The people behind the practice

Habib Kazi is a Partner of the firm, promoted in July 2026. He holds an LL.B. (Hons) from the University of London International Programme. Before joining the firm he worked in the legal department of a leading multinational pharmaceutical company, advising on commercial and regulatory matters.

He advises and acts for clients on banking, commercial, constitutional, civil, employment, labour and tax matters, and on corporate work including due diligence, mergers and acquisitions and the protection of shareholders’ rights. He has acted for leading banks in recovery litigation worth billions of rupees.

In 2018 he was part of the team constituted by the Chief Justice of Pakistan to resolve disputes between the Drug Regulatory Authority and the pharmaceutical industry, and helped draft and negotiate the Drug Pricing Policy, 2018, later approved by the Supreme Court and the Federal Government.

• Steel: an appeal to the Competition Appellate Tribunal against a finding of a prohibited agreement with a competitor (PKR 850 million).
• Warehousing: the de-merger of a family-owned group’s storage business, now before the High Court of Sindh (about PKR 1.5 billion).
• Oil refining: suits over construction within the protected perimeter of a refinery designated a Key Point Installation.
• Telecommunications: pension and employment litigation brought by serving and retired employees of a major telecommunications company and its employees’ trust.

Syed Mustafa Ali is a Partner and an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He read law at the University of London (2007) and was called to the Bar of England and Wales at Lincoln’s Inn in 2008. He joined the firm in 2010 and became a Partner in 2015.

He leads much of the firm’s banking and employment litigation, acting for the State Bank of Pakistan, National Bank of Pakistan, MCB Bank, Allied Bank, Habib Bank, United Bank, the Central Depository Company and Pakistan Telecommunication Company. His banking work covers recovery suits, the execution of money decrees and the defence of claims against banks; his employment work includes trade union, pension and service disputes before the High Courts and the Supreme Court.

He worked closely with the late Mr. Khalid Anwer on constitutional and commercial cases before the Supreme Court, including the bank pension cases in which retrospective pension payments worth billions of rupees were at stake.

• Banking regulation: successfully defended the central bank’s approval of one bank’s acquisition of another against a challenge by minority shareholders.
• Banking: recovery suits and execution proceedings for a leading commercial bank that have recovered billions of rupees and ended long-running litigation.
• Pensions: before the Federal Constitutional Court for a state-owned bank on whether pension increases granted by the Federal Government apply to it.
• Banking: a series of recovery suits and execution applications before the High Court of Sindh for one of Pakistan’s largest banks.

Raashid Anwer is the Senior Partner of Khalid Anwer & Co. A graduate of Cornell University, he has appeared before the superior courts of Pakistan for more than two decades and is recognised as one of the country’s leading lawyers for tax, employment and shareholder disputes.

His practice spans commercial, constitutional, tax, labour and employment law. He has been counsel or co-counsel in most of the significant tax cases argued before the Supreme Court in recent years, including what are probably the three largest, and he appears regularly before the Supreme Court and the Federal Constitutional Court in employment and pension matters for the country’s largest banks.

Alongside his court practice, he advises on privatisations, joint ventures, mergers and group restructurings, and on regulatory matters for clients including the Central Depository Company. He briefed the Prime Minister before Pakistan’s negotiations in Brussels on the European Union’s GSP scheme, and developed, on a pro bono basis, the Ministry of Law’s proposals for judicial reform under the Asian Development Bank’s Access to Justice Programme.

• Oil and gas: the Federal Constitutional Court held that super tax cannot take an exploration and production company above the tax ceilings in its petroleum concession agreements (PKR 100 billion).
• Private clients: the Federal Constitutional Court held the wealth tax on immovable property unlawful, for a group of ultra-high-net-worth individuals.
• Manufacturing: interim relief from the Supreme Court against the Sindh Infrastructure Cess, in what is perhaps the second-largest tax case in Pakistan’s history.
• Food and beverages: successfully resisted, in the Supreme Court, a claim for more than USD 700 million in back taxes against a multinational beverage company.
• Power: persuaded the Sindh High Court to suspend encashment of a USD 150 million standby letter of credit for a leading independent power producer, leading to a settlement.
• Pharmaceuticals: lead counsel for the multinational pharmaceutical industry before the Supreme Court on drug price increases, and in the negotiations that produced the Drug Pricing Policy, 2018.

Jawad Ahmed Qureshi is a Partner and an Advocate of the High Courts of Pakistan. He graduated with an LL.B. (Hons) from King’s College London in 2009 and was called to the Bar of England and Wales at Lincoln’s Inn in 2010. He joined the firm in 2012 and became a Partner in 2016.

He appears before the High Courts and administrative tribunals in commercial and constitutional litigation, with a particular focus on taxation, customs, judicial review and regulation. He worked closely with the late Mr. Khalid Anwer on taxation, real estate and landmark constitutional cases before the Supreme Court, and advises clients including Fatima Group, National Foods, Pepsi-Cola International, Indus Motor Company, HUBCO and Pakistan Refinery Limited on an ongoing basis.

• Telecommunications: challenges for a mobile operator to a USD 30.2 million regulatory penalty linked to its licence renewal, and before the Federal Constitutional Court on a Competition Commission show cause notice.
• Oil and gas: settled a USD 14 million EPC arbitration over a gas processing facility for an exploration and production company.
• Industry: for about 60 industrial companies, the Sindh High Court held that the levy on captive power plants could not be charged retrospectively.
• Power: protection for a power holding company from coercive recovery of a PKR 3.76 billion advance tax demand under the group taxation regime.
• Infrastructure: disputes for an international contractor under a major bulk water supply project and other FIDIC contracts (PKR 81 billion).

Muhammad Adil Saeed is a Partner of the firm. He holds an LL.B. (Hons) from the University of London and joined the firm in 2016; he became an Associate Partner in October 2024 and a Partner in July 2026. He is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, the author of the Bloomberg Tax Pakistan Country Guide (2024–25), and a contributor to the World Bank’s B-READY 2025 project.

He advises multinationals, insurers, banks and industrial groups on tax, banking and finance, labour, competition and commercial questions, from Shariah-compliant structures to cross-border financing. He appears regularly before the High Courts of Sindh, Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar and before the Competition, Customs, Sindh Revenue Board and Banking tribunals.

• Insurance: constitutional challenges in the Lahore High Court to Punjab sales tax on life and health insurance, including proceedings against notices seeking about PKR 30 billion.
• Islamic banking: a recovery suit for about PKR 4.58 billion against a petroleum marketing company and its former chief executive under Islamic finance facilities.
• Islamic banking: defeated two attempts, by another lender and by a minority shareholder, to block the restructuring of a steel manufacturer’s debts.
• Consumer goods: income tax references decided in a multinational’s favour by the High Court of Sindh.
• Power: input tax claims for two power producers blocked by a defect in the Federal Board of Revenue’s IRIS portal.

Hamza Danial is the Corporate Counsel in the firm’s Transactional and Corporate Advisory Practice in Karachi. He holds an LLB (Hons.) from the University of London and joined the firm in 2021, after training at a leading corporate law firm and working as a paralegal in the chambers of a Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court.

His practice covers corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, joint ventures, banking and finance, competition, oil and gas, power, shipping, data protection, and group restructurings. He drafts and negotiates shareholders’, joint venture, concession, share purchase, financing, licensing and service agreements, gives opinions on company, contract, banking, foreign exchange, competition and trust law, and helps overseas clients set up and stay compliant in Pakistan.

Under the Partners’ mentorship he has played a central part in building the firm’s transactional practice. He advises clients across pharmaceuticals, banking, consumer goods, power, textiles, technology and engineering, among them Hilton Pharma, the Jaffer Group, Contour Software, National Foods and Continental Biscuits.

• Acquisition of a substantial shareholding in a KSE-100 company for the sponsors of a leading industrial group, valued in billions of rupees.
• Acquisition of a shareholding valued at over PKR 4 billion for a leading industrial group, including Competition Commission approval.
• An eleven-company intra-group restructuring, and a de-merger by scheme of arrangement sanctioned by the High Court of Sindh.
• A cross-border joint venture for concession holders, valued at tens of millions of US dollars.
• Advice to a leading commercial bank on digital cheque processing, the first such mechanism in Pakistan.

Muhammad Ali Akhtar is a Senior Associate. He graduated with an LLB (Hons.) from the University of London in 2018 and was called to the Bar of England and Wales at Lincoln’s Inn in 2020 after completing the Bar Professional Training Course. Before joining the firm in 2020 he was Law Clerk to a Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

He advises and represents clients in commercial and banking disputes, white-collar crime, rent matters, regulatory issues, company law, tax, competition, international trade, construction contracts, labour and public procurement. He has been appointed amicus curiae by the High Court of Sindh on whether co-owners must jointly bring eviction proceedings.

• Arbitration: recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitral award by the Sindh High Court for a multinational agribusiness.
• Capital markets: a constitutional petition for the central securities depository, resolving conflicting court orders over a pledge of 57.8 million shares (PKR 3.9 billion).
• Competition: appeals before the Competition Appellate Tribunal for steel and fertiliser manufacturers.
• Corporate: a scheme of arrangement sanctioned by the Sindh High Court for a technology group.

Yousuf Khalid Anwer is a Senior Associate at Khalid Anwer & Co. He holds a BA (Hons.) in Economics from Cornell University and an LLB (Hons.) from the University of London, and was called to the Bar in 2022 following completion of the Bar Professional Training Course at City, University of London.

Since joining the firm in 2020, Yousuf has developed a broad litigation, advisory and transactional practice, with particular emphasis on taxation, banking and finance, corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, and service and employment law. He regularly appears before the High Court and subordinate courts and assists senior counsel before the Supreme Court and Federal Constitutional Court. His tax experience includes major constitutional challenges to federal and provincial levies, as well as income tax, sales tax and customs disputes. Legal 500 identifies him as a key lawyer in the firm’s tax practice.

Yousuf has extensive experience in mergers, demergers and corporate reorganisations involving prominent business groups, including amalgamations, the separation of businesses and assets, and restructurings implementing shareholder settlements. His work combines corporate advisory and transactional experience with appearances before the Company Bench of the High Court of Sindh. He also advises on corporate governance, shareholder rights and regulatory compliance, and has experience in acquisition-related litigation. His banking practice covers conventional and Islamic financing, facility and security documentation, recovery proceedings, enforcement of security and debt restructuring.

His service, employment and labour practice includes employee regularisation, EOBI contributions, Workers Welfare Fund obligations and Workers’ Profit Participation. His wider experience encompasses constitutional, civil and commercial litigation, competition law, international trade, white-collar crime, regulatory and trust matters, together with advice on public-private partnerships and construction contracts.

• Constitutional tax litigation: assisted senior counsel in the successful challenge to Section 7E’s tax on deemed income from immovable property, and in Super Tax proceedings concerning fiscal protections for petroleum operations and related reviews.
• Mergers and demergers: worked on numerous schemes of arrangement and group restructurings, including appearing in proceedings in which the Company Bench sanctioned a scheme involving eleven companies, transfers of investment assets and changes to share capital.
• Banking disputes and settlements: worked on substantial financing and recovery disputes, including proceedings culminating in a compromise decree of approximately PKR 1.9 billion, and appeared alongside senior counsel in suits resolved under a master settlement agreement.
• Workers Welfare Fund: part of the team representing companies across several sectors in proceedings in which the High Court of Sindh held that the federal Workers Welfare Fund regime applied to the companies concerned rather than the provincial legislation. The decision was subsequently appealed.
• Customs: appeared alongside senior counsel in successful references before the High Court of Sindh concerning additional customs duty on components imported as part of completely knocked down vehicle kits.
• Captive power levy: participated in proceedings in which the High Court of Sindh held recovery for periods preceding notification of the applicable levy rate unlawful and directed the credit or return of the relevant amounts.

Ali Sheikhani is an Associate in the firm’s Advisory and Transactions Department. He holds an LLB from the University of London and completed the Legal Practice Course at the University of Law, where he also obtained an LLM in Law, Business and Management, focusing on banking and debt finance, mergers and acquisitions and intellectual property. He is a member of the Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn.

He advises domestic and international clients on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, market entry, corporate structuring and strategic investments, drafting and negotiating transaction and financing documents and advising on regulatory and governance matters. Before joining the firm he gained experience with a civil and immigration law firm in London and with some of Pakistan’s most established civil law chambers.

• Conglomerates: contractual and transactional work for the twelve companies of a diversified business group.
• Banking: advice to a leading bank on whether tax exemptions apply to financial institutions operating in a former tribal area.

Muhammad Daud Mustafa is an Associate in the firm’s litigation team, assisting on commercial, banking, consumer and employment disputes before the civil courts and the High Court of Sindh.

• Automotive: defence of a car manufacturer against a consumer claim over a used vehicle sold under its certified pre-owned programme.
• Islamic banking: defence of a minority shareholder’s action to block the restructuring of a steel manufacturer’s debts, withdrawn with costs.
• Food service: defence of a restaurant chain against a contractor’s claims over the fit-out of its Karachi head office.

Tayyab Abbasi is an Associate in the firm’s litigation team, working on construction, infrastructure and real estate disputes.

• Infrastructure: disputes for an international contractor under a major bulk water supply project and other FIDIC contracts (PKR 81 billion).
• Real estate: proceedings for a restaurant chain arising from a family partition dispute over the commercial property it occupies.

Anzah Younus is an Associate in the Corporate, Transactional and Advisory Department of the firm, bringing a blend of technical drafting skill and commercial insight to the firm’s transactional practice. She completed her LL.B. (Hons.) from the University of London International Programme, passed the SQE1 assessment in 2024, and obtained a Master of Laws (LLM) in Legal Practice from the University of Law in 2025.

Her regular scope of work includes the drafting and vetting of a wide range of commercial contracts and agreements, where she focuses on structuring contractual risk and ensuring that each document meets legal standards and protects her client’s interests. She is also frequently instructed to prepare detailed legal opinions on a variety of legal issues, providing clear and actionable advice. With experience advising both local and foreign clients on corporate compliance and regulatory matters, she combines analytical rigour with a practical, client-focused approach.

Mahnoor Atiq is a Junior Associate in the Corporate, Transactional and Advisory Department of the firm, where she works as part of the corporate team on corporate and commercial matters. She obtained her LL.B. (Hons.) from the University of London International Programme in 2025.

Her work includes drafting and reviewing commercial agreements, conducting legal research, and assisting in the preparation of legal opinions and advisory notes. She also assists the firm’s partners on litigation and advisory matters, including those relating to corporate, taxation, banking and land. Her research work involves analysing the applicable statutory and regulatory frameworks and preparing case law research for ongoing matters.