Insights Categories: Alerts

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

From London to Lahore: arbitration trends shaping UK-Pakistan disputes (Part I of III)

July 31, 2025

This first article in a three-part series considers recent decisions by the English courts on the enforcement of arbitral awards from Pakistan. Produced in collaboration with leading Pakistan law firm, ABS & Co, it examines the volatile nature of the energy sector in Pakistan, highlighting the risks arising from the termination of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the Government of Pakistan or its state-owned enterprises, in a period where the country is transitioning towards solar power and the contractual terms (including Take-or-Pay clauses) are proving to be financially unsustainable.

ABS & Co drafts PCBDDA’s Procurement Regulations 2024

August 21, 2024

ABS & Co has drafted the Punjab Central Business District Development Authority (PCBDDA) Procurement Regulations 2024, marking a historic milestone in Pakistan’s public procurement landscape. These regulations, modelled on the UNCITRAL Model Law on Public Procurement, represent the first time that any public procurement agency has used UNCITRAL’s globally recognized model law as the foundation for its public procurement framework.

Maham Naweed joins ABS & Co’s Public International Law Practice

July 5, 2024

ABS & Co proudly announces the launch of its dedicated Public International Law Practice. This new venture, headed by Ahmer Bilal Soofi, assembles a team of preeminent legal practitioners and scholars with a passion for public international law and strategy. The practice will provide comprehensive legal services to clients navigating the complexities of the global legal landscape.

Taxes on real estate in Pakistan (2024 – 2025)

June 30, 2024

The table below illustrates the taxes that are imposed on properties for filers. We have made this table with the assumption that the parties are on the Active Taxpayers List and file their taxes on time.

Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Pakistan

April 4, 2024

In Pakistan, the execution of foreign judgments is regulated under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (“CPC”). The CPC provides three different options for the enforcement and execution of foreign judgments in Pakistan. This includes (1) direct execution under section 44-A of the CPC where the country rendering the judgment is recognized as a “reciprocating territory”, (2) filing a separate suit in Pakistan on the basis of a foreign judgment under section 13 of the CPC by using the foreign judgment as an independent cause of action; and (3) filing a separate suit on the original cause of action based on the principle that till decree is not satisfied, the cause of action remains intact.

IHC declares section 7E of Income Tax Ordinance 2001 ultra vires

March 7, 2024

Islamabad High Court strikes down section 7-E of Income Tax Ordinance 2001.

Our team consisting of Sabila Daraz Khan, Aiema Asrar and Fatima Midrar successfully brought a challenge to the vires of the section 7E of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001. ABS & Co’s team represented private clients in several petitions before the Islamabad High Court where section 7E of the Income Tax Ordinance had been challenged on the basis that it is ultra vires to the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973.

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

April 6, 2023

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

January 17, 2023

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

February 2, 2021

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

November 5, 2020

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

November 3, 2020

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.

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