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Our practices

Corporate and M&A

Ranked as a Tier 1 firm for corporate and M&A by Chambers Global, Legal 500 and IFLR1000, we combine extraordinary ability with cross-sector expertise.

Corporate

We provide our clients with the full spectrum of corporate and M&A legal advisory services, comprising a cross-section of industries and sectors. We act for public and private organisations, family business groups, and entrepreneurs.

We understand businesses and help them to evaluate and maintain their vision, constitution, composition, revenue and tax positions. We take the time to understand a business’s needs and operational and financial objectives to help build a successful and profitable enterprise.

We advise officers and directors on their duties and liabilities and negotiate and draft all types of contracts and agreements (including partnership and shareholder agreements). We regularly advise on complex domestic and cross-border business and financing transactions and provide general counsel services on various issues, including asset management and corporate expansion. Our dispute resolution lawyers are able to handle a wide range of corporate disputes, amongst others.

Renowned for our precision and swift delivery of our advice, we focus on results and devising the best possible commercial solutions. We also provide general corporate services such as corporate secretarial support to keep your organisation up-to-date and in good standing with both the provincial and federal authorities.

Practice areas
  • Corporate restructuring
  • Corporate governance
  • Compliance
  • Corporate and strategic advisory
  • Director arrangements and responsibilities
  • Earn-outs
  • Entry and exit strategies
  • General counsel services
  • Incorporations
  • Investments and security offerings
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Private equity
  • Investment funds
  • Foreign direct investment
  • Regulatory and government affairs
  • Restructuring and insolvency
  • Shareholder arrangements
  • Tax
At a glance
  • Al-Dorra Petroleum Services (Kuwait): represented client in its proposed investment of USD 20m in Progas Pakistan Limited and Sheffield Engineering Company Limited and in relation to this conducted a due diligence of Progas Pakistan Limited.
  • Aqualyng Holding AS: represented client in restructuring of its subsidiaries in Pakistan.
  • Deutsche Post International B.V.: represented client in its acquisition of the approx. 51% shareholding of DHL Pakistan (Private) Limited worth €10m.
  • ICI Pakistan Limited: represented client in relation to Rs 1b term finance certificates issued by client.
  • Makro-Habib: represented client in the proposed merger with Metro Cash & Carry Pakistan.
  • McKinsey and Company Pakistan (Pvt.) Limited, represented client in connection with its proposed business entity in Pakistan.
  • Synergy Paper Board Mills Ltd: represented the client in issues relating to the appointment of directors and SECP related fillings.
  • Ghani Glass Limited, representing the client’s shareholders the share purchase agreement with Swicorp Joussour SPV.

Mergers and acquisitions

We have worked on some of the most complex mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and corporate reorganisations in Pakistan and the UAE.

With clients operating in many industries, jurisdictions and business sectors, our lawyers have ranked as top advisors in handling the highest number and dollar volume of deals.

We have developed expertise in the energy, banking and finance, pharmaceutical and telecom sectors and our lawyers are dedicated to performing innovative and ground-breaking work.

Acting for large corporations, investment funds, institutional investors, family business groups, investment banks and private equity firms, as well as boards, management and shareholder groups, our services cover the full spectrum of negotiated and contested mergers and acquisitions. We have a strong record advising on takeover bids and shareholder contests and use our corporate and litigation lawyers to advise senior management, owners and boards of directors.

Our approach is to work closely from the outset with all parties to move deals forward. As the complex nature of mergers and acquisitions requires a multidisciplinary mindset, we often assemble a supporting team of tax, competition, real estate, intellectual property and employment lawyers to advise on the various aspects of the transaction.

Practice areas
  • Acquisitions
  • purchases
  • Carve-outs
  • Corporate finance
  • Divestitures
  • Entry and exit deals
  • Escrow arrangements
  • Exchangeable share transactions
  • Joint ventures
  • Leveraged and management buy-outs and buy-ins
  • Mergers
  • Private equity
  • Schemes of arrangement
  • Share purchases
  • Spin-outs
At a glance
  • Ashmore Energy International: represented client in their acquisition of the majority shareholding of a power generation and water desalination project.
  • Burj Capital and Burj Power: represented client in purchasing shares of Dewan Energy (Private) Limited.
  • Citibank NA and Standard Chartered Bank: acted as manager to the offer for acquisition of shares in Pakistan International Container Terminal Limited (a listed company) by ICTSI Mauritius Limited.
  • Deutsche Post International B.V.: represented client in its acquisition of the approx. 51% shareholding of DHL Pakistan (Private) Limited worth €10m.
  • FINCA Microfinance Coöperatief U.A.: represented client in the acquisition of the majority share of Kashf Microfinance Bank Limited.
  • KASB Capital: represented client in its acquisition of 40% shares of Shakarganj Food Products Limited
  • Korea South East Power Co. Ltd.: Sambu Construction Co. Ltd., Lotte Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd and Stx Construction Co. Ltd, represented clients in the acquisition of Mira Power Limited.
  • Makro-Habib: represented client in the proposed merger with Metro Cash & Carry Pakistan.
  • Morgan Stanley: represented client in the acquisition of shares in a financial institution of Pakistan.
  • Occidental Petroleum: represented client in the divestiture of its interests in Pakistan.
  • Orient Gulf Investments Limited: represented client in the acquisition of a petroleum exploration and development company
  • Pfizer Corporation: represented client in the re-structuring and merger of its subsidiaries in Pakistan.
  • Premier Oil Plc: represented client in the demerger of Premier-Shell Pakistan BV.
  • Premier Oil: represented client in the proposed acquisition of a petroleum exploration and development company operating in Pakistan.
  • Suroor Investments Limited: represented client in the acquisition of a majority stake in a local bank in Pakistan.
  • Tosca Fund: represented client in connection with the acquisition of substantial shareholding in Saudi Pak Bank.

Privatisations

Our privatisation lawyers have been directly involved in establishing and growing private independent investment in state-owned enterprises; and advising and assisting participants, investors, sponsors and financiers in privatising projects in the industrial, financial, irrigation, telecommunication and energy sectors.

We have advised on multi-tier divestiture aspects, including restructuring, deregulation, sale and transfer of assets, shares, concessions, franchises, public offerings and post-privatisation matters.

Furthermore, our team has drafted and negotiated various financial advisory agreements and sub-contracts with members of financial advisors’ team, bid documents, legal sections of information memoranda, advertisements, instructions to bidders, application forms, letters of intent/acceptance, share/asset sale agreements, guarantees and confidentiality agreements.

Practice areas
  • Equity divestitures
  • Deregulation
  • Sale and transfer of assets
  • Concessions
  • Public sector restructuring
At a glance
  • Counsel for one of the bidders, represented client in the privatization of Pakistan State Oils Limited.
  • Counsel for the acquirers, in the privatization of Millat Tractors Limited.
  • Counsel for the acquirers, of K-Electric.
  • Counsel for the privatisation of the Sui Southern Gas Company Limited and the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited.
  • Counsel for the purchasers, of NDLC.
  • Counsel for the purchasers, of Union Bank Limited.
  • Counsel for the sellers, of Dawood Bank Limited.
  • Counsel of PKP, in its demerger and re-structure.
  • Government of Pakistan, represented client in the USD 2.59b privatization of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited.
  • Magnitgorsk Iron and Steel Works, represented client, the leading single-site ferrous metallurgy company in Russia, in the privatization of Pakistan Steel Mills Limited. The Firm has successfully negotiated and obtained on behalf of the abandoned privatization of the Pakistan Steel Mills, the refund of the entire advance purchase price paid by the client.
  • NODC/ Zhenhua Oil, represented client in the privatization of Pakistan Petroleum Limited.

Contact one of our lead corporate partners today: Bilal Shaukat, Hasnain Naqvee, Yousaf Khosa and Nadir Altaf.

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What clients say...

  • Chambers Asia Pacific 2022
    "RIAA are responsive, professional and polite in explaining their advice, well researched in their opinions, and reliable in their response time… they also share commercial and operational consequences of the options presented in their advice. We are very happy with their support…." - Chambers Asia Pacific 2022

  • The Legal 500 2022
    “RIAA has an excellent litigation practice that advises on the full range of contentious issues as well as international arbitrations. The practice regularly handles all forms of civil, commercial, corporate, regulatory and white-collar crime matters before all the courts in Pakistan. It has extensive experience in a diverse range of industry sectors …” – The Legal 500 2022

  • Chambers Asia Pacific 2022
    "We find them to be extremely professional and responsive. They are meticulous in raising all the right legal points but at the same time are very solution-oriented in helping to structure the transactions in the right way to fully protect our legal rights." – Chambers Asia Pacific 2022

  • The Legal 500 2022
    “The team has an excellent track record of working on some of the most significant projects in Pakistan throughout the years.” – The Legal 500 2022 

  • Legal 500 2021
    We have worked with RIAA Barker Gillette for many years on a number of matters, including regulatory issues, labor, general corporate, competition law, and tax matters…..We have found high-quality lawyers across disciplines, who are able to balance the requirement for technically sound advice while also being practical and solution-orientated - Legal 500 2021

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