Mr. Justice Jawad Akbar Sarwana
Jawad Akbar Sarwana was elevated to the High Court of Sindh bench on 14 April 2023 and confirmed as a permanent judge on 13 April 2024. He is the son of S. Ahmed Sarwana, a former Judge of this Court, and the great-grandson of Major Gen. Muhammad Akbar Khan (“Rangroot”), MBE, who led Force K6 - mainly Pashtuns and Muslim Punjabis from Chakwal—in the retreat of Dunkirk during the Second World War (May 1940).[1] Justice Sarwana earned his B.A. from Southwestern University at Georgetown, Texas, USA, in Economics and Political Science with a minor in Communications (1994). He read his first-year law at the SM Law College, University of Karachi, in 1995 and obtained his LL.B. (Hons.) degree from the University of Buckingham, UK (1997). He was admitted as an Advocate on 22.02.1999, as an Advocate of the High Court on 03.03.2001 and as an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 01.01.2012. He has completed secondments at Hogan Lovells and Simmons & Simmons, London [2] and was a Visiting Professor on Investor-State Disputes at the Shanghai University of Political Science and Law (“SHUPL”), Shanghai, PRC (2017, 2018).[3] He qualified from CEDR, UK, as an accredited commercial mediator in 2006 and an Investor-State mediator in 2017. |
| Litigation |
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As an advocate, Justice Sarwana practiced contentious and non-contentious law with Abraham & Sarwana, Advocates, Solicitors. As a litigator, he successfully argued one of the first cases in Pakistan involving the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of International Arbitration (“NY Convention”). His unreported case in the High Court of Sindh at Karachi, Pakistan Steel Mills (Pvt.) Ltd. v. Sesa Goa Ltd and Another, Suit No.732/2013, Judgment dated 27.11.2013; and another case, Metropolitan Steel Corporation Ltd. v. Macsteel International U.K. Ltd., reported in 2006 PLD 664, are cited in the New York Convention Website.[4] Additionally, the Metropolitan Steel Corporation case (supra) is also cited in “The Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards: A Global Commentary on New York Convention” edited by Herbert Kronke, Patricia Nacimiento, Dirk Otto and Nicolar Christine Port, published by Kluwer Law International, (2010), at page 162.[5] As a lawyer, he was appointed by the High Court of Sindh as an amicus on Companies Profits Workers Participation Fund (2011 PLC 1 and 2011 PLC 265); interpretation of foreign jurisdiction clauses in Admiralty Jurisdiction (PLD 2020 Sindh 568); and, Sindh Minimum Wage law (Employers Federation of Pakistan and Others v. Government of Sindh and Others, CP No.D-4596/2021 decided on 15 October 2021). In 2020-21, he submitted Expert Reports on behalf of Tethyan Copper Company Pty Ltd. on the enforcement of foreign judgments in Pakistan in the High Court of Justice, Queens’ Bench Division, Commercial Courts of England & Wales (Judgment dated 12 February 2021 in Case No.CL-2019-000491)(the Reko Diq case).[6] |
| International Arbitration |
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Justice Sarwana served as an ICC co-arbitrator as part of an ICC Arbitral Tribunal in a domestic arbitration dispute in the power sector.[7] Prior to his elevation he assisted/advised several foreign associates/clients on international arbitrations involving the London Court of International Arbitration (“LCIA”), Chartered Institute of Arbitration (“CIArb”), the Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration (“SMCA”), Japan Commercial Arbitration Association (”JCAA”), Singapore International Arbitration Center ("SIAC"), Vienna International Arbitration Center ("VIAC") and other international ad-hoc arbitrations. |
| Mediation and ADR |
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Justice Sarwana extensively mediated and conducted neutral intervention work from 2007 until his elevation to the Bench in 2023. He regularly mediated commercial and corporate disputes in Pakistan, including, inter alia, family-run business disputes, intellectual property disputes (trademarks), international trade disputes (textile sector), financial facilities (credit lines involving small-medium enterprises) and shareholder disputes. He also assisted foreign clients as a Mediator Advocate in international mediations (Tokyo, Bangkok, Madrid). |
| International ADR and Business Management Training |
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Before joining the judiciary, he worked alongside CEDR, UK, as a faculty member (in London, Singapore, Austria) and on their global capacity-building mediation projects with the World Bank/IFC (Pakistan, Bangladesh). He was involved in several Aga Khan Foundation Global Projects led by His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan through ICAB and NCAB (in Dubai, and Karachi). He co-conducted business management courses for the International Rescue Committee (“IRC”), USA, headed by David Miliband in Dallas, USA, Amman, Jordan, Sharjah, UAE and Islamabad, Pakistan. He also developed, designed, and delivered mediation seminars and workshops for the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC Paris) and ICC Shanghai, and the International Bar Association (“IBA”), which is the global voice for lawyers. |
| Publications |
| Justice Sarwana has also collaborated on academic publications, including authoring chapters in Stories Global Mediators Tell, “It really happened in Frankfurt”, editors, Glen Parker and Lela Love, American Bar Association (“ABA”) (2017);[8] Mediation Practice | 8 Cultures, 16 Cases, 128 Creative Solutions; editor, Greg Bond, ICC Publication (2016);[9] and “Making the First Offer: Pros and Cons" IBA Mediation Technique Handbook, editor, Patricia Barclay, Co-Chair, published in the IBA’s E-Book, Mediation Techniques (2010).[10] |
| Professional Associations |
As a Star Wars fan, Justice Sarwana believes the true nature of the Force lies in appropriate dispute resolution, not midi-chlorians. He enjoys fatherhood, CrossFit, and meditation (as taught by SN Goenka). |
| References |
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[1] Welcome to Force K6 - The Indian Contingent [2] Worked in the Insolvency Department at Hogan Lovells, London Office under Partners, Richard Sheen, and Niel P Dooley ; and, in the Commercial Department at Simmons & Simmons, London Office under Senior Partner, Jeremy Sivyer
[3] SHUPL is home to the China National Institute for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (“SCO”) on International Exchanges and Judicial Cooperation (CNISCO) [4] National-level Programs [5] Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards: A Global Commentary on the New York Convention | Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory [6] Province of Balochistan v Tethyan Copper Company Pty Ltd - Case Law - VLEX 870705428 [7] Case ID : 01926 - ICC - International Chamber of Commerce [8] Stories Global Mediators Tell, “It really happened in Frankfurt”, editors, Glen Parker and Lela Love, American Bar Association (2017) [9] Mediation Practice: 8 Cultures, 16 Cases, 128 Creative Solutions | ICC Knowledge 2 Go [10] Negotiations - Pros and Cons of Making the First Offer. |
