st-century Indian women lawyers]]