Corporate Advisory Team

Zafar Iqbal

Senior Associate

Email:zafar@markazlaw.com

Tel: +965 22 46 4640

Practice Focus:

Mr.Zafar Iqbal is a Senior Associate in the firm’s Corporate Advisory Department. Prior to joining the firm in 2019, he developed his extensive legal expertise by working for a local leading law firm for several years. Mr. Iqbal has significant experience representing foreign and domestic corporations in local & international arbitration cases, engineering & financial disputes, and matters in connection with commercial & corporate law, mergers and acquisition and general consultancy. Mr. Iqbal holds over 11 years of PQE between UK, Pakistan and Kuwait.

Recent Legal Representation/Consultancy Matters:

• Advised an international oil and gas company on multiple issues including strategic advice in relation to protection of their interests under an international joint venture operating in multiple jurisdictions. Advised the client on numerous potential claims and defences involving 2 Billion USD related to financial mismanagement investigations, misuse of public funds, bribery, non-compliance, among other diverse subject matters.
• Acted as Kuwaiti Law Expert for an international financial institution with its defence in proceedings related to an international financial crime case, involving amount of 700 plus Million USD, filed by a Public entity in multiple jurisdictions relying on various provisions of criminal and civil laws.
• Assisting an international Original Equipment Manufacturer of fire extinguishment systems for oil storage tanks with resolution of their contractual dispute involving 8.3 million USD through ADR. Dispute involved shipment of materials under a Design, Engineering, Manufacturing, Calibration, Testing, and Supply of Automatic Rim Seal Fire Protection System and overdue payments.
• Rendered strategic advice to a renowned regional bank on banking disputes involving subject matters related to assignment of loan facilities, refusal of demand guarantees, and claims under counter guarantees involving amounts of 23 million Kuwaiti Dinars (equivalent to 75 million USD approx.).
• Acted as a part of team representing a private party against an Emirati Government in a multi-hundred-million-dollar infrastructure dispute under the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Rules relating to the development and operation of a significant national port.
• Acted as a part of team representing a private party in an international commercial arbitration against one of the biggest crane manufacturing companies in the world in a 79 million US dollar dispute under the ICC Rules relating to the construction, manufacturing and sales of cranes for Damietta port.
• Acted as a part of team representing a private party in an international commercial arbitration against an international JV in a multi-hundred million US dollar infrastructure dispute under the ICC Rules relating to a contract, for construction of a fully equipped quay wall at the Container Terminal, at Damietta port in Egypt, granted under concession agreement.
• Advised an international investor on a potential international investment arbitration dispute against a state for expropriation of its investment, for which the arbitration proceedings administered by International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
• Advised a Consortium on various contracts related to the multi-billion dollar EPC Contract for Construction of Um Al-Hayman Wastewater Treatment Plant project, awarded under the PPP scheme by the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP).
• Advised a renowned local contracting company on a transaction related to purchase of shares of value equivalent to 24,014,697.57 US Dollars, by way of a share purchase agreement.
• Advised Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited on multi-million-dollar Credit Facility with a prominent Chinese construction company for one of its Kuwaiti Projects.
• Acted as a Kuwaiti counsel for advising an international contractor in relation to its claims against the Employer (KOC) in relation to oil wells drilling project.
• Advised on an international transaction related to Aviation Industry involving approximately 130 US million Dollars of contract value.
• Assisting an International Law Firm in a commercial international arbitration case involving dispute between two partners over distribution of assets worth multi-billion dollars (i.e. 1133 Million Kuwaiti Dinars approximately) in multiple jurisdictions. The case involved a large number of financial claims and counterclaims with varying levels of complexity.

Languages : English

Professional Association and Memberships:Member of Young International Arbitrators Group of London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA)
Listed arbitrator at Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC)

Education: LLM (Master of Laws degree) Transnational Oil, Gas and Energy Law - University of Derby, Derby, England.
Graduate Diploma in Law - Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, England.
Master of Arts in Leading Innovation and Change - York St John University, York, United Kingdom.