About me

Address: New York: One Bryant Park, Bank of America Tower, New York, NY 10036-6745; Washington, D.C.: Robert S. Strauss Tower, 2001 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20006-1037

Areas of Focus: Credit Funds; Energy & Natural Resources Funds; Real Estate & Infrastructure Funds; Emerging Markets Funds Transactions; World Bank & International Financial Institutions; Investment Funds Litigation; Sovereign & Government Investors; Joint Ventures & Strategic Alliances; National Security; Seeding Transactions; Hedge Funds; Institutional Investors; Fund Manager Transactions; Fund Formation; Projects & Energy Transition; Antitrust Litigation; Private Equity Transactions; Evergreen Funds

Biography:
Prakash is a leader in the firm’s pioneering, preeminent and global investment management practice. He is internationally recognized as one of the world’s leading attorneys in the field of private investment funds. Prakash represents the largest and most sophisticated global asset management firms, including many of the marquee names in the industry.
In his storied career, Prakash has advised on hundreds of billions of dollars of private fund formations across a wide variety of strategies, including private equity, hedge and credit.
Furthermore, Prakash has a global network of clients and contacts developed over his more than 25 years of experience advising some of the largest sovereign wealth funds, university endowments, investment banks, international organizations and other institutional investors around the world, on all aspects of their business, from capital raising and fund formation, to assisting in complex transactions that support their investment and other business strategies.
Prakash also provides ongoing counseling on investor portfolio company matters and serves as corporate counsel to public and private portfolio companies.
Following the global financial crisis and in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Prakash has been extensively involved in investigations and formal dispute resolution, both within and outside of the funds industry.
Prakash is a leader of the firm's international practice. He was instrumental in the establishment of the firm’s offices in Singapore, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong, and launching of initiatives covering Saudi Arabia, India, Japan and Norway, among others.
Widely regarded as one of the most influential lawyers advising fund managers, Prakash has had a profound impact on the industry and he has been honored for his work and contributions.
Prakash has been recognized by publications such as the National Law Journal and Institutional Investor , and consistently ranked in legal directories such as Chambers and The Legal 500 .
Clients consider Prakash to be “an outstanding attorney who has the unique ability to provide technical expertise along with practical commercial advice.” His peers remark that “he's fantastic in terms of knowledge of the industry and he’s just great to work with” and “clients absolutely adore him; he has a really loyal following.”
Prakash is a highly sought-after thought leader and prolific speaker at conference, trade association, industry and university events. For example, he spearheaded the launch of FundSpeak, a speaker series that critically examines legislative, regulatory and enforcement priorities, with a particular focus on impacts on the investment funds space.

Representative Work:
- Advised Breakout Capital in the $250-million launch of its flagship emerging markets-focused investment fund, which was seeded by a leading sovereign wealth fund and was launched in strategic partnership with Rockefeller Capital Management.
- Advising university endowments in connection with their investment activities, negotiation of terms and compliance with tax, regulatory issues, civil litigation and securities and enforcement matters.
- Advising sovereign wealth funds in connection with some of their most significant capital commitments, deployments and transactions across the world and covering all major industry sectors.
- Advising on manager-level transactions, including seed arrangements, joint ventures and minority stake sales.
- Counseling funds on the restructuring of shale-play investments impacted by the volatility in the energy sector.
- Providing advice on debt and equity investments in shipping assets around the world.
- Assisting Asian clients on U.S. inbound investments in a variety of sectors deemed attractive by virtue of the relative strength of the U.S. economy.
- Representing limited partner advisory boards with respect to “zombie fund” manager disputes, with extensive work on “funds divorce” matters involving fund principals and investors.

Credentials:
Education: J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 1994 (magna cum laude); B.S., Georgetown University, 1991 (summa cum laude)
Bar Admissions: District of Columbia, 1996; New York, 2010

Recognitions:
- Chambers USA , 2008-2026.
- Chambers Global , 2009-2025.
- Crain’s New York Business , Notable Leaders in Accounting, Consulting and Law, 2024.
- National Law Journal , 50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America.
- Acritas, Acritas Star, 2019.
- The Legal 500 US , Investment Fund Formation and Management: Alternative/Hedge Funds and Private Equity Funds, 2016, 2019-2025.
- The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific , India, 2022; Hong Kong, Investment Funds, 2021; Singapore, Investment Funds, 2022.
- Institutional Investor , 10 Rising Stars of Private Equity and M&A Law.

Affiliations:
- Member, Board of Trustees, Drucker School of Management, Claremont Graduate University
- Member, Advisory Board, Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute
- Member, Advisory Council, Committee for Global Thought, Columbia University
- Board of Directors, U.S.-India Business Council (USIBC), part of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
- Founding Member, Advisory Council, South Asia Center, Atlantic Council

Insights:
- Chambers USA 2026 Recognizes Akin Lawyers and Practices  (June 4, 2026): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-usa-2026-recognizes-akin-lawyers-and-practices
- Chambers Global Recognizes Akin’s Lawyers and Practices in 2026 Edition (February 12, 2026): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-global-recognizes-akins-lawyers-and-practices-in-2026-edition
- Capital Solutions: Five Surprising Takeaways (July 29, 2025): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/articles/capital-solutions-five-surprising-takeaways
- Akin Secures Top Rankings in The Legal 500 US 2025  (June 12, 2025): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/akin-secures-top-rankings-in-the-legal-500-us-2025
- Chambers USA 2025 Recognizes Akin Lawyers and Practices (June 5, 2025): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-usa-2025-recognizes-akin-lawyers-and-practices
- Chambers Global Recognizes Akin’s Lawyers and Practices in 2025 Edition (February 14, 2025): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-global-recognizes-akins-lawyers-and-practices-in-2025-edition
- Ira Dizengoff, Prakash Mehta Profiled as Crain’s NY ‘Notable Leaders in Law’ (December 9, 2024): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/ira-dizengoff-prakash-mehta-profiled-as-crains-ny-notable-leaders-in-law
- The Legal 500 US 2024 Recommends Numerous Akin Practices, Lawyers (June 12, 2024): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/the-legal-500-us-2024-recommends-numerous-akin-practices-lawyers
- Chambers USA 2024 Recognizes Akin Lawyers and Practices (June 6, 2024): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-usa-2024-recognizes-akin-lawyers-and-practices
- Chambers Global Recognizes Akin’s Lawyers and Practices in 2024 Edition (Feb 15, 2024): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/chambers-global-recognizes-akins-lawyers-and-practices-in-2024-edition
- 128 Akin Lawyers Recognized Among the ‘Best Lawyers in America’ (August 17, 2023): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/128-akin-lawyers-recognized-among-the-best-lawyers-in-america
- The Legal 500 US 2023 Recommends Numerous Akin Practices, Lawyers (June 7, 2023): https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/awards-and-accolades/the-legal-500-us-2023-recommends-numerous-akin-practices-lawyers