Insights Categories: Alerts

Our past experience, insights on present developments, latest news and client alerts all in one place

Legal Memo on Pakistan’s Elections Act 2017 and Election Petitions

The Pakistan Elections Act 2017 is an important piece of legislation that governs the conduct of elections in Pakistan. It was passed by the Parliament of Pakistan in 2017. The Act repealed several previous electoral laws, including the Representation of the People Act, 1976, and the Conduct of General Elections Order, 2002. The main purpose of the Act is to ensure the transparency, fairness, and credibility of the electoral process in the country. The Act was enacted to streamline the electoral process in Pakistan and to address some of the shortcomings in the previous electoral framework. The Pakistan Elections Act 2017 introduced several new provisions and amendments, including the use of biometric verification for voter identification, the appointment of a caretaker government to oversee the electoral process, and the creation of an Election Commission to ensure the impartiality of the electoral process.

Sale and Purchase of Real Estate in Pakistan

The principal law governing buying and selling of immovable property, or land, in Pakistan is the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 (the “Act”). However, some rights in immovable property may be acquired, under other laws, through easements and licenses. Land may be acquired, though only for public purposes or, for enterprises, in public interest, through compulsory acquisition under various Land Acquisition laws.

Foreign Direct Investments in Pakistan

We are pleased to announce that Sarjeel Mowahid and Ahmed Reza Mirza from our team wrote the Pakistan chapter for Lexology’s Foreign Investment Review providing a detailed background to the legal and regulatory framework governing foreign investments in the country.

Pharma Industry and Covid-19

COVID-19’s outbreak has called for many industries to immediately change their approach towards the Pandemic. The industry most severely affected is the pharmaceutical industry and in lieu of this Barrister Shahrukh Iftikhar and his team at ABS & Co, have drawn up this alert outlining the influence of COVID-19 on medicine and therapeutic drugs. The alert aims to provide a better legal understanding of how the pharmaceutical industry is regulated and the measures being taken by different players to combat the virus, while giving country wise paradigms. It also takes into account the efforts being taken by companies in different countries to produce a vaccine and the future implications these companies may face in light of intellectual property law.

LHC allows sale of mortgaged property without court intervention

In a significant development for the banking sector, a five-member bench of the Lahore High Court has dismissed a set of petitions challenging the constitutionality of section 15 of the Financial Institutions (Recovery of Finance) Ordinance 2001. Banks are now entitled to sell mortgaged property without the intervention of the court and recover their debt(s) without having to obtain a decree to that effect from the banking court.

Changes to Public Procurement Law (PPRA)

On May 15, 2020 the government notified major changes to the Public Procurement Rules (PPRA) 2004 by introducing new concepts such as E-procurement, Framework Agreements and Unsolicited Proposals.

SBP’s measures for Covid-19

This client alert provides a brief overview of the steps taken by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to dampen the effect of the economic dislocation(s) caused by COVID-19. This includes relief for businesses not just in the manufacturing sector but also those in construction, logistics, FMCG, tourism and automobile sectors.

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