Mandviwalla & Zafar

The firm: Mehmood Mandviwalla and Syed Ali Zarar were both graduates of the London School of Economics in 1983 and were called to the Bar in 1984. MandviwaIIa & Zafar was founded by them in 1993.

Mehmood Mandviwalla is the incumbent president of SAARCLAW, the association of the legal communities of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Mehmood Mandviwalla has also served as minister for law and prisons in the caretaker government of Sindh and is a director of the State Bank of Pakistan. He also sits on the board of directors of GlaxoSmithKline Pakistan Limited. He is an expert on mergers and acquisitions and is involved in major domestic and international transactions.

Syed Ali Zafar is currently the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan. He is involved in high-profile litigation dealing with constitutional law and matters of national interest.

The firm prides itself as a leader in a number of practice areas, namely mergers and acquisitions and regulatory and securities law under the leadership of Mehmood Mandviwalla and in civil, constitutional and corporate litigation under the leadership of Syed Ali Zafar. The firm also provides assistance to regulators and government bodies by reviewing legislation from time to time. The Dubai practice of Mandviwalla & Zafar was set up in 2005, where the firm is licensed to practice in and appear before the courts of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

Areas of practice: The firm has expertise in the following areas:

Mergers and acquisitions: the firm was involved in the acquisition of the entire shareholding of PICIC Asset Management Company Limited by HBL Asset Management Limited, the divestment of Government of Pakistan shares of HBL and Global Offering, the exit of Bardays Bank from Pakistan, the sale of shares in Tameer Microfinance Bank Limited to Telenor B.V, the sale of shares in IPDC Bangladesh by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development SA to BRAC Bank (Bangladesh transaction), the investment by the International Finance Corporation in Bank Alfalah Limited, the sale of shares by AGP and AGP Healthcare to OBS Group and subsequent merger, demerger of the consumer healthcare business of GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Pakistan Limited into GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Pakistan Limited by filing a petition in the High Court of Sindh at Karachi.

Banking and finance: the firm was involved with the disbursement of a loan of $150,000 by the International Finance Corporation to HBL and the extension of conventional and Islamic finance to OBS Group to acquire AGP and AGP Healthcare.

Litigation: Mr Syed Ali Zafar was the amicus curiae in the leading judgment of the Supreme Court which has now established the definition of the federal government and its powers. The firm was involved in the legal process regarding the stoppage of the construction of the Orange Line Train for damage to heritage sites, the forcible possession of Royal Palm Golf & Country Club by the Ministry of Railways, Government of Pakistan, investigating whether the Financial Institutions (Recovery of Finances) Ordinance 2001 (Recovery Law) is violative of the fundamental rights contained in Article 10A of the Constitution of Pakistan, and the ban imposed on the Hunting of Houbara Birds.